There are times we all struggle with content ideas, when you hit that brick wall and your brain can no longer think properly. I am sure we have all been there, when you have a lot of things on your plate, it’s easy to feel uninspired or struggle to come up with fresh content ideas.
I have put together some content ideas to help you out and add some more social posts to your social media content calendar.
1) Follow Daily Themes
Choosing themes for specific days of the week will make it easier to come up with content for your social media accounts. Recurring themes also create consistency for your brand and give your audience something to look forward to every day.
Try one or a combination of these themes and see what receives the most engagement from your audience:
Monday: Motivation Monday, Music Monday
Tuesday: Tuesday Tip, Trivia Tuesday, Tuesday Treat
Wednesday: Wacky Wednesday, Wednesday Wisdom
Thursday: Throwback Thursday, Thursday Thoughts, Thankful Thursday
Friday: Follow Friday, TGIF, Friday Fun
Saturday: Selfie Saturday, Saturday Swag, Social Saturday
Sunday: Sunday Funday, Sunday Selfie
These themes are all popular hashtags, so make sure you include the hashtag when you post on Twitter and Instagram.
At the end of each week, plan out your themes for the coming week on your calendar. Spend a few months posting different themes and see what your audience responds best to. By creating a consistent theme for different days of the week, you’ll always know what you’ll be posting, and makes the creation of your content so much easier..
2) Celebrate a Funny or Unusual Holiday
Did you know that April 9th is “Name Yourself Day” or that October 8th is “Octopus Day”? Every day of the year boasts at least one unusual holiday that your audience has never heard of. Have fun posting about these holidays on your social media profiles and be sure to include the hashtags for each holiday.
#1: National Smile Day
By celebrating National Smile Day on October 3, you can encourage people to post selfies of their smiles, to make a random person smile, or you can post jokes to engage your audience. If you happen to be running a dentist’s social accounts, this is the best promotion day ever.
If your business has a local presence, it’s smart to include local holidays and observances in your social media content plan.
#2: Celebrity Birthdays and Milestone Events
Celebrity and notable birthdays and anniversaries are useful materials for social posts, especially if you have a day that you’re light on content. Depending on the celebrity or notable event you choose, you could spark a lot of user engagement on a seemingly random day for social media.
Think about celebrities or events that relate to your business. Or if your business has a long history, publish a #TBT or #FBF post related to a notable event in your business’s story. This is a great way to appeal to your fans’ sense of nostalgia, and it will speak to your longevity and legacy.
#3: National Compliment Day
This made-up holiday observed on January 24 is a great opportunity to reach out to individual followers. You can post a simple prompt encouraging people to compliment each other or to tag each other with a compliment.
#4: Make Up Your Own Holiday Day
Can you say “perfect opportunity”? Each year on March 26, Make Up Your Own Holiday Day brings the end-all, be-all opportunity for a campaign that can help you establish, grow, or further define your business’s identity. Plus, it’s a great opportunity for engagement, as you can encourage your followers to make up their very own holidays.
The perfect place to get ideas is https://www.daysoftheyear.com/
#5: April Fools’ Day
Many marketers skip April Fools’ Day because they’re afraid it will drive business away. That’s not true if you do it right. Mainly, you need to be careful and you really need to know your audience.
April Fools’ Day is very much a “don’t trust anyone” sort of day, and it’s important that you have fun without betraying your fans’ trust.
#6: Halloween
Some brands simply refuse to post on Halloween, and that’s a shame. Most social media users get into Halloween, and it’s a great time to run a cutest costume contest, encourage people to share images, and more.
#7: Ask a Stupid Question Day
Ask a Stupid Question Day on September 28 provides a great engagement post opportunity for educational institutions, specialised niches, and more. Ask a question relevant to your industry, gamifying your social page for a day. Or ask a simple question that entices people to your brand.
Keeping an eye on opportunities in the holiday and trend space for social content can only mean good things for your engagement and good responses from your users. These opportunities offer easy solutions to engaging with large audiences.
8#: National Holidays or State Holidays
Australia Day, Valentines Day, St Patricks Day, Easter, Queens Birthday, Long Weekends, Bank Holidays, Octoberfest, Melbourne Cup and Christmas all great opportunities to inspire your posts.
People love hearing fun facts and trivia. Never-before-heard-of holidays fall in this category. Get creative and have fun, and your audience is sure to respond by commenting, liking, and sharing your posts.
3) Pose an Engaging Question
People love giving their opinions and sharing personal experiences on social media. An easy to way to encourage engagement from your community is to ask a question.
For example, if you’re a travel agent, ask a simple question like “What’s your favourite holiday spot during the summer holiday’s?” or “Where do you want to go for your next holiday destination?” Include a graphic or photo to boost visibility.
You can also get people talking by asking them to make a prediction (such as “Who’s going to win the NRL Grand Final this year?”) or by giving them two options and asking what their preference is and why.
4) Ask Your Fans to “Fill in the Blank”
A fill-in-the-blank post like “The last reality show I binge watched was __________” or “My favourite place to relax is __________” will help inspire conversation on your social accounts.
5) Post a “Caption This” Photo
Posting a photo and asking your audience to provide a caption is a creative way to encourage interaction. Consider giving a prize to the person with the best caption.
You can also turn it around and ask your fans to post a photo about a topic of your choosing. For example, “Let’s have some fun today! Post the tenth photo that appears in your camera roll along with a short caption. We’d love to see it!”
6) Spotlight the People Behind Your Business
Showing the human side to your business helps you make more meaningful connections with your fans. One way to do this is to turn the spotlight on your employees.
Post photos of your employees with a fun Q&A so your audience can get to know them and their role in the company. When your employees celebrate a work anniversary, congratulate them by posting a photo and offering a few nice words. When you have an office celebration or event take photos and share with your fans.
People love seeing the behind-the-scenes of a business and especially when it’s giving them more of an insight into who you are and what you stand for.
7) Share Relevant Third-Party Resources
Have you come across something on social media that your audience would find interesting, entertaining, or useful? Sharing is caring!
Share a great article or resource your target audience would find helpful. Your audience will love that you’re bringing valuable content to them. It’s so much easier than having to search for it themselves.
Example: I would share social media information from another website that I know my clients want to know about and will help them in their own business.
8) Help Promote Local Events
If you’re a local business, plug an event that’s happening in your community such as a fundraiser/charity event or a local council or community event. This is a way to show goodwill and demonstrate that your business is invested in your community.
OK so if the above ideas have your brain ticking over, remember the business you are representing and what its brand tone is when implementing these ideas. The best is to trial and test what works for your business, what posts get more interaction and engagement and continue to see what works best for your fans.
Added Bonus Just for You!
Content Ideas to Promote Your Business:
Here are some content ideas you can use to promote your products and services on your social channels:
- Share client testimonials (with their permission), along with their photo or perhaps a link to their website or social media page (if you’re B2B).
- Post a frequently asked question (FAQ) from your customers along with your answer.
- Provide a link to your most current or relevant newsletter and invite your audience to sign up for your email list.
- Do you have a popular product or service (or something you’re trying to promote)? Post information about it so your audience can find out more. Link to a coupon, discount, or the product/service page of your website.
Content creation doesn’t have to be overwhelming or time-consuming. Creating a go-to list of ideas is an awesome way to keep your social media content calendar full.
Make sure you give yourself time to plan your content calendar properly, if you need to auto schedule, make sure you are constantly monitoring your platforms and engaging with your audience, and responding to their comments. There is no point in spending time on all the planning and content if you’re not there to respond to them straight away. Set up your notification’s so you know when you get comments.