SOCIAL MEDIA
Using social media as a business owner is one thing, but using it as a mompreneur is another thing completely. Some things we need to consider that non-parent biz owners don’t:
Setting a screen time example for our kids
Being off our screens while we are with our kids
Privacy - how much of our kids do we share?
Finding the time for posting, scheduling and creation
Using social media is imperative for any business owner these days, though. There is no getting around it – I mean, that’s why you’re here, isn’t it?
Finding the line between personal and professional on social media can be tricky business. And depending on what season of entrepreneurship you’re in, it can be different from the last.
Many businesses draw that line really clearly – no personal on their biz pages, and visa versa. But as mompreneurs, our title literally combines the two. We are moms, and we are entrepreneurs. And we literally live in that gray area.
Once you know your season, it can be a little bit easier to navigate this boundary. During some seasons, you’ll be more inclined to share only professional, and others, only personal. But some notes as to how to share this with your audience:
always be authentic
There is nothing worse than pretending you have it all together when in reality, you don’t. Seriously. It’s exhausting. Communicating with your audience, whether it be friends on Facebook or followers on Pinterest, what’s truly going on in your life, rather than just want you want them to see, is imperative. Inauthenticity is obvious, and can be a huge turn off.
communicate your season
Your social audience wants to know your season! They want to follow you on your journey, literally. And communicating with them about the season you’re in can help them along your path. If you are in a rest season (sharing more personal than professional), but they found you because they like your professional, it will be a glimpse into your personal life they would not have seen otherwise. If they aren’t interested in your personal life, and only want to see professional, then you can connect with them again when you bounce back into a professional season of mompreneurship! Most likely, they aren’t going anywhere. The same works the other way around.
know your limits, and don’t be afraid
If you need a social media hiatus, take one. I wrote a blog about a hiatus I took not long ago (read it here) and how it was the biggest sigh of relief I could have taken during that time. When I came back, my true, Nicole&Co loyal followers were eagerly waiting, rather than leaving me. It’s these kind of followers that you want to cater to. Don’t be afraid to not post, to not share, or to delete it altogether. There are no rules, just suggestions, and you are the only suggestion your really need to listen to.
Your season of pruning is all about cutting back the dead so the living can grow later. This applies to social media as well, of course.
During pruning season, take the time to evaluate which channels of social media are really working for you. Use this time as an evaluation of sorts, to find which channels work in your favor, AND you really enjoy.
Be sure to not just favor one OR the other. That won’t serve you, or our followers, well. If you love to take and edit photos, craft thoughtful captions, and plan ahead, then Instagram (regular posting) is probably your go-to. If you like spur of the moment, quick thoughts on the fly, then maybe Twitter is your gig. Wherever you decide to spend your time, prune season is the time to make that change.
Use this season to share more on your platform(s) of choice, and really work to engage highly on that platform, rather than spread thin on others or all of them.
As for what to share, prune season gives you the opportunity to evaluate what your audience enjoys most. Experiment, delete what doesn’t work, and try something new.
Most importantly, remember this – you used rest season as a time to find inspiration and joy. Use prune season to prune back the social media that doesn’t do that for you. Pruning is a time to unfollow, cut back that number, and prune back your time spent on social media, and use your eyes for the accounts that matter most.
ideas for posting during prune season:
Post blogs on topics that matter, and that matter only. Don’t post just to post.
Share photos of your workspace, home and family.
When sharing FB or IG stories, do so with care – worry less about quantity and more about quality.
Start that unfollow train. Don’t love them? Unfollow. Prune back that list, girl.
Find some free stock photos, pull out an inspirational book, and plan your weekly posts in advance. Not every post has to be personal, but it does have to real.
HOMEWORK
Plan your social media
This blog post by Hootsuite is the best of the best – plan a few weeks or months of social media posts using the content calendar; audit your current profiles and optimize them; create a strategy for the weeks to come with specific goals. Also – all the image dimensions are right there at your fingertips for quick reference! Bonus.