Blogging is so much more than just creating posts and maintaining a website. Social media plays a large roll in both sharing the content you create and building a following by showing bits and pieces of your day-to-day life. It can be overwhelming with so many different outlets, but each one has its specific purpose and should be used in a different way. I learned a lot about this when I worked at a PR agency. I managed about five accounts (various Vegas restaurants) and would schedule their social media posts every week. It was a love/hate relationship—I liked the creative writing aspect, but it got tedious writing 100+ posts a week (there are only so many funny food puns!). It was a great experience though, and I’ve applied a lot of what I learned to my blog. Below are my favorite social media platforms and how I use them.
Instagram (@treatsandtrends). This image-based outlet is all about sharing beautiful photos, whether it’s of an outfit, a snowy mountain or your morning coffee. These pictures are filtered or edited more than they would be on other platforms, like Snapchat. I try to keep the style of my images consistent (use the same filters, etc.) so that when people look at my feed as a whole it has a cohesive look. It only takes people a few seconds of looking at your feed to decide if they want to follow you or not. I also try to vary the content of my posts (i.e., not posting too many outfit photos in a row). I try to mix in some food or scenic shots, so that it’s not all photos of myself.
Snapchat (treatsandtrends). This photo-sharing app is quickly becoming my favorite. I love seeing the more candid side of my favorite bloggers and getting a behind the scenes look at their life and upcoming posts. On Snapchat, no one cares if you don’t have any makeup on or if you failed at making a recipe—the more “real” the better! I also like how instantaneous it is and how I can share my thoughts or what I’m doing at the moment without it needing to be picture perfect or “blog worthy.”
Facebook. I see Facebook as the main way to share links to my blog posts (both past and present). Every morning I share my most recent post and I also schedule older posts if they are relevant again, like a Valentine’s Day recipe in February. It’s helpful to vary content on Facebook, too, and not just promote your posts. I try to share interesting articles or links that I think my readers would enjoy.
Twitter. Twitter is another great way to share links to your posts (although shortening the URL is usually necessary!). When you tease the post people are more likely to click the link thus driving more traffic to your website. Twitter also allows you to keep up with what’s trending and connect with other bloggers/brands that you don’t actually know in person. It’s all about short interactions, so get involved in the Twitter universe and start up conversations. I’m guilty of just having automatic tweets with a link to my latest post, but I try to also retweet things my followers might like and reply to interesting articles or other bloggers.
Pinterest. This is a great way to drive traffic to your blog. I pin photos from my most recent blog post as well as other images that inspire me from various websites/blogs. It’s important to mix in content that is not yours, people won’t want to follow someone who is clearly just promoting themselves. Instead, pin images that fit with your brand and aesthetic. For example, I pin a lot of style inspiration and beautiful cakes. When pinning from your own site, choose only the best photo from a post because no one likes to see five photos of the same outfit or recipe on their feed at once.
I hope you fellow bloggers found this helpful! What are some of your personal social media rules?
