TIPSY TUESDAY - When to Consider Hiring a Social Media Manager | Lilia Communications

Within the last few years, “social media” has evolved from a place where young people post silly photos and chat with their friends to a must-have marketing tactic slash multi-million-dollar business. Every year, something new is happening in the social media world. Platforms are rising, falling, and evolving; algorithms are changing; and more businesses without an online presence are finding it increasingly challenging to stay relevant.

While posting on social media for personal reasons has stayed more or less the same over the years (aside from the styled Instagram accounts of influencers and public figures, most of us still post less-than-stellar selfies and pictures of our pets), social media for businesses has changed a fair bit. Gone are the days of “Oh, this is a cool pic. I’ll post this on Facebook.” Hello calculated social media strategies.

Social media isn’t just something businesses have because “everyone has it.” (If this is your business, I recommend considering a social media manager sooner than later.) It’s now a real marketing tool where businesses invest real marketing dollars and see real results. New analytics integrations have also made it easy for businesses to see exactly how social media is impacting their product or service sales.

While it really is impossible to become an expert in the field of social media, with time, effort, and a little bit of help from someone who has worked in the field for a few years, it is becoming easier to spot what works and what doesn’t. If you happen to be managing your own social media platforms, and you notice any of these red flags, it might be time to consider hiring a social media manager to help you stay on top of your competition:

1. Your social media is inconsistent and does not reflect your business.When I chat with business owners, there are often times when I can tell, right away, if social media is just another item on their to-do list. They don’t necessarily see the value in proper social media strategy and management, so they post whatever they feel like whenever they have time. Unfortunately, there are two main things wrong with this. One, for most businesses, in order to be successful on social media, you need to post semi-regularly. This doesn’t mean you have to post every day (the frequency with which you post on each platform will vary), but you must stay relevant and in the forefront of your consumers’ minds. Secondly, if the content you’re posting does not provide value, represent your company, or help you reach your goals, there really isn’t point to posting at all.

2. You have no idea what to post on social media, and you don’t have time to look into it. As mentioned above, if you’re posting whatever you feel like on social media, without rhyme or reason, there’s a high chance you won’t see desired results. You might not see any increase in following or increase in sales. What you post on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, etc. is important, and it varies. Ensuring you’re posting the right content (e.g. videos for Facebook and high-quality images for Instagram), with the right messages (proper tone and voice), and an enticing call-to-action (“learn more about this new product on our site”) can take your social media profiles from dead to vibrant in a short period of time. Conducting this research, planning the posts, writing the content, and finding the visuals takes time which is where a social media manager can help.

3. Your competitors are leaving you in the dust. In some industries (business-to-business sales), fewer companies have a strong social media presence while companies in other industries might not be able survive without it. Regardless of the type of industry your business operates in, you might want to consider investing in a social media manager if you notice you are losing business to a competitor who has upped their social media game. With people spending hours on social media every day, your business is at a disadvantage if your competitors are repeatedly popping up in your customers’ feeds and you aren’t. To stay relevant in your industry, and prevent competitors from scooping up your clients, it might be necessary to invest in social media management.

Of course, if you’re starting a business from scratch, social media is something you might want to consider sooner than later. It’s better to start off on the right foot than make a handful of corrections down the road when your business is established and you’re swamped with other duties and costs.

One note of caution: When you’re hiring a social media manager, I recommend hiring someone who has experience managing social media accounts for businesses or organizations. Unfortunately, posting on social media for pleasure (personal) and business aren’t exactly the same. By hiring someone who doesn’t really understand how to navigate social media for business, you might just be dumping a lot of responsibility and pressure on someone who eventually reverts to exactly the same methods you were once using. You might not see the results you were hoping to see either.

Social media isn’t the be-all-end-all of every business, but it is important. My hope is for every business owner to have a positive relationship with social media, instead of a negative one. If you’re a business owner yourself, and you have any questions about social media, please feel free to message me! I’d be more than happy to provide some advice.

TIPSY TUESDAY - Choosing the Right Hair Stylist for Your Wedding | Bliss & Glow Artistry | Adriana Senecal

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You may feel the need to go to your stylist that you've been seeing for 20 years to get your wedding hair done. But is that necessarily the best choice? Sometimes it is but sometimes it could put you into a situation you don't want to be in on your wedding day.

Stylists often specialize in certain areas and are not always strong in every aspect of hairstyling. When choosing your hairstylist, you should consider how much experience they have doing bridal hair. It is a completely different area of expertise than your typical cut and color stylist. Don't get me wrong though, the stylist you've had for 20 years for cut and color may just be equally as phenomenal at bridal hair too! What I'm trying to say is, do your research!

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So you've researched people who specialize in bridal hair, but is that all you need to do? Definitely not. If you are going to a stylist that you've never had before and you're trusting them with your wedding hair, you should be booking in a trial. I know, I know, it costs more money. But you're not JUST paying for a trial, you're also paying for an in-depth consultation, a meet and greet, a chance to get to know each other and of course, a chance to see your potential stylists work. And guess what! If you absolutely hate your trial hair, it's a darn good thing you didn't find this out on your wedding day! You have two options at this point – find a different stylist that you vibe better with that can maybe give you more of what you want, or book in for a redo trial with the same stylist.

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How do you know which option is best? Sometimes having a bad trial can be a good thing! I know, you probably think I'm crazy for saying that but just hear me out. Working with the same person could be way more beneficial in figuring out what you really want. You've talked to your stylist about what you did and didn't like about the trial – this is a huge building block to get your hair exactly how you want it. After all, your going to be looking at your hair in all of your photos! When you switch stylists, you need to start back at square one with the consultation in HOPES that they understand what you're looking for. However, if you didn't like your trial hair and you also didn't vibe well with your stylist, then perhaps you need to find someone else who you can bond more with. If your stylist didn't put an effort in to fix what you didn't like, find a new one asap! Choosing a bridal stylist works just like a friendship – you'll get along with some and you won't get along with others. But the ones who are willing to work with you to get you to your desired end result are the ones worth keeping around!

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You may be thinking at this point, how do I go to someone else and not hurt my stylists feelings? You can't think of it like that! This is YOUR wedding and you need your hair to be perfect. Your stylist will understand and maybe even thank you for going to someone who specializes in bridal hair. It can give some stylists anxiety if it is not their expertise. You need to look after you first when it comes to your special day!

Your wedding day is going to be one of the most memorable days of your life and the majority of that day is about what you look like walking up the aisle to the love of your life. Finding the right people to help your vision come to life is incredibly important. Take the time to do your research and find the best fit for YOU.

Thank you!

Adriana Senecal

Bliss & Glow Artistry

Photo Credit | Bespoke Photography

How to Curate a Killer Blog with Evergreen Content | Marina Khonaisser

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Credit: Stock Image

So, you started a blog for your business!

That’s a great and exciting step. Now, your next one will be what to actually put on said blog.

What kind of blogs are essential for you to be writing? What kind of topics should you touch on? These are all questions that are no doubt circling your brain, so I’m going to introduce you to the concept of evergreen blog topics.

Before we get into what the exactly means, the first key step is identifying and getting to know your audience:

• Who are they?

• Are they men, women, or both? How old are they?

• What are they interested in?

• What are their behaviours?

Once you have that nailed down, you can really start creating appropriate, evergreen blog topics.

Wait...what is evergreen blog content?

Glad you asked!

Evergreen content is content that is always going to be relevant to your audience. This type of content essentially never gets old, because it consistently delivers value to your audience no matter the time of year. It lasts through the seasons - just like a evergreen tree.

Once you create a piece of content that is relevant and interesting, it won’t ever go out of style.

Here is a quick example:

For a Canadian company that sells RV accessories, a blog post titled “The Top 5 Best Canadian Road Trips” will always be relevant and interesting to their audience.

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How do I make evergreen blog content?

There are a number of different ways you can start getting evergreen content up on your blog. Here are a few tactics you can utilize:

• Answer frequently asked questions that pop up on your social media channels

Example: You are a retail store that constantly posts daily outfit inspiration. You notice that a number of people have been asking how they can best pair patterns together in an outfit - bust out your laptop and write a blog post that answers this question!

• Provide industry-related tips, insights and explanations relevant to your audience

Example: You are an architect that specializes in commercial designs. What’s happening in the architecture and design industry? What tips can you offer other architects and designers? What insights do you have? Share them with your audience!

• Explain insights that might not be clear to your audience

Example: You are a healthcare clinic. Use your blog as an educational tool to explain pressing topics related to self-care, and other concepts that might be confusing to your audience.

• By researching your industry!

Of course you’re going to get the best results by indulging in some of your own research that is specific to your industry. What are people talking about? How can you establish yourself as an authority in your space?

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My favourite tool for this is called Answer the Public. In the search bar you can type in keywords related to your industry, and it spits out frequently searched questions and inquiries that can all be turned into blog posts! Buzzsumo is also a great resource for finding top trending blog posts that you can get inspiration from.

The best part about evergreen blog content is that you can always mix it back into your social media schedules, because the topics will always be relevant. This will cut down time on you constantly having to find external content to post on your platforms.

Check me at marinakhon.wordpress.com!

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