This is not the field of dreams – it’s LinkedIn

Many businesses still treat social media as if success is a given. They believe that by simply setting up a page and treating it as a megaphone for pithy corporate news, they’ll have followers and potential clients flooding in.

“We’re delighted to announce blah,”

“Great to network at blaaaaah,”

“Thrilled to announce the appointment of John blaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah.”

Your LinkedIn has just died of death by corporate blah.

As much as you think this is all that’s needed to digitally turn heads, without a well-planned strategy, no amount of social media presence will move the needle.

Social media today isn’t about broadcasting, it’s about engaging with real people who share, interact and respond to your content.

In marketing, we call this shared media: where content is no longer merely pushed out for the sake of visibility but is created to spark conversation and real engagement. This idea of shared media is the key to success across all of your socials and in this blog, we’re going to look at why and give you a few practical tips on how you can put what you’ve learned into action.

Why the “build it and they will come” mindset fails

Unfortunately, this is not the field of dreams. If you build it, they will not come.

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“We need a Facebook page!”

You don’t.

“Let’s setup a TikTok!”

You (probably) shouldn’t.

Consider why you’re doing it because if there isn’t a strategy or a reason for using shared media, frustration abounds, time is lost, and the effort is wasted.

What is good shared media?

Engaging shared media starts with good content you’ve created yourself (owned content).

Think of it as a circle.

You produce good content like a blog or thought piece, you publish it to your website, and then you distribute it through email and social networks – bringing people back to your website.

That way, you can measure it. You can analyse your data and who is engaging with what you put out there. You can make informed decisions on what works and what doesn’t. You can change your content and improve it as time goes on because you’re constantly seeing how people engage with it and (through a medium like Google Analytics) know who’s clicking on your links on socials and so on and so forth.

“But how do I produce good content in the first place?!”

How to create good content (things you could do today)

Go through your sent mail.

It’s more than likely that you’re at least quite good at your job, and that a portion of your job involves communicating with colleagues, clients, prospects and partners via email.

Go into your sent folder and see what types of things you’ve sent that could be used for content. Most of us write emails that explain processes, features benefits, or our thinking on an issue.

Use those emails to publish non-proprietary information online.

For example, I recently sent an email informing a client about our process for a website audit, and the whys and wherefores of undertaking such a thing. Thus, “Conducting an audit of your b2b website” is added to our content backlog.

Still stumped? Here are a few more good content ideas:

The Trends Manifesto

It’s coming up to October, so it’s the perfect time to look at the trends you expect to hit the industry in the next year. Shine as a leader in the sector, look into a crystal ball and predict some of the things they should be watching out for. And give people a sneak peek into you as a person and a leader.

The Rant

There’s a lot that goes on in our industry, not all of it good. A good rant can get people riled up about something and give them something (you) to rally behind. That said, it’s not something you should do a lot.

Perhaps once a quarter.

The Parable

Tell a story to make a point in a post. Done wrong, this is the “What proposing to my girlfriend taught me about sales”. But done right, although difficult, it will be incredibly interesting for your audience.

The Sales Question

Chat with your sales team (or just quiz yourself if you’re the rainmaker) and ask what kinds of questions come up in meetings with prospects.

Pricing, delivery, referrals, and point-of-difference.

If you haven’t created content for these things, do it, do it now!

I guarantee, that if these topics are coming up in meetings with potential clients, people are searching for it too. If you create content to satisfy that search intent, you’ll be generating engaging content (and giving yourself a minor SEO boost).

Social media isn’t a magic wand

Simply being there won’t bring results. It’s not enough to post and hope for the best – you need a plan. The real power lies in creating valuable content that resonates with your audience, sparks conversations and, most importantly, brings people back to your brand.

So before rushing to set up a Threads page, stop and think.

Is this part of a bigger strategy?

Who is this for and do they want this?

What do I want to achieve?

What is the message that we’re trying to get across?

If you can’t answer these questions, it’s time to rethink your approach. Start with strong owned content, measure what matters, and keep refining your strategy.

Originally published on Place North West for Luma Marketing.

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