Journal | Alexandra Stanley Social Media

How to Prepare Your Social Media for January: A Simple Guide for Small Business Owners

Fri, 12 Dec 2025 13:54:51 GMT

January is one of the most important months for business visibility.

It sets the tone for the year ahead, helps you reconnect with your audience after the festive break, and gives you a fresh opportunity to market your services with confidence. But many business owners enter January feeling overwhelmed, underprepared, or unsure of what to post.

Let’s change that.

This simple guide will walk you through exactly how to prepare your social media for January, without spending hours glued to your phone, perfect for small business owners, service providers and creatives who want clarity, consistency and confidence going into 2026.

1. Reflect on What Worked in 2025

Before you plan anything new, take a moment to review what performed well over the past year.

Look at:

Your top-performing posts
Content that got the highest saves/shares
Reels or posts that led to enquiries
Themes your audience reacted well to
Times of year when engagement was strongest

This is your roadmap - The data shows you exactly what your audience wants more of.

2. Refresh Your Profile

January is a brilliant time for a mini profile refresh.

Update:

Your bio
Your niche or offer (if it’s changed)
Link in bio
Story Highlights
Profile image (if needed)

Ask yourself:
If someone discovered me today, would my profile make them want to stay?

If the answer isn’t a strong yes, refresh it.

3. Set Clear Content Goals for the Month

Instead of “post more,” set goals that actually help your business grow.

Examples:

“Increase audience engagement by 20%”
“Show up confidently on stories weekly”
“Share more educational content to build authority”
“Promote my best-selling service with intention”

Your goals anchor your content.

4. Choose Your January Content Pillars

To keep things simple, pick 3–4 content pillars you will stick to for the month.

Examples:

Education: Platform tips, how-tos, mistakes to avoid
Personal: Your story, lessons learned, behind-the-scenes
Authority: Case studies, client results, testimonials
Sales: Soft promotion of offers and services

These pillars keep your content consistent and strategic.

5. Plan Your First Two Weeks of Posts

January is busy, so plan ahead.

Your first two weeks could include:

Your goals for the year

A “how to get organised” post

A Reel with a quick social media tip

A BTS clip of your workspace restarting after the holidays

A soft “here’s how we can work together this year” post

You don’t need a full 30-day plan - just a structured start.

6. Batch Create Your First Week of Content

Batching helps you feel more in control and less overwhelmed.

Try:

Filming 2–3 Reels in one go
Creating carousels using templates
Writing captions in a single focused block
Scheduling ahead using a tool like Metricool

Small actions now = calm, consistent January.

7. Re-engage Your Audience

After the holidays, your audience will be quieter, and that’s normal.

Use your first week to warm them back up with:

Polls
Question boxes
Motivational story updates
Asking what they need help with this year

Engagement comes from connection, especially at the start of the year.

8. Showcase How You Can Help

Don’t be afraid to talk about your services with confidence.

Your audience is ready for clarity in January.

Your offers
What’s new this year
Why your service solves their problems
Who your services are perfect for

Make it easy for people to understand how to work with you.

Conclusion

January doesn’t have to feel overwhelming, but with a clear plan, a supportive strategy and consistency (not perfection), you can start the year confidently and set your business up for success.

If you want personalised support, clarity or a deeper strategy, you can book a 60-Minute Social Refresh or explore Social Media Management , Training , or Website Design services directly on our website.

Here’s to a strong, empowered and strategic start to 2026! ✨

You’ve got this.

Alexandra x

What’s Working on Instagram in 2025: 7 Smart Content Shifts Every Small Business Should Make

Mon, 09 Jun 2025 22:34:33 GMT

Let’s dive into the 7 biggest shifts you need to know about.

Instagram is no longer just a place to share pretty pictures—it’s now a full-blown marketing machine for small businesses. But what worked even 12 months ago may already be out of date.

If you're a business owner in property, trades, interiors—or any hands-on industry—this blog will walk you through what’s actually working on Instagram in 2025, and how you can update your strategy to grow with confidence.

Let’s dive into the 7 biggest shifts you need to know about.

1. �� Raw & Real Reels Are Outperforming Polished Content

The days of over-edited, overly curated videos are behind us. Audiences want to see real people doing real things. For interior designers and trades, this is your time to shine. Think:

✔️ A quick "before & after" video

✔️ A timelapse of a space being transformed

✔️ You talking directly to the camera about your process

Keep it simple, vertical, and under 30 seconds. Done is better than perfect.

2. �� Consistency > Perfection

Forget agonising over the perfect grid. In 2025, showing up consistently (even if it’s 3 times a week) wins over perfect visuals.

Tip: Use scheduling tools like Metricool to plan ahead and batch your content to stay consistent without the stress.

3. �� SEO-Optimised Captions Are a Must

Instagram is now a search engine—yes, really! Your ideal customer might be searching “kitchen fitter in Suffolk” or “luxury butler services London.”

Use keywords naturally in your:

- Bio

- Captions

- Alt text (added during post creation)

This helps you get discovered by people actively looking for your service.

4. �� Engagement-First Format Choices

The algorithm now prioritises posts that get people to pause, click, or comment.

What works best?

- Carousel posts with tips or transformations

- Reels that open with a hook

- Questions and polls in Stories

- Comment prompts like “Would you choose this colour scheme?”

Engagement tells Instagram your content is valuable—and it will show it to more people.

5. �� Instagram as Your ‘Mini Website’

Your profile is often the first impression before someone even lands on your site.

Make sure yours has:

- Clear bio with keywords and location

- Professional profile image

- Highlights (services, testimonials, FAQs)

- Pinned posts showcasing what you do

Think of it as a mini landing page that sells you.

6. �� UGC & Testimonials = Trust Builders

People trust people. Sharing real reviews, videos from clients, or even screenshots of great feedback builds instant credibility.

Ask your clients for short testimonial clips—or turn their WhatsApp praise into an aesthetic quote graphic.

7. �� Repurpose, Repurpose, Repurpose

Work smarter, not harder.

�� Post your Reels to TikTok

�� Turn blog tips into carousels

�� Clip training content into educational Reels

�� Turn FAQs into Stories

This saves time and grows your presence on multiple platforms with minimal extra effort.

Ready to Refresh Your Strategy?

If you’re feeling a bit stuck or unsure what to post next, you're not alone.

�� Book a 1:1 strategy call

�� Join my next Social Media Mastery course

�� Or DM me for a quick grid audit (it’s free!)

Let’s make Instagram work for your business in 2025—without the overwhelm.

Written by Alexandra Stanley,

Social Media Expert for property, trades & interiors.

Follow @alexandrastanleysocialmedia for more real talk on content that converts.

Why Outsource to a Social Media Manager?

Wed, 03 May 2023 15:13:43 GMT

Creating content, managing the notifications and knowing where to place your content to reach your ideal customer requires creativity and a strategy aligned with your business goals...

As a business, you might be wondering why you would outsource to a professional, qualified social media manager instead of passing the buck to a member of the team in-house.

It might seem 'easier' & 'cheaper' but is it the right decision for your business? Can they achieve the same level of results?

Here are a few reasons to outsource to a professional :

Expertise: A social media manager has specialised knowledge and experience in social media marketing, and can bring a level of expertise to your campaigns that may be difficult to achieve in-house.

Time savings: Social media marketing can be time-consuming, especially if you don't have a dedicated team working on it. Outsourcing to a social media manager can free up time for you to focus on other aspects of your business.

Cost-effective: Hiring a full-time social media marketing team can be expensive, especially for small businesses or startups. Outsourcing to a social media manager can be a more cost-effective solution.

Access to new tools and resources: A social media manager may have access to tools and resources that can help improve your social media marketing efforts, such as social media management software and advanced analytics platforms.

Fresh perspective: An outside social media manager can bring a fresh perspective to your marketing efforts, and may be able to offer new ideas and approaches that you hadn't considered before.

For any social media marketing enquires, email us at info@alexandrastanleysocialmedia.co.uk or connect on social media using the icons below.

Imagine Having More Time to Spend on Your Business

Thu, 23 Feb 2023 17:08:37 GMT

'Do more of what you love...and less of what of what you dislike.

"�� ..." ��

�� , �� , �� .

�� ?

Our tailored social media management proposal is a PDF document, unique to your business goals and our recommendations on which social media platforms you should be positioning your business on.

Our proposal is outlined in a simple format for you to understand the breakdown in what our management service includes:

➡ Welcome
➡ About
➡ Introduction to Your Proposal
➡ Proposal Outlined
➡ The Next Steps
➡ FAQs
➡ Client Feedback

If you want to elevate your online presence and attract more of your ideal customers, let's have a chat to see if you're ready for us to manage your social media for you.

�� - �� .

Start Here: Creating your Perfect Content Strategy

Sat, 01 Oct 2022 10:30:00 GMT

Have you ever felt overwhelmed at the thought of showing up online, not only showing up but CONSISTENTLY...

Earlier this year we delivered a Strategy Workshop to help business owners beat the overwhelm and start showing up online! Whilst there were no face to face visits happening due to COVID, having your business marketed online was the only way to get in-front of your customers! Here are a few questions for you to ask yourself to gain clarity about how to show up online and provide value for your audience:

WHY?

1) Why should my audience care about this?

2) Why do I want to post about this topic? Is it because it will help me reach more of my ideal clients, or do I just like talking about it?

3) Can there be a middle ground between the two?

4) What are my core offerings?

WHAT?

5) What are my biggest business goals?

6) What Are my offerings, and how can I use my content to promote them without coming off as salesy?

7) What can I create that will provide my audience with value, while also helping you establish myself as a trusted expert?

8) What do my audience & I have in common that will help me build a genuine relationship with them?

WHO?

6) Who is my ideal client and what do they care about?

7) Who does my audience follow/look up to so that I can research?

8) Who is actually reading my content and how do they typically respond to it?

9) Who has DMed or emailed me recently asking questions that I can answer in this month’s content?

10) Who do I want to show up as everyday? How do I want my audience to view me?

WHERE?

11) Where does my audience spend most of their time online?

12) Are they more likely to watch a reel of a tiktok video than read an IG caption or a blogpost?

13) Where is my presence really going to be necessary so as not to overwhelm myself with constant content creation

14) Where can I look for inspiration when I'm in a slump?

15) Where can I make an impact?

HOW?

16) How does my audience prefer to digest information?

17) How can I share value in an engaging, easy-to-understand manner that will resonate with my audience?

18) How much effort am I willing to put into my content strategy?

19) How much time does my audience spend reading short form content vs. long form content?

20) How can I prepare my audience for any upcoming new services, products, or launches that I’m planning on?

Why Should You Post Carousels on Instagram?

Sun, 25 Sep 2022 10:30:00 GMT

Mix up how you post to the social media platform Instagram...

�� - ��

�� / �� . ��'�� .

�� , �� . �� . �� .

If you use @canva to create your social media graphics (it's a free tool that also has a paid version), and you type in 'Carousel posts' when searching in templates you'll be able to use a template to save you time. BUT make sure you add your own creative spark to it, change the fonts and the colours to represent your own branding.

If this was helpful, let me know in the comments, will you be using Carousel posts?

P.s. You can upload a maximum of 10 images / graphics to one instagram post at one time.

How Social Media has Changed Property Marketing

Thu, 01 Sep 2022 21:34:15 GMT

Nearly every aspect of modern business has been disrupted by the extraordinary rise of social media. Sales & marketing across all industries is in the throes of a digital revolution. Print advertising and broadcast media, once the foundations of every marketing strategy, are increasingly being replaced by digital formats. Property marketing is no different. I believe we are on the cusp of some big changes in property marketing in response to social media.

How does this affect the property industry?

What does this switch to social media mean for property marketing? In general terms, the property industry has been slow to adopt digital technology. Despite forecasts, online agencies have not replaced estate agencies on the high street. And to date only about 5% of UK property is listed with companies like Purplebricks. For reasons I have already discussed here, I don’t see this situation changing soon. High street agents are very much here to stay.

Property marketing needs to go digital:

But if transactions aren’t going digital, digital technology is on the brink of dramatically changing property marketing. Lots of agents and developers still believe that a printed brochure is essential to drive sales. Developers spend tens of thousands of pounds on hardback, glossy brochures full of photos, floor plans and location information. This format is starting to look outdated and overdone!

Don’t get me wrong! A brochure is an effective marketing tool.

But I am no longer convinced that investing so much marketing budget in a printed brochure is worthwhile.

Printed brochures are really expensive. The content is fixed. But most importantly its effectiveness depends getting it in to a potential buyers’ hands in the first place. This is challenging at a time when footfall to agents’ offices and marketing suites is diminishing. This is part of a wider trend that sees millennials largely ignoring traditional shopping experiences and seldom visiting retail stores. Millennials are an important demographic because they now make up 66 percent of the market for first-time home-buyer. Social media is their métier.

Why does digital make sense?

With developers looking to cut marketing costs in the current economic climate, what better way to do this than to replace paper with digital? Digital is effective because it can be incredibly targeted. This makes advertising spend go much further. Moreover, you don’t need someone to come to your office/ marketing suite to view your product. You can send a video or tweet a link directly to their phone or tablet. In a tight sales market, social media can offer a way to leverage a smaller budget in a way that paper advertising and brochures just can’t.

There is no word in the English language to describe the opposite of ‘targeted marketing’.

But if it did exist it would surely be called something like print media! With this medium, you publish and keep your fingers crossed that your target customer will see your advertisement and respond. Tracking the results of print advertising is much more difficult.

But how do you sell property on digital?

The future of marketing may be mainly digital, but property marketing faces some real challenges when it comes to effective online campaigns.

Bricks and mortar aren’t in themselves ‘sexy’. Social media platforms are largely driven by attractive visual content. How can concrete frames, plasterboard and brickwork look good and excite viewers? Ask me.
Property is a very high value, low volume kind of industry. People use social media for low value and high volume trades. So, how do you sell really high value items on a ‘disposable’ medium?
Social media is all about fast-moving content, about the instant and the visual, developments and events happening NOW. Conversely, the construction industry moves at snail’s pace! This difference in pace makes it difficult to generate interesting content.
While access to data and properties in the market is very easy nowadays, competition is fierce. How can developers create differentiation in a crowded market?

There are ways to overcome these challenges and turn the transparency of social media into an advantage.

Branding is the foundation

Lots of developers take the view that they don’t need a brand, or that only top end London developments require this sophisticated approach.

But the power of branding is everywhere. Instagram has made a brand out of everyone and everything.

This means that developers need to invest in a coherent and attractive visual language for what they publish online. Don’t leave your selling agent to take control of this element of your marketing. Be confident about your product. Develop your own signature style. This will help you to stand out from other projects on the market.

Imagery is king

Social media platforms, particularly Instagram , have put aspirational lifestyles and gorgeous imagery into the hands of everyone with a smart phone. That means that developers and sellers need to up their visual game.

Good photography is king when it comes to selling property.

Investing in great photography will help to increase your digital capital. The language of social medias is rarely text! Focus your efforts on your imagery and you will see interest in your property increase.

Create raving fans! - Something which I've learnt from working within the property industry.

Deliver a great finished product and your #happycustomers will market your development for nothing. Remember that if you can turn your buyers into raving fans, you will have social proof of the desirability of your product.

Social proof is the currency that pays dividends more than any other online.

A good digital record, testimonials from others saying great things about you is much more powerful than YOU doing the talking. It counts for so much more than boastful corporate statements.

Content marketing is the sophisticated way to do it:

Content marketing and influencer strategies are clever ways of advertising without the ‘sales pitch’. Digital can help to blur the lines between paid advertising and promotional material.

This sponsored content is an attempt to rehabilitate the bank without resorting to an ‘in-your-face’ sales approach.

Content marketing requires planning and effort, but it can be incredibly effective in communicating the right message to your audience.

Plan for each platform:

Finally, developers need to plan for social media at the beginning of the sales strategy. Tacking it on at the end just won’t work. And each social media platform requires a different strategy and some dedicated resource. Contact us to book your complimentary discovery call and we can work through a strategy together.

If you are able to adapt to the opportunities that social media brings, you can steal a march on your competition. By approaching your property marketing with digital at the forefront of your mind, you can flay pounds off your marketing budget, find customers to market your product for you and stand out from the crowd!

Want to learn more, book your complimentary discovery consultation over on our Facebook Page.

Alexandra x

7 Reasons Why Estate Agents Should Use Social Media

Mon, 01 Aug 2022 13:59:09 GMT

Take advantage of the opportunities that social media provides...

1. Build your reputation

One of the biggest reasons Estate Agents should be using social media is to build a solid reputation. When you are able to present yourself in the right way display your business online and provide great information your business has to offer, you'll be seen as a great resource for potential buyers and prospects. Knowing how to leverage the power of social media will allow you to get your business name out there to a larger audience in a short amount of time, which in turn could be extremely beneficial when building your clientele.

2. Grow your network and connect with potential clients

Networking, as many of us have realised within the past year, if not before now, is one of the most important aspects of success in the real estate business. Having a strong network of industry peers and prospects is fundamental as an agent. Social Media is a great way to build relationships, stay in contact with your clients and meet new potential prospects. The main social media platform that offers features like messaging, commenting and sharing industry related content is LinkedIn. It's utilising these features that helps you to build connections and keep in constant touch with your community.

3. An opportunity for brand development and lead generation

Having a brand that stands out is crucial for social media success. In this day and age, real estate is such a broad industry - did you know there are over 16,000 estate agents in the UK alone? With those numbers, it’s evident that you’re going to need to differentiate yourself from the competition. Developing a strong brand helps you to do just that! Along with those numbers, TA staggering 71% of consumers who have had a good social media experience with a brand are likely to recommend it to others. Reviews by followers can go a long way in improving your brand’s credibility, with people more inclined to contact you when looking to buy, sell or let a property. These is one of the biggest benefits of using social media as a real estate professional.

4. Capture the up-and-coming buyer market (the millennial generation)

We all know that social media is the future of business strategy and marketing. With the millennial generation starting to settle down and purchase their first homes, it’s important to capture that market NOW to be ready for the future generation of up-and-coming clients. With over 90% of millennials active on social media, one of the biggest advantages of jumping on the social media train is to capture that audience for future business.

5. Stay top of mind

We always say, “Top of someones feed = top of someones mind”. When you are consistently showing up on someones Instagram and Facebook with quality content, it ensures that you won’t be forgotten about anytime soon. Being active on social media makes certain you are bringing awareness and attention to your business.

6 . Display your success & show your personality

Wether you’ve sold over 30M in your first two years, you recently closed on your very first transaction, or you just passed your RE exam… It’s important to highlight your success stories and milestones to connect with your clients and gain attention from potential leads! Testimonials, closing day announcements, client & agent group photos… These types of posts do two things at at the same time; they build a sense of social proof, and also help to humanize your brand and bring your personality into your social media presence. Making your happy clients part of your social strategy is always a great marketing idea!

7. Provide information & education for buyers/sellers

When someone is looking for an estate agent, they’re searching for an agent who is reliable, knowledgable, and educated - someone they can trust when making one of the biggest purchases in their life. Providing helpful tips and information on your social media platforms will help you to be seen as a resource and an expert in the industry, which automatically builds respect and trust with future potential clients.

What is a Content Strategy?

Fri, 01 Jul 2022 13:23:27 GMT

Build the foundations to your marketing journey.

What is content strategy?

A content strategy is a strategy that takes your business goals, and then uses content as a primary means to achieve those goals.

For instance, your business goals might include increasing brand awareness (to ultimately drive more revenue) — to achieve this goal, you might implement a content strategy that focuses on SEO to increase website visibility on the SERPs and drive traffic to your products or services.

New business owners might assume a content strategy is a 'nice-to-have', but not entirely necessary early on. However, producing high-quality content to meet business needs can help companies build trust with new audiences and, ultimately, succeed over the long-haul.

"In essence, a good content strategy is often the foundation of your attract and delight stage s in a buyers' journey. Along with attracting new prospects to your brand, you might also use a content strategy for sales enablement and overall customer satisfaction."

With 70% of marketers actively investing in content marketing , it's often critical you develop a good content strategy to compete in your industry.

When you develop a content strategy, there are a few questions to answer. Let's dive into those, now.

1. Who will be reading your content?

Who's the target audience for your content? For how many audiences are you creating content? Just as your business might have more than one type of customer, your content strategy can cater to more than one type of reader or viewer.

Using a variety of content types and channels will help you deliver different content to each type of audience you have in mind and engage everyone your company does business with.

2. What problem will you be solving for your audience(s)?

Ideally, your product or service solves a problem you know your audience has. By the same token, your content coaches and educates your audience through this problem as they begin to identify and address it.

A sound content strategy supports people on both sides of your product: those who are still figuring out what their main challenges are, and those who are already using your product to overcome these challenges. Your content reinforces the solution(s) you're offering and makes your customers more qualified users of your product.

3. What makes you unique?

Your competitors likely have a similar product as yours, which means your potential customers need to know what makes yours better — or, at least, different. This is where content comes in.

In order to prove why you're worth buying from, you need to prove why you're worth listening to.

4. What content formats will you focus on?

What forms will your content take? Infographics? Videos? Blog posts? Having identified the topics you want to take a position on, you'll need to determine which formats to budget for so you can best express that position.

5. What channels will you publish on?

Just as you can create content in different formats, you'll also have different channels you can publish to. Channels can include owned properties, such as your website and blog; and social media properties, such as Facebook and Twitter. We'll talk more about social media content strategy in the step-by-step guide later in this article.

6. How will you manage content creation and publication?

Figuring out how you'll create and publish all your content can be a daunting task. It's important for a content strategy to know who's creating what, where it's being published, and when it's going live.

Watch this space, our introduction to our content strategy will be released in our next journal post soon. Join our mailing list to receive the latest updates, marketing tips and valuable content to help you and your business succeed!

How to Come up with Amazing Social Media Content

Wed, 01 Jun 2022 14:48:02 GMT

The internet is full of ideas for social media content. Alexandra is a social media manager and in this post she share 's with you what really works.

If you type ‘What to post on social media’ into the Google search bar you’ll be rewarded with more than 6,000,000,000 results. So we know one thing for sure, there’s no shortage of ideas for social media content out there!

But who has time to wade through all that? You just want a straight answer to the question ‘What should I post on my business social media pages?’. Right?

The good news is I’ve been working in social media for X years, and have a better idea than most of what works. And today I’m going to share it with you.

For more insider tips Book a Power Hour

Now check out these surefire engagement-grabbers. Pick one from each section to really mix your social media content up.

Bread and butter posts:

These foundation posts will keep followers up to date with your business:

A link to your latest blog post. Use it to open a discussion
Tips and tricks. Share a business hack that could help your followers
Share exclusive discounts and offers
Behind the scenes. Post pictures of you, your team, your workspace, the office dog

Eek I forgot to plan ahead posts!

Don’t panic, it happens to the best of us. These quick-fix ideas can be turned around in no time:

Share an article or image from another account. If you can’t find something you like, reshare (and give an update on) a post that performed well for you in the past
Link to your email sign-up or a freebie
Create a fun poll
Post a review, testimonial or image of a happy customer – thank and tag the customer

Let’s have some fun posts:

Use your platforms to show off your sparkling personality:

Share an ‘oops’ moment
Post a zoomed-in image and ask followers to guess what it is
Two truths and a lie… ask your fans to guess which of the three statements about you or your business isn’t true. Invite them to share theirs
Ask followers to post what they’re doing then add the phrase… like a boss!

Showcase your skills and knowledge posts:

Keep your readers’ interests at the heart of these messages:

Reveal new products and services
Achievements and milestones. Top tip: Never start a post with ‘We are proud to announce…’ No-one cares!
Post a helpful answer to a frequently asked question
Bust an annoying myth about your industry

Getting to know you posts:

Storytelling posts are social media gold right now. Use them to give your followers a better understanding of your motivation and values:

Tell people how you got to where you are today
Post about how you overcame a challenge in your life or business
Let your audience know why you do what you do
Share your ‘a-ha’ moment

Ask a question posts:

Invite your followers to join in:

Ask me anything…
Fill in the blank ______
Ask for feedback on a new product or a challenge you’re facing
Post an image and ask followers to write a caption – for double points offer a prize to the best entry

And FINALLY, don’t forget to add a compelling call to action into all your social media content. Try some of these:

Double tap if you agree
Like if you needed this reminder today
DM me for more info
DM me for XYZ
What would you do?
Is this helpful? Share your tips
Link in the bio / comments
So, tell me XYZ …

Want to learn more about social media marketing, tips and tricks - Join our private Facebook group - The Marketing Design Cafe

Website SEO Checklist

Sun, 01 May 2022 14:41:33 GMT

10 Steps to Better Google Rankings

Are you looking for ways to improve your website’s performance on Google? Want to audit your website and make sure there are no errors holding you back?

The team from To The Web share their website SEO checklist in this infographic.

Here’s what makes their list:

Ensure your pages can be indexed
Secure your website
Check your metadata
Audit your link profile
Optimize site speed
Remove duplicate content
Remove low-value pages
Create useful links
Optimize for mobile
Master the basics

Check out the infographic for more detail.

Instagram provides a new overview of how its Algorithms work

183:748897945 (Alexandra Stanley) — Tue, 15 Jun 2021 09:21:59 GMT

Looking to get a better understanding of the Instagram algorithm, and how it decides what content to show each individual user - and how you can use that to your own advantage?

You're in luck - this week, as part of its Creator Week event, Instagram is providing some extra insight into its internal processes via series of explainers, with the first focused on the infamous feed algorithm , and how it actually dictates content reach in the app.

As explained by Instagram :

"We want to do a better job of explaining how Instagram works. There are a lot of misconceptions out there, and we recognize that we can do more to help people understand what we do. Today, we’re sharing the first in a series of posts that will shed more light on how Instagram’s technology works and how it impacts the experiences that people have across the app."

The post covers a range of key elements that can help to facilitate more understanding, and improve your planning in the app. Here's a look at the key points.

Here's not one, all-encompassing algorithm

Instagram first notes that its processes are not defined by a single algorithm, so the idea of 'the algorithm' as such is slightly flawed.

"Instagram doesn’t have one algorithm that oversees what people do and don’t see on the app. We use a variety of algorithms, classifiers, and processes, each with its own purpose. We want to make the most of your time, and we believe that using technology to personalize your experience is the best way to do that."

Instagram explains that, like Facebook, it implemented an algorithm because the flow of content became too much for each user to navigate.

"By 2016, people were missing 70% of all their posts in Feed, including almost half of posts from their close connections. So we developed and introduced a Feed that ranked posts based on what you care about most."

Which is why the focus of its feed and Stories algorithms is generally on friends, while Explore and Reels look to uncover more relevant topics based on trends, interests, etc.

Key signals

I nstagram says that its algorithms all use key signals, with those signals varying dependent on each element.

Instagram notes that there are "thousands" of signals that its systems can draw from, but for the most part, the main indicators across Feed and Stories, in order of importance, are:

Information about the post - These are signals both about how popular a post is – think how many people have liked it – and more mundane information about the content itself, like when it was posted, how long it is if it’s a video, and what location, if any, was attached to it.
Information about the person who posted - This helps us get a sense for how interesting the person might be to you, and includes signals like how many times people have interacted with that person in the past few weeks.
Your activity - This helps us understand what you might be interested in and includes signals such as how many posts you’ve liked.
Your history of interacting with someone - This gives us a sense of how interested you are generally in seeing posts from a particular person. An example is whether or not you comment on each other’s posts.

These are the general algorithm identifiers, similar to Facebook's News Feed, with the key elements being what types of posts you engage with and your relationship to the creator of each.

If you engage with video more often, you'll see more video, if the post is getting a lot of engagement, you're more likely to see it, if you tap Like on a certain post, that's a strong indicator of interest, etc.

Worth noting here that these elements apply to both the main feed and your Stories, so if you're looking to maximize reach in these surfaces, these are the key elements that you need to focus on.

Furthering this, Instagram also notes that the feed ranking will also be based on each users' engagement history:

"In Feed, the five interactions we look at most closely are how likely you are to spend a few seconds on a post, comment on it, like it, save it, and tap on the profile photo. The more likely you are to take an action, and the more heavily we weigh that action, the higher up you’ll see the post."

Again, it comes down to incentivizing action - how can you maximize the appeal of your content to prompt these types of responses? That will help ensure more of your posts get priority for each user.

Ranking Explore

Instagram's discovery tab is a little different, with the Explore algorithm focused on showing you other content that you may like, based on who you follow and your engagement history.

"To find photos and videos you might be interested in, we look at signals like what posts you've liked, saved, and commented on in the past. Let’s say you’ve recently liked a number of photos from San Francisco’s dumpling chef Cathay Bi. We then look at who else likes Cathay’s photos, and then what other accounts those people are interested in. Maybe people who like Cathay are also into the SF dim sum spot Dragon Beaux. In that case, the next time you open Explore, we might show you a photo or video from Dragon Beaux. In practice, this means that if you’re interested in dumplings you might see posts about related topics, like gyoza and dim sum, without us necessarily understanding what each post is about."

So the idea here is that the algorithm will look to showcase content to related groups of people based on clusters - if you're regularly engaging with a profile that shares fishing content, then it's likely that other people who engage with the same are also looking at other fishing accounts, which you may also be interested in.

This is where hashtags can help improve discovery, by getting your account in front of people searching for certain topics. If they then engage with your posts, that increases your chances of being shown to their connections, and so on.

Like Feed and Stories, Instagram ranks the Explore listing based on how likely each user is to engage with each post.

"Once we’ve found a group of photos and videos you might be interested in, we then order them by how interested we think you are in each one, much like how we rank Feed and Stories. The best way to guess how interested you are in something is to predict how likely you are to do something with the post. The most important actions we predict in Explore include likes, saves, and shares."

Saves have become a more important consideration more recently, with some noting that Saves have more weight in algorithm distribution, which may or may not be correct. But certainly, it's an element that Instagram is now specifically noting, so it is worth considering how you can incentivize saves of your posts, as this can play a part in improving Explore exposure.

It's worth also noting too, that while the Explore feed is also ranked based on personal engagement elements (the types of post a user has engaged with, relationship with account, etc.), how popular a post is, based on broader engagement signals, is a much bigger consideration in Explore, and will see content get more exposure in the Explore feed.

Ranking Reels

Instagram's latest algorithm-defined element is its TikTok like Reels, for which it says the algorithm is "specifically focused on what might entertain you."

"We survey people and ask whether they find a particular reel entertaining or funny, and learn from the feedback to get better at working out what will entertain people, with an eye towards smaller creators. The most important predictions we make are how likely you are to watch a reel all the way through, like it, say it was entertaining or funny, and go to the audio page (a proxy for whether or not you might be inspired to make your own reel.)"

TikTok has almost perfected the most engaging version of the short video algorithm, with its system taking in the exact right signals to show you a constant stream of content that you can't help but keep scrolling through, based on trends, creators, the content of each clip, etc.

Instagram is now working to catch up, and anecdotally, it is improving, with its Reels display hooking into similar elements to make it a more sticky, engaging proposition for users who tap into the Reels feed.

For Reels, Instagram says that these are the four key elements of focus in its algorithm:

Your activity - We look at things like which reels you’ve liked, commented on, and engaged with recently. These signals help us to understand what content might be relevant to you.

Your history of interacting with the person who posted- Like in Explore, it’s likely the video was made by someone you’ve never heard of, but if you have interacted with them that gives us a sense of how interested you might be in what they shared.

Information about the reel - These are signals about the content within the video such as the audio track, video understanding based on pixels and whole frames, as well as popularity.

Information about the person who posted - We consider popularity to help find compelling content from a wide array of people and give everyone a chance to find their audience.

So content and creator popularity, overall, is a bigger factor for Reels, while it's also worth noting that Instagram will restrict the reach of Reels that include a TikTok watermark or similar, which it says is designed to improve the user experience (i.e. people criticized Reels as simply being a re-hashed feed of TikTok clips, so it now looks to stop such re-sharing).

These are some helpful pointers as to how Instagram's various algorithms work, and how it looks to showcase certain content to users - and what each creator should be focused on to improve their reach. Essentially, it comes down to audience understanding - doubling down on what works, and dropping what people don't respond to - in order to maximize these key elements, and boost engagement, first with your followers, then subsequently with wider audiences.

If you'd like to learn more about Instagram, check out our 1:1 Social Media Training

Article Source: https://www.socialmediatoday.com/news/instagram-provides-a-new-overview-of-how-its-algorithms-work/601492/

The new rules of social media marketing in 2021

183:748897945 (Alexandra Stanley) — Wed, 24 Feb 2021 14:48:03 GMT

Social media has taken on greater significance for consumers and marketers as 2020’s events have forced more digital communication, but the ways of using it are evolving.

The resurgence of social media

One marketing discipline that rose back to prominence in 2020 is social media. It makes sense – as the world was forced to remain physical ly distanced, social media bridged the gap and kept us connected to family, friends, and the brands we love.

Until earlier this year, most brands knew where they stood on social media. They had the right balance of engagement, listening, content, and advertising. However, once the pandemic hit, the rules of the game changed.

Trend 1: The race to ROI: Social bridges the gap to a new customer experience

Almost three-quarters of marketers surveyed for the report ranked “increased acquisition of new customers” as their top outcome for social media in 2021, a 58% year-over-year increase. However, transactions alone don’t create memorable brands or ensure long-term growth.

In 2021, marketers will continue to use social media to meet two equally urgent imperatives:

Deliver short-term ROI with targeted performance marketing tactics
Building innovative digital experiences to win long -term loyalty

Trend 2: Silence is golden: Brands find their place in the conversation

Many brands made the mistake of trying to capitalise on the increased social media activity during the pandemic, completely overlooking the fact that people primarily wanted to connect with each other, not brands.

For the most part, these brands saw the error of their ways early and pulled back on advertising spend, redirecting focus to crisis response, social customer care and engagement. In 2021, marketers will strive to place more value on content over engagement—passive audiences are still consuming your content.

Trend 3: Way more than OK: A generation ignored by digital marketers booms on social

Marketers have typically targeted baby boomers through traditional TV advertising, which is still one of the most effective ways of reaching them. However, there has been a 66-point increase in baby boomers discovering new brands and products via social media over the past four years, and over a quarter of baby boomers are spending even longer on social platforms as a result of the pandemic. In 2021, social marketers will continue to explore this increasingly digitally savvy audience.

Trend 4: Do I know you? Tying engagement to identity gives advanced marketers new momentum

The pandemic has given executives renewed appreciation for social media, which became the strongest bridge for connecting with customers after so many traditional strategies collapsed.

Hootsuite’s research found 85% of organisations that integrate social data into other systems have confidence in their organisation’s ability to accurately quantify the ROI of social media.

In 2021, marketers will take steps to bridge the gap between engagement and customer identity by connecting more customer data with social data.

Groupe Pierre & Vacances Center Parcs unites social and CRM for a deeper understanding of the customer journey

Trend 5: The perils (and promise) of purpose: Bold brands start in the boardroom, not the front lines of social

In 2020, marketers stumbled under pressure to publicly address issues that their organisations had never focused on. Strong CMOs will use the intelligence gathered by social media teams in 2021 to help the organisation adapt to new buyer beliefs and pave a new path to growth that requires balancing the twin demands of building a better business and a better world.

Source: marketingweek.com

Ikea helps families reduce holiday pressures in new campaign

183:748897945 (Alexandra Stanley) — Mon, 16 Nov 2020 17:55:52 GMT

A great campaign by Ikea: Four Weeks of Wonder

Four Weeks of Wonder is a celebration of old and new holiday traditions. From baking cookies and decorating your space, to giving gifts and enjoying quality time (possibly virtually) with friends and family, the season of wonder is here!

Dive Brief:

Ikea today kicks off its "Four Weeks of Wonder" holiday campaign built around themes of decorating, cooking, gift-giving and celebrating, according to details emailed to Marketing Dive. A hub on the retailer's website connects consumers to gift card giveaways and Ikea's content partners, including a DIY decorator, chef, family of creators and Netflix's "Love is Blind" stars Lauren and Cam Hamilton, who will share themed Instagram and YouTube content.

A video ad depicts a family's moments from this year that acknowledge it's been an exhausting time.The "Not Just Another Holiday Commercial" spot, created by agency Ogilvy, will air on TV, connected TV (CTV), paid social and online video including on Hulu and YouTube.

Ikea's holiday campaign attempts to be relatable with a frank acknowledgement of a difficult year while promising to help take some of the pressure off an unusual holiday season. It highlights the joys of scaled-back celebrations and shares tips for how consumers can adjust their expectations around cooking, decorating and gift-giving. The campaign was developed with Wavemaker, Fullscreen and Fooji.

Dive Insight:

Ikea's holiday marketing recognizes that this year's festivities will likely look different due to the coronavirus pandemic, with the brand honoring traditions old and new. With the core anthem spot, "Not Just Another Holiday Commercial," the retailer spotlights relatable human moments through a single family, aiming to remind consumers that it's here to help for whatever is needed this unique season.

The broader campaign looks to take some pressure off consumers and their wallets with free content to inspire new ways of celebrating. Ikea-themed digital backgrounds will be available for families using video conferencing platforms to stay connected.

Last year, Ikea took a humorous approach to its holiday campaign with an ad that showed household décor rapping jabs about people's lackluster homes. Since then, it's rebooted efforts around sleep to show the lengths people go to for a restful night. Partnerships with Ogilvy, Fullscreen, Wavemaker and Fooji in February extended the retailer's "Save Our Sleep" campaign into March with ads on CTV and social media, as well as influencer tips, product giveaways and Giphy content.

Now, Ikea's holiday campaign continues those agency partnerships and similarly teams up with influencers to share social media content, inspirational tips and product recommendations.

While changes in consumer habits this year helped some categories, retailers at large experienced negative effects from the pandemic. Ikea kept its place as the top retail brand of Interbrand's annual ranking of the best global brands, with a 3% gain in brand value to $18.9 billion (No. 25), while Zara fell 13% to $14.9 billion (No. 35) and H&M dropped 14% to $14 billion (No. 37).

You can view their hub on their website here: https://www.ikea.com/us/en/campaigns/4-weeks-of-wonder-pub575f3160

Source: www.marketingdive.com

5 insight gifts to unwrap for your 2020 Christmas marketing

183:748897945 (Alexandra Stanley) — Thu, 24 Sep 2020 09:05:34 GMT

This Christmas shopping season is a time when new shopping behaviours will emerge.

Given the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, this year will inevitably look a little different compared to years gone by.

With changes to many aspects of life, new habits formed at this time are likely to shape trends for 2020 seasons and beyond.

It's going to be more important than ever for people to come together and share gifts with their loved ones.

Learn how people expect to celebrate and shop this holiday season and read our recommended solutions to help you adapt and plan for the season ahead.

1. Gen X and boomers dominate global mobile and ecommerce growth

COVID-19 has changed how we live, shop and communicate, leading more people to rely on technology than ever before. This is especially true of Gen X and Boomers, whether it’s mobile, ecommerce or messaging.

2. Self-gifting and seasonal shopping can be positive outlets in difficult times

Even in challenging times, people find ways to stay positive and reward themselves. In past recessions, affordable luxuries such as lipstick, nail polish and ice cream have proven popular. This offers great opportunities for business and, with the sales season offers, it’s an ideal opportunity for self-gifting.

3. Imposed disruption fuels receptiveness to new products and services

While COVID-19 has disrupted lives, people are becoming more open to trying new products and services like grocery delivery. This holiday season, people will likely be even more receptive as they look for ways to adapt to the new normal and seek better products, services, and activities that are more convenient to them.

4. The economic downturn will expedite the rise of Mega-Sales

With COVID-19 affecting families and their finances, people will be more sensitive to price and turn to ecommerce to avoid crowds—meaning that mega sales days like Black Friday and Cyber Monday will be top of mind.

5. The new value equation: Affordability, authenticity and action

People care as much about the actions businesses take as they do about price. They seek authentic, informative content from businesses. Beyond price and quality, global shoppers are increasingly drawn to brands that support causes they care about. Social responsibility and brand authenticity are more influential than ever. People want to understand your business, what you stand for, and be proud to support you.

What Happens on the Internet Every Minute

183:748897945 (Alexandra Stanley) — Thu, 13 Aug 2020 11:29:07 GMT

It's amazing to consider the significance of connectivity, and the internet more broadly, in modern life.

It's strange to think that only 20 years ago, mobile phones were really just starting to gain momentum - and five years before that, the internet was barely a thing for consumers. Now, almost everything we do is connected to our online personas in some form, with a huge range of our daily interactions taking place in apps, tools and other connected devices, helping to simplify and streamline our lives.

Well, mostly. As we've found more recently, not all of those online interactions are beneficial, and tracking everything may not be exactly what you want.

Here's a quick snapshot of what's happening online, every minute of every day.

And there are some staggering stats in this year's version - for example:

Facebook users upload 147,000 photos

Twitter gains 319 new users

Instagram users post 347,222 Stories

YouTube creators upload 500 hours of video

Every minute. Every day.

Still, taking a step back from it all, the amount of online activity is truly something to behold. Which is what this new graphic from Domo is about. Domo has updated its 'Data Never Sleeps' graphic for 2019, highlighting just how much is going on online every minute of every day.

If you've ever wondered whether digital marketing is important for your business, this graphic might well answer that question for you.

LinkedIn Company Pages

183:748897945 (Alexandra Stanley) — Thu, 13 Aug 2020 11:19:42 GMT

New updates from LinkedIn favouring Company Pages

LinkedIn is becoming more and more popular for organisations. There are already over 50 million businesses using LinkedIn Pages. The number is increasing and we’re not surprised, as it’s a great way to engage with your network – clients, employees, and prospects alike. LinkedIn is working on new features each quarter and has recently introduced new options to Pages.

You are now able to:

Invite to Follow

Similarly to Facebook, LinkedIn now has a new follow feature that lets you ‘Invite to Follow’ as a Page. It allows you to invite your 1st Degree connections to follow your Page and grow its community, as well as helping you to grow your own network.

Check out our company page here: www.linkedin.com/alexandrastanleysocialmedia

Post as a Page or member

From now you don’t have to go directly to the Page to post but you can also post as a member of the organisation using the toggle switch introduced by LinkedIn that’s available on the homepage. This feature makes it a lot easier to engage with your followers and it’s very easy to access.

Share to personal feed from your company page

This option encourages increased organic reach to your wider network and beyond.

Facebook "Like & Share" Giveaway Scams

183:748897945 (Alexandra Stanley) — Thu, 11 Jun 2020 17:27:33 GMT

Don't be fooled...

If you're on Facebook , you would have seen these 'like and share' competition posts floating around. They are a popular tool that businesses use to engage customers on social media, particularly Facebook. But unfortunately, there are some disreputable characters out there who use giveaways to scam people.

A few that we have seen be shared lately, are giveaways where you could be in the chance of wining desirable things such as Range Rovers, Airline tickets, holidays in the Maldives, we could go on for a while. The problem is that whilst these are appealing, they are a scam . And worst, can be dangerous with security and data breaches to collect personal information from you.

What's the harm?

The purpose of many of these scams are to collect 'likes and shares' for a particular entity, whether an individual user or company using dodgy tactics to promote their products online.

The problem with many of these giveaways is that there is rarely a prize...often you are just handing out your personal information for nothing in return. Facebook doesn't help in this matter either. The more likes and shares the particular post receives, the more likely it is to appear on your newsfeed, compelling you to click, share and like the post.

So, how can you spot a Facebook Giveaway Scam?

Check the Facebook Page / Website

Check out the Facebook Page first, you can click on information or about on the page, and see when it was first created. If it was created yesterday or a couple of days ago, and they have over 11,000 likes with zero other information on the page...it's a scam.

Don't Grant Them Permissions or Give Out Personal Information on Facebook

When you click 'accept' third party permissions, more often than not, you don't know what you are agreeing to, allowing scammers to access your device. This could compromise your identity and grant them access to personal data.

To avoid sounding like your parent - you should never give out bank details or passwords on social media, even if it appears that the bank or social media platform is asking for it.

Social Media is free to use, unless you set up Facebook Advertising account, in which case Facebook will ask you to input your bank details where they can take payment from.

FOUR Strategies to Improve your Email Marketing

Tue, 31 Mar 2020 10:34:26 GMT

Build & develop your mailing list...

Email marketing has been around forever, and for good reason. It’s the most direct and effective way of connecting with your leads, nurturing them, and turning them into customers, consistently winning out over all other marketing channels.

"Email marketing is the highly effective digital marketing strategy of sending emails to prospects and customers.

Effective marketing emails convert prospects into customers, and turn one-time buyers into loyal, raving fans."

Automated email marketing provides a chance for you to improve sales conversions — maybe even by 14%. It’s a way to send customers unique offers — such as product sales or newsletters updates — with information your reader can’t get anywhere else.

Emails should be personalized with what your customers want to see, allowing you an instant way to communicate with them. Your emails should contain information your customers are interested in learning more about, such as discount offers, business updates, or product/service launches.

1. Use double-open emails to extend your reach

Are you worried because the email highlighting your newest product didn't have a very high open rate? The work that went into crafting that email doesn't have to go to waste. With a double-open campaign, you send the same email to everyone on your list who didn't open the original message. The only thing that changes is the subject line .

Sending these emails three to five days after the original can spur additional opens. And don't forget that you can take snippets of your email to create into content for your social media posts, with the call to action to sign up to your mailing list.

If your initial email has a 50% open rate, and then 50% of those who didn't open the original email click on the double-open message, you could significantly increase your sales, all thanks to a simple resend.

2. Know the best time to send

While sending your emails during a weekday will typically lead to a higher open rate, the time of day will also make a difference.

Here's a little exercise for you: Check the timestamps on the emails you've received in the past day. What have you found? For me, I noticed that most of my emails, especially my subscription emails, were sent between 9-10 AM, or 5-6 PM. This may differ for you depending on the type of emails you receive. -Think back to who your ideal clients are, and when they would be looking at their emails? Consider running tests where time of day is the only variable to find the best time for your audience.

3. Growing your email list

What most people do when they want to build an email list is to put an optin form on their website and hope that people sign up. Unfortunately, this strategy usually doesn’t work very well.

To grow your email list, you need to attract people with a compelling offer. You need a lead magnet .

What is a Lead Magnet?

A lead magnet (a.k.a. an optin bribe) is something awesome that you give away for free in exchange for an email address. It doesn’t have to cost you anything to create; most lead magnets are digital materials like PDFs, MP3 audio files, or videos that you can create yourself at minimal or no cost.

It can be absolutely anything you want, so long as it provides value to your visitors for free .

Some popular lead magnet examples are:

E-books
A cheat sheet of tips or resources
White papers or case studies
A webinar
Free trials or samples
A free quote or consultation
Quizzes or a self-assessment
A coupon

The possibilities are endless!

4. Make Your Subject Line Stand Out

When it comes to email open and click rates, your subject lines are everything. Your job is to make your subject lines stand out.

Here are some tips for crafting creative subject lines:

Entice curiosity, but don’t be too clever. You want to make them curious enough to open and click, but without being so cryptic that the subscriber hasn’t a clue as to what you’re talking about.
Include numbers. There is something about numbers that draw the eye.
Use a friendly and conversational tone.
Speak in the language and style that your subscribers use themselves, especially when talking with their friends.

Bonus Tip: Write to Just One Person

When you draft your subject line and message content, it’s natural to think of the thousands of people who are about to receive it.

However, it’s far more effective to write as if speaking to an individual person, with a personal subject line and a personalized message.

To write this way, you’ll have to really know your buyer persona. You need to understand their problems, their desires, their values, their likes, and their dislikes.

Want to receive further social media marketing tips, find out about our upcoming workshops and webinars ? Join our private VIP WhatsApp group . Submit the form below, and you'll be sent the link to join.

Why Ecommerce is a BIG hit right now!!

Thu, 19 Mar 2020 18:24:05 GMT

Think outside the box...

Through these uncertain times, for anyone who wants, or needs some extra cashflow right now, E-commerce is the one of the best aspects of business you could possibly be in - people staying at home will have to shop online by default, and YOU could be their seller.

There is a massive land grab available on the internet, with this increasing demand, there is more room for sellers than ever before.

Scale of the increased demand?

Amazon are hiring 100,000 new warehouse staff in the US, and another 10,000 in the UK just to keep up with the huge surge in eCommerce sales amid the Corona crisis!

Two things: if you have a premise selling stock, but not an E-commerce website (where customers can buy online), we can adapt your website so this can facilitate the option to buy online through our website design service.

Another option would be, can you take payments over the p hone? Could your customers collect their parcels when left for them outside your shop? (obviously, they will have to notify you when they can collect, so you can put this out for collection minutes before they arrive. (this relieves the concern of having human contact during these difficult times).

If you don't have a product to offer, could you? Could you offer your service as a product that you customers could purchase? You can record your training videos and repurpose the content so that your customers could subscribe to, once payment has been made, you can then send the content direct to their inbox using tools such as Mailchimp. (this could be automated too, if you have the right tools in place).

We are here to support you, if you need clarity and how you can push your business forward in the online marketing world, we offer complimentary discovery calls - Book yours here: https://www.facebook.com/alexandrastanleysocialmedia/

Alexandra x

Seven tips for mastering Instagram for your business

Mon, 16 Mar 2020 12:21:06 GMT

1. Show what you do in a creative way

Focus on the solution you provide, not the products you sell. On Instagram , it’s essential to add value to your customers and look pretty while you do it. Never underestimate the fact that your most important asset (and downfall) on this social media network is visual content.

If your business is service-oriented, focus on showcasing the process behind providing the service. Show your company culture, share your mission with the world, or simply share some tips and how-tos. It’s possible to upload photos, short videos (similar to GIFs, called Boomerangs) and videos up to one minute in length.

Try Instagram Stories

Instagram Stories have a slideshow format and are only live for 24-hours (though they can be saved to your device to be re-used later). This new feature is a direct competitor to Snapchat's Stories and is now being heavily developed by Instagram. These are some of the benefits of using Instagram Stories for brands:

Stories are prominently displayed at the top of follower timelines just under the Instagram logo.
Can be used to capture behind-the-scenes content that doesn't have to be as high in quality as regular posts.
Makes it easy to experiment with different content types: photo, short video, Boomerang (GIF-like image), video filmed backwards (Rewind) and live video.
Save them to Instagram highlights to develop your business branding. See ours here

Tagging other accounts, e.g. @instagram in Stories is ideal for collaborators and influencer marketing.
Fun additions like face filters, text and stickers help you edit images on-the-go.
Story search for hashtags and locations make them more discoverable.
All photos and videos you add will play in the sequence they were added and you can add as many as you like. Instagram Stories adverts became available to all businesses globally in March 2017. You can use these to target new audiences and add CTAs (Call to Actions) to your collages which can be especially useful for promotions.

Note that Stories are only available on the mobile app and it's possible to send Instagram Stories as a direct message (DM). The use of social media Stories is definitely picking up and almost any brand can find a fun and engaging way how to participate.

2. Create a winning profile

As a business, you probably do a whole lot of things and offer even more solutions. Don’t get too caught up in fitting all of that in 150 characters. Focus on your most important USP (Unique Selling Point) or your next big thing - be it an event, promotion or product launch.

Since the only clickable link is in your Bio section (right under your business name), make a habit of updating it frequently. It’s a shame that most brands use it only to link to their website, but it could do so much more. Think, driving event registrations, app downloads or even purchases.

Instagram has also launched their Instagram Business profiles and paid advertising. The Business profile adds a phone number to your bio and gives access to extensive analytics data that wouldn't be otherwise available unless you're using a social media tool.

3. Take them behind-the-scenes

Customers have a natural curiosity about where their products come from, and you can use Instagram to show them their whole lifecycle. This is especially relevant for companies that sell environmentally friendly or FairTrade products. Source images to demonstrate how products are made - from the base material, production and distribution.

If nothing comes to mind, you can share something that everyone has - sketches, notes and filled whiteboards or blackboards. Every business has brainstormed ideas, it’s up to you to take a pretty picture and upload it to Instagram. You may find that it's best to try out different post types until you strike gold with the one that will engage the audience. Thanks to yet another new feature, Instagram now lets you archive posts instead of deleting them.

4. Expand your reach with #hashtags

Use hashtags to expand your reach. These can be campaign specific or general - all that’s important is that they are relevant. Make sure to also set up your main company hashtag (#yourbrandname), and use it sparingly across Instagram. This makes it easier for people to find content related to you as well as your main account.

It’s best practice to use between three to five niched hashtags, despite the fact that the maximum you can add is 30 per Instagram post. Use your own, campaign specific hashtags as well as the more popular hashtags to increase the discoverability of your content. For example, try adding hashtags like #instagood (used is 300 million posts), or #tbt (Throwback Thursday), and don’t forget about industry specific ones. If you are in Property, the hashtag #property or #estateagents will do just fine. Also, consider how you add hashtags, these can be added at the end of the post, in a comment or worked into the actual post, like the post below:

5. Collaborate and @mention others

Instagram is one of the strongest social media channels for highlighting collaborators and sharing customer success stories. Even if you don't officially partner with a non-profit organisation, you can give to charity or do a fundraiser a couple of times a year. It's all good as long as the cause aligns with your brand values and mission. Take into account that not everyone is monitoring hashtags on social media, so tagging an account is usually a better choice if you want to get noticed.

6. Build anticipation and offer exclusivity

Keeping your customers interested is an essential part of any effective marketing campaign. Reward your loyal followers with exclusive content. Let them be the first to know about new products, services or events. Create teaser photos that build anticipation or satisfy curiosity for your new releases, office openings or stores. This kind of preview makes your Instagram followers feel special and keeps them coming back for more insider information.

7. Analyse your success and build on it

Without taking a step back and analyzing what worked and didn’t, marketing becomes a guessing game. The truth is, you can read all the articles in the world about the best practices and publishing times, but you will only find out what works for your clients through testing and measuring results.

Social media management tools can help, though. You can use them not only to schedule your Instagram campaigns in advance but also use social media analytics to measure their success. Make sure to regularly measure your follower count, engagement and clicks, all to refine and improve your strategy.

Discover more tips for Instagram:

If you're still wondering if you should get started on Instagram, attend our workshops or you can book in a 1:1 with Alexandra. During this our session together we talk about why your business will win by being on Instagram, Instagram's hidden and handy features, and of course, how to create strategies for your channel and campaigns that work.

Follow us on Instagram @alexandrastanleysocialmedia , where we will keep you updated with our latest upcoming workshops, provide tips and social media advice right at your fingertips.

5 Reasons to set up a Facebook Business page

Fri, 07 Feb 2020 18:28:24 GMT

Since attending multiple networking events this year, I've spoken to various business owners who have asked "should I have a separate page for my business to my personal Facebook profile?" and the answer is simply, yes.

There a multiple benefits for having a separate page for your business, here's why:-

��Having a business page on Facebook allows your business to be found and viewed in a professional manner.

��You’re able to list your services, receive recommendations and showcase your portfolio / products.

��You have access to Facebook business insights to track and monitor your following / page engagement, allowing you to pin down on the best times to post and which posts are likeable and which are not.

��You can advertise your business page / promote your website or boost a post to your target audience, using Facebook Ads.

��Most importantly, seperate your business from your personal page for friends and family, giving you an extra audience to market to. (Hint: Share your business page to your timeline)

Check out our business page for inspiration:- www.facebook.com/alexandrastanleysocialmedia

Do you feel your business hit a dead end on social media?

Mon, 16 Dec 2019 02:58:36 GMT

Book your very own private 1-1 Strategy Consultation today.

Not sure what direction to take in social or already have an in-house team delivering your content?

For those clients not interested in getting us to manage their presences for them or that already have an in-house team doing a good job, we can offer a consultative approach.

We can work with you to define your social media strategy, train your internal team on industry best-practice or create an approach for targeting a particular sector.

Let us know what problem you are trying solve and we'll build a bespoke, tailored approach just for you.

Why Holiday Posts are Crucial to Your Social Marketing Plan

Wed, 20 Feb 2019 18:42:23 GMT

Many social media marketers see holiday posts as “fluff” – content that doesn’t really mean anything, but is easy to create and post...

Holiday Posts are Easy To Create...

Original content creation can be resource-intensive, but holiday posts are easy to create – IF you have the right tools. The first thing you need is a reliable holiday calendar so you know what to post, when. There are a number of websites that offer information like this, and several social tools. You can also do research via social media channels and blogs.

Holiday Posts Are Timely and Relevant...

One of the biggest challenges facing a social media marketing is the creation of content that has context. That is, it is delivered to the right person, at the right time, via the right channel. And, it has the right message.

It’s also a good idea to post holiday content that is relevant to your industry.

Why else are holiday posts so important?

Holiday Posts are Sharable...

People love to share holiday posts. Especially if you have,

Stunning Visuals
A well-placed message
An interesting call to action

Holiday Posts Have Emotional Appeal...

Despite their religious leanings, people tend to be happiest on Christmas, with Thanksgiving and New Year’s Eve not far behind. Of course, there are plenty of other holidays that make people happy. Best Friend’s Day, National Donut Day National Social Media Day…there are so many holidays and pseudo-holidays that create wonderful emotional touch points in your marketing campaign.

How to Successfully Include Holiday Posts in My Social Media Marketing Campaign...

It’s a simple formula. Know your audience, then aim to surprise and delight them. You can engage your fans and followers and generate more likes and shares with engaging content – and holiday and event posts are some of the most engaging. Tie them in with a sale, quiz, special offer, discount or another incentive to get a lot of oomph.

A step into the Social Media Business World

183:748897945 (Alexandra Stanley) — Fri, 18 Jan 2019 13:51:15 GMT

Are you utilising Social Media?

I hope 'social media' isn't such an unfamiliar word to many of you.

Social media like the world is always rotating. We can discover new features every day allowing our customers to get the most out of interacting online.

Many of you will have heard of the main social media platforms: Facebook and Twitter as they are the larger platforms followed by others such as Instagram, LinkedIn, Google+ and Pinterest.

What you may not know is how these platforms are the secret ingredient to your marketing success.

What Can Social Media Do For Your Marketing?

Number 1- Increase Your Brand Awareness:

Any business owner wants to push their brand in to the 21st century. Brand awareness helps a business to become more noticed by consumers. I find that being able to reach thousands through the click of a button is a powerful tool to have for your business.

A comparison always helps me understand something:

Let’s say that your brand is your new puppy; you want to show it off to everyone. You want everybody to see how cute your puppy is. You can't possibly send a photo to everyone through the post. It's too expensive, so instead you post a photo on Facebook for all your friends to see at once!

The same principles apply to your brand. Why post leaflets that can only reach a set number, when you can post/tweet and reach so many more.

Number 2- Get To Know Your Customers

It is an intimate way of marketing. Social media gives you a voice alongside a personality. It gives you a chance to get to know your customers in a more relaxing environment. Most customers will have personal profiles on Social Media sites. Use this to your advantage and interact!

Number 3- Save Yourself Some Money

Think with your business brain. Social media is the most cost efficient form of marketing. The setting up of Social media sites is free; through maintaining a good online presence you will have no problem building a secure follower base.

Saving money wins the race for a lot of us. With smaller businesses it is key to save money where we can. Social media does have additional extras you can pay for however you are able to control what you spend for each post.

So to make sure you optimise your marketing potential why not get on the social media bandwagon today!

Let's meet up for a coffee to see how Social Media can work for you and your business.

you can give me a call, or send me a WhatsApp message : 07769 805579
Alexandra

Instagram adds "ALT text"

183:748897945 (Alexandra Stanley) — Thu, 17 Jan 2019 12:20:00 GMT

Here is the most important thing you should know about ALT text

Instagram News

This is a huge new Instagram feature: the ALT text on Instagram photos.

Questions:

What is the ALT Text feature for?
Why is it awesome?
How to add ALT text on new and old photos?
What should you actually write?
How we use it

Let’s start.

What is “ALT Text”?

In Internet language, “ALT” means alternative. So “ALT text” mean “ alternative text ”.

ALT text is the alternative to your photo in case your photo doesn’t not load on a website (for example). Instead of seeing the photo, people will read your alternative text. Your alternative text should describe what is on your photo (this way people don’t totally miss out on your content). If you don’t write an alternative text for your photo, people will miss your photo and your alternative description.

But ALT texts have a much bigger purpose than just providing a description.

ALT texts are everywhere . They are on every websites on the Internet. And now on Instagram. You might not “see it”, but it is very important and powerful.

What is the ALT text for?

Here is the most important thing you should know about ALT text:

The ALT text is not a “copy and paste” of your Instagram caption. The ALT text is used to describe exactly what is on your photo.

Why bother adding a ALT text on your posts?

Here is why:

1. It helps people who can’t see “see” your photo. Think about it: Instagram is a visual platform. Plus, we usually don’t describe a photo in the caption. This makes it harder for people who can’t see (like blind people) to relate to your story. If you write an ALT text, people will use it to understand what is on your photo. Their phones (thanks to the awesome “screen reader” feature) will read the ALT text for them. The ALT text is your way of giving people more context to understand not only your caption, but also your account and after all… you. How awesome is that?! You’re basically making your content, your creativity and yourself accessible to even more people in the community.

2. It helps the Instagram algorithm understand what is on your photo . Instagram has been using an image recognition technology to “see” what is on your photo. This technology helps Instagram show your post to more people who like your kind of content. This is awesome to make sure your posts are seen by people who actually care about what you post (and not random people on Instagram). Now with ALT text, the algorithm can become even more powerful and useful to help you grow your account in a natural way.

3. It helps you grow your Instagram account using Google. Instagram SEO is real! It’s here! Are you new to SEO? “SEO” means “Search Engine Optimisation”. It sounds complicated but it’s actually very easy. SEO is a strategy people use to grow their website online – so that you see their website first when you search for something. Now the same is happening for Instagram (let’s call it “Instagram SEO”). As part of your SEO strategy, ALT text are very important and useful. You need to use good keywords in your ALT text. You need to use keywords people would type on Google to find your photo. Does it make sense? For example, if people are searching for “funny dog photo Christmas”, the photo of your dog with a cute Santa hat can appear in the search results on Google. This means that your Instagram post can live a life beyond Instagram. Your photo can go viral on the Internet (not just on Instagram). Isn’t this amazing? Click here to read all our Instagram SEO tips.

I hope you now understand the power of this new ALT text feature on Instagram:

People who have visual impairments can see your photos thanks to you
The Instagram algorithm can see what’s on your photo and help you grow your account
Your Instagram photos can be found on Google (not just on Instagram)

Try it on www.instagram.com
news via ipreview

8 Top Marketing Strategy Steps

183:748897945 (Alexandra Stanley) — Sat, 17 Nov 2018 14:48:58 GMT

Start your marketing strategy the right way!

- Set Goals that align to your business objectives

- Research your audience

- Research your competition

- Evaluate your current efforts

- Decide which networks to use and create a mission statement for each

- Find inspiration from other’s success

- Build a social media content calendar

- Test, Evaluate, adjust and repeat!

Your marketing strategy is very simple. It defines how you are going to market your products, services or business to customers. It lays out what your objectives are and how you're going to execute them. What strategy have you put in place when it comes to your online presence?

Journal | Alexandra Stanley Social Media

How to Prepare Your Social Media for January: A Simple Guide for Small Business Owners

1. Reflect on What Worked in 2025

2. Refresh Your Profile

3. Set Clear Content Goals for the Month

4. Choose Your January Content Pillars

5. Plan Your First Two Weeks of Posts

6. Batch Create Your First Week of Content

7. Re-engage Your Audience

8. Showcase How You Can Help

Conclusion

Alexandra x

What’s Working on Instagram in 2025: 7 Smart Content Shifts Every Small Business Should Make

Let’s dive into the 7 biggest shifts you need to know about.

Why Outsource to a Social Media Manager?

Creating content, managing the notifications and knowing where to place your content to reach your ideal customer requires creativity and a strategy aligned with your business goals...

Imagine Having More Time to Spend on Your Business

'Do more of what you love...and less of what of what you dislike.

Start Here: Creating your Perfect Content Strategy

Have you ever felt overwhelmed at the thought of showing up online, not only showing up but CONSISTENTLY...

WHY?

WHAT?

WHO?

WHERE?

HOW?

Why Should You Post Carousels on Instagram?

Mix up how you post to the social media platform Instagram...

How Social Media has Changed Property Marketing

7 Reasons Why Estate Agents Should Use Social Media

Take advantage of the opportunities that social media provides...

What is a Content Strategy?

Build the foundations to your marketing journey.

What is content strategy?

How to Come up with Amazing Social Media Content

The internet is full of ideas for social media content. Alexandra is a social media manager and in this post she share 's with you what really works. ﻿

Now check out these surefire engagement-grabbers. Pick one from each section to really mix your social media content up.

Bread and butter posts:

Eek I forgot to plan ahead posts!

Let’s have some fun posts:

Showcase your skills and knowledge posts:

Getting to know you posts:

Ask a question posts:

And FINALLY, don’t forget to add a compelling call to action into all your social media content. Try some of these:

Website SEO Checklist

10 Steps to Better Google Rankings

Instagram provides a new overview of how its Algorithms work

Looking to get a better understanding of the Instagram algorithm, and how it decides what content to show each individual user - and how you can use that to your own advantage?

Here's not one, all-encompassing algorithm

Key signals

Ranking Explore

Ranking Reels

The new rules of social media marketing in 2021

Social media has taken on greater significance for consumers and marketers as 2020’s events have forced more digital communication, but the ways of using it are evolving.

The resurgence of social media

Ikea helps families reduce holiday pressures in new campaign

A great campaign by Ikea: Four Weeks of Wonder

5 insight gifts to unwrap for your 2020 Christmas marketing

What Happens on the Internet Every Minute

It's amazing to consider the significance of connectivity, and the internet more broadly, in modern life.

LinkedIn Company Pages

New updates from LinkedIn favouring Company Pages

Facebook "Like & Share" Giveaway Scams

Don't be fooled...

FOUR Strategies to Improve your Email Marketing

Build & develop your mailing list...

Why Ecommerce is a BIG hit right now!!

Think outside the box...

Seven tips for mastering Instagram for your business

5 Reasons to set up a Facebook Business page

Do you feel your business hit a dead end on social media?

Book your very own private 1-1 Strategy Consultation today.

Why Holiday Posts are Crucial to Your Social Marketing Plan

Many social media marketers see holiday posts as “fluff” – content that doesn’t really mean anything, but is easy to create and post...

A step into the Social Media Business World

Are you utilising Social Media?

Instagram adds "ALT text"

Here is the most important thing you should know about ALT text

Instagram News

8 Top Marketing Strategy Steps

Start your marketing strategy the right way!

The internet is full of ideas for social media content. Alexandra is a social media manager and in this post she share 's with you what really works.