Why Trying to Sound Professional Is Hurting Your Brand

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There’s a perception when you start your business that you need to suddenly become a ✨Business Owner✨ and sound in a particular way, or act in a certain way. It’s simply not true. You don’t have to change anything about yourself when you start a business, and to do so can seriously hurt your brand.

I say this because I did it. When I first started my business, I heard the phrase “treat your business like you’re an MD”, so I interpreted that as I needed to show up as this super-corporate persona. The trouble was, showing up that way every day was exhausting.

It was unnatural to me. It was like wearing someone else’s skin.

And worse than that, everyone could tell that it wasn’t truly me. It just didn’t match the person that they were meeting when out networking.

I also found it really difficult to keep the consistency up when I was putting on the mask of “sounding corporate”. It wasn’t me, so it was difficult to regularly show up as that person.

For those of you reading this who know my backstory, you know that living that corporate life and career killed me inside. My mental health was never worse than when I was pretending to be corporate. No wonder it almost killed my business to be back in that place, pretending to be something I’m not.

The truth is, you don’t need to be corporate to be professional.

That was a lesson I had to learn the hard way. Because when I decided to put myself through the coaching I take my clients through, I realised that I had done everything for my business that I tell my clients not to.

When I first start working with my coaching clients, I take them through an in-depth process to uncover their brand. We work deeply within the sense of self to really understand it. After all, a personal brand is not something you build; it’s something you uncover (see my last blog for more on this).

I worked with myself to uncover my brand and realised that my brand was far more quirky and personal than what I had been portraying on social media. So I needed to stop the awful habit I had developed in trying to sound super-corporate.

I started posting the stuff that I would say in networking meetings.

I started posting about my archery, my axe throwing and air rifle shooting…

I started posting about the beer festival and Scouting activities I do…

The real me. Showing up as me.

And do you know what happened?

My views and popularity on social media drastically improved. My engagement with my audience shot up. Not because of any algorithm hack, just by simply being my chaotic self.

I still have the old posts visible on my social media, and when I get stuck on what to post, I like to look back over them and see if any of the corporate tips and tricks are still relevant and I can say them again, only this time as me.

Of course, if you are a super corporate person, your social media pages should absolutely sound like that. Because that’s you. But if it’s not your style or way of talking, you absolutely need to cut that habit now before it destroys your brand and your business.

Doing it can damage your brand, and that’s not what we want. We want you to fly on social media, as your authentic self.

Need more help understanding where you are losing clients from your social media? Drop me a message and let’s see where you can improve and flourish online.

Why Pride Matters in Business and on Social Media

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Pride is more than changing your profile photo for June. I see it time and time again where businesses change their profile photos to a rainbow version for the month of June, but don’t actually show up as an ally when it matters.

Recently, I posted on my business and personal social media accounts about my strong feelings of support for the trans community in light of the EHRC legislation happening in Europe right now.

I reiterated my stance that I support the trans community against the oppression that is currently being forced upon them in “my” name – their rights are being taken away from them in the interest of caring for cisgender women. I don’t agree with it, and I made my thoughts known.

Sure enough, you can bet that this post attracted a troll.

Someone who went out of their way to be vicious, hurtful and spiteful to my trans friends who commented in support of my post and then the hate was directed at me. Both publicly and privately on social media through direct messages and comments.

It wasn’t a nice feeling to read those comments. I felt bad that I had attracted that hatred, and some of my trans friends had faced it on my supportive post. It left a bitter taste in my mouth.

But I didn’t take the post down. I didn’t back down in my support of the trans community because of the vitriol that was being spewed out by the troll. I went back with firmness, telling them that their hatred was not welcome on my page.

Because, when all is said and done, I wanted to show that my support was stronger than some unknown person’s hatred and that there would always be a space in my life and business for members of the LGBTQIA+ community.

I wanted to show it far stronger and more openly than simply changing my profile photos to have a pride flag in the background of them.

Changing your profile photo for the month of Pride (June) is great, but showing your support on social media for the LGBTQIA+ community is far stronger.

After dealing with the troll and putting out a subsequent post on social media about why I had posted in the first place, I also went on my podcast with the amazing Verity Curryer to talk about Values, Visibility and Difficult Conversations. We discussed at length what it means to be visible with our values when it comes to business.

Now, yes, I could have put a pride flag on my social media profiles to show my support and inclusivity of people from the LGBTQIA+ community, but words and actions will always be far more powerful.

Since I put the posts up, and since the podcast episode has come out, I have had more enquiries from the LGBTQIA+ community come through to my inbox. I have had messages that people are more willing to work and talk to me because they feel safe and included with me and my services.

Because I did more than follow a trend in saying that I support Pride. I embodied it and proved my support to the community.

Pride is about more than a rainbow flag.

Pride is about recognising the difficulties faced by those in the LGBTQIA+ community and showing that you stand with them.

If you are a business owner and reading this, thinking that to show your inclusion of the LGBTQIA+ community, you only need to put a rainbow on your social media pages this month, you need to do more to show your values.

Stop worrying about the people, it will put off working with you when you show your values and support of something. Because, yes, it will put off the people who don’t share your values, but did you really want to work with them anyway?

I don’t want to work with people like the troll my post attracted. I would far rather work with people who share my value set, and I am only going to find those people by openly talking about my values on social media and why they matter to me.

Posting about your values on social media will attract the customers you want to work with. So do it. Particularly when there is a prime opportunity to do so, like Pride Month.

And if you need more help in telling your story and showing your values on social media, book a call with me today and find out how I can help.

Which Social Media Platform Should You Be Using in 2026?

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If you’ve ever wondered, “Which social media platform should I actually be using for my business?” you are not alone.

This is one of the most common questions I get asked, and it usually comes after someone has tried to be everywhere at once and ended up doing none of it particularly well.

So let’s simplify it.

You do not need to be on every platform.
You do not need to follow every trend.

You just need to be in the right place, speaking to the right people, in the right way.

Let’s look at what that actually means in 2026.

A Quick Overview of the Main Platforms

When we talk about the best social media platforms for business in the UK, these are the ones that still matter.

Facebook

Facebook is still very much alive, despite what people say.

It works particularly well for:

  • Community building
  • Local businesses
  • Groups and conversations
  • Slightly older audiences

If your audience is 30+, there is a strong chance they are still spending time here.

It is not always the most exciting platform, but it is reliable and still effective when used properly.

Instagram

Instagram continues to be a strong platform for visibility and brand building.

It works well for:

  • Visual content
  • Personal branding
  • Behind the scenes
  • Building connection and trust

It is especially useful if you want people to get a feel for who you are and how you work.

For many service-based businesses, this is where your personality can come through.

LinkedIn

LinkedIn has become a key platform for service-based businesses, especially in the B2B space.

It works well for:

  • Professional services
  • Thought leadership
  • Sharing insights and opinions
  • Building authority

I find that the content that works here is no longer overly corporate. The more human and conversational you can make it, the better it performs.

TikTok

TikTok is often the platform people feel unsure about.

It works well for:

  • Short-form video
  • Educational content in simple terms
  • Reaching new audiences quickly

You do not need to dance or follow every trend to make it work.

In fact, some of the most effective content on TikTok is straightforward, informative, and easy to understand.

If you are willing to be visible and speak directly to your audience, it can be a powerful tool.

X (formerly Twitter)

X is still around, but it is more niche in how businesses use it.

It works well for:

  • Real-time updates
  • Commentary
  • Industry conversations

For many small business owners, it is not the first platform I would recommend focusing on unless your audience is already active there.

B2B vs B2C: What Works Best?

This is where a lot of people get stuck, so let’s keep it simple.

B2B Businesses

If you are selling to other businesses, your strongest platforms are usually:

  • LinkedIn
  • Instagram
  • Facebook (in some cases, especially groups)

LinkedIn is often the core platform because it allows you to share your expertise and build trust in a professional space.

Instagram supports that by showing the human side of your business.

B2C Businesses

If you are selling directly to consumers, you are more likely to focus on:

  • Instagram
  • Facebook
  • TikTok

These platforms allow you to build connection, showcase products or services, and reach a wider audience.

That said, the lines are not as clear as they used to be.

B2B buyers are still people.
B2C audiences still value expertise.

So whichever category you fall into, your content still needs to feel human.

How to Choose the Right Platform for Your Business

Instead of asking, “Where should I be posting?”

Start by asking:

👉 Where is my audience already spending time?
👉 What type of content do I feel comfortable creating?
👉 Where can I realistically show up consistently?

Because there is no point choosing a platform that you are going to avoid or resent.

For example:

  • If you enjoy writing and sharing insights, LinkedIn might suit you
  • If you prefer visuals and short videos, Instagram or TikTok could work well
  • If your audience is local or community-focused, Facebook may be the right place

The best social media platforms for business in the UK are not about trends. They are about alignment.

Social Media Trends for 2026

Let’s talk about where things are heading, without overcomplicating it.

1. Simpler, clearer content

There is a shift away from over-polished, jargon-heavy content.

People want clarity. They want to understand what you do quickly and easily.

2. More human businesses

Audiences are connecting with people, not logos.

Businesses that show personality, share stories, and communicate in a relatable way are standing out.

3. Short-form video is still growing

Video is not going anywhere.

But it does not need to be complicated. Simple, direct, and useful content performs well.

4. Consistency over intensity

Posting every day is not the goal.

Showing up regularly with clear, useful content is what makes the difference.

5. Trust is the deciding factor

People are more cautious about who they work with.

Your content plays a huge role in building that trust before someone ever contacts you.

Final Thoughts

You do not need to be everywhere.

You do not need to chase every new platform or trend.

You just need to choose the platforms that make sense for your business and your audience, and then show up consistently in a way that feels natural to you.

That is what builds visibility.
That is what builds trust.
And ultimately, that is what leads to enquiries.

If you focus on that, your social media becomes far more straightforward and far more effective.

And that is exactly what most business owners are looking for.

Content Ideas for Social Media When You Feel Stuck

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If you’ve ever sat staring at your phone or laptop thinking, “What on earth do I even post today?” you are not alone.

This is one of the most common things I hear from business owners. Especially those who are brilliant at what they do but struggle to translate that into engaging content.

The good news is this. You don’t need to be constantly coming up with brand new, groundbreaking ideas. You just need a simple approach that keeps you consistent and connected to your audience.

Let’s break that down.

Why Consistency Matters (More Than You Think)

Before we get into ideas, it’s important to understand why this matters.

Consistency on social media is not about posting every single day or burning yourself out trying to keep up. It is about showing up regularly enough that your audience remembers you, trusts you, and starts to recognise your voice.

For many small business owners in the UK, social media becomes something that gets pushed to the bottom of the list. You post when you remember, disappear for a few weeks, then come back with a burst of motivation.

The problem with that approach is simple.

People forget you.

When you show up consistently, even just a few times a week, you stay visible. You build familiarity. You create more opportunities for people to understand what you do and how you can help them.

And that is where your content starts to work for you instead of feeling like a chore.

20 Social Media Content Ideas to Get You Started

If you feel stuck, come back to this list. These are the types of small business social media posts that actually connect with people.

  1. Behind the scenes of your working day
  2. A common question you get from clients
  3. A recent client win or transformation
  4. A quick tip related to your expertise
  5. A myth in your industry that needs clearing up
  6. A mistake you often see people make
  7. Your process explained in simple terms
  8. A “day in the life” style post
  9. Before and after examples of your work
  10. A personal story that links back to your business
  11. A tool or resource you regularly use
  12. A poll asking your audience’s opinion
  13. A piece of industry news with your perspective
  14. A testimonial or client feedback
  15. An answer to a frequently asked question
  16. A “did you know?” style educational post
  17. A breakdown of a service you offer
  18. A challenge your clients often face
  19. A quick checklist your audience can use
  20. A reflection on something you’ve learned in business

Notice how none of these require you to reinvent the wheel.

They are all based on what you already know, what you already do, and the conversations you are already having.

That is the key.

How to Repurpose Old Content (Instead of Starting from Scratch)

One of the biggest mistakes I see is business owners thinking they always need new ideas.

You don’t.

You probably already have a lot of content that can be reused, reshaped, and shared again in a different way.

Here are a few simple ways to repurpose what you already have:

Take an old post that performed well and rewrite it with a fresh angle
Turn a longer post into a series of shorter tips
Take a blog and break it into multiple social media posts
Turn a client question into a piece of content
Revisit a topic you spoke about months ago and update it

Most of your audience will not have seen everything you have ever posted. And even if they have, repetition helps reinforce your message.

Repurposing saves time, reduces pressure, and helps you stay consistent without constantly starting from zero.

A Quick Shift That Changes Everything

If you are struggling with social media content ideas, it is often not because you lack ideas.

It is because you are overthinking what your content needs to be.

You might feel like it has to sound professional, polished, or perfectly worded.

But the content that actually works is the content that feels human.

Clear. Relatable. Easy to understand.

When you focus on helping your audience understand what you do and how it applies to them, your content becomes much easier to create.

If You Want Ongoing Support With This

Coming up with ideas is one thing.

Actually staying consistent and knowing what to say week after week is another.

That is exactly why I created The Content Academy.

It is designed for business owners who want to take their social media seriously without it taking over their time.

Inside, I help you:

  • Know what to post without second-guessing yourself
  • Turn your expertise into content that connects
  • Stay consistent in a way that feels manageable
  • Build confidence in how you show up online

No complicated strategies. No fluff. Just clear, practical support that helps you make your content work.

If you have been sitting on the sidelines with your social media or feeling stuck with what to say, this is the kind of support that can make a real difference.

Final Thoughts

You do not need endless new ideas to succeed on social media.

You need consistency, clarity, and a simple bank of go-to content types you can rely on when your mind goes blank.

Start with the ideas above.
Keep it simple.
Focus on your audience.

And remember, your content does not need to be perfect. It just needs to be understood.

If you keep showing up with that in mind, you will start to see a shift.

5 Reasons Why Your Social Media Isn’t Working (And How to Fix It)

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Social media is like any other element of your business; if you neglect it, it will stop working for you. That’s why so many digital marketers preach about consistency. But it’s not just about posting every day on your social media. There are things you can do that don’t take too much time that will improve your visibility and get your marketing working for you.

Let’s take a look at the 5 biggest reasons why your social media marketing isn’t working for you.

Lack of strategy.

As I talked about in my last blog (read it here), strategy is important when it comes to everything in business. If you don’t set yourself a goal, a target, something to aim at, you can’t know if you are heading in the right direction.

It would be like getting into your car, not knowing where you’re going and hitting the accelerator and wondering why you’re doing doughnuts… it just doesn’t make sense to not even know where you want to be heading.

Posting without purpose is the result you get, and it means that your audience doesn’t fully understand who you are and what your business is about.

Take some time to think about what you want to achieve and how you are going to achieve it. Remember to make it manageable within the timeframe you set yourself (not everyone can go viral by next Tuesday).

Wrong platforms.

How many times have you been told that you need to be on such-and-such a platform? I get really frustrated when I hear people say “you need to be on X/YouTube/LinkedIn/BlueSky/Lemon8” etc., etc., etc.

Stop.

Stop the madness that is trying to be everywhere at once to everyone. It’s not sustainable. It will lead you to burnout and exhaustion within a matter of days, and the first thing we do when faced with overwhelm is we run away.

That makes our consistency tank, and we end up worse off than where we started.

Start with one platform. The one you feel comfortable with. The one you are familiar with and feel confident in using. It’s the easiest way to get started.

Once you’re into a good rhythm of creating content on that platform, start to explore others that are similar to it but will attract your target audience.

Build slowly and remember who you want to talk to. Post on the platforms your target market is on.

Poor engagement.

Social media platforms like us to be just that: social. If you want the platforms to reward the time and effort you put into creating your content, you need to show them that you are using the platform.

Before you post your content, and just after you have posted it, make sure that you are active on the platform and engaging with other people’s content. It’s no secret that the algorithms reward people who stay and play on the platform.

If someone takes the time to comment on your post, take the time to respond back to them and continue the conversation. You’ll find that people are more willing to comment if they know that their comment will be noticed by the author.

You’ll be surprised at how much you will notice your reach increasing when you do this, and as a direct result, you will have more people engaging with your post.

Don’t forget to ask questions and start the conversation when it comes to creating your content. The platforms love this, too!

Inconsistent posting.

I’ve often explained that posting on social media is like turning the lights on and opening the door to your shop front. If you don’t switch the sign around to say “open”, the chances are, people will walk right by your shop and go to a competitor.

When the pandemic hit, and businesses had to move online, a lot of businesses sank or swam based on their consistent social media posting.

The same is true for today.

People increasingly turn to social media to see if a business is still trading. No posts = business closed.

Notice how I haven’t once said, posting every day? Because I don’t advocate for it. Post consistently.

If your schedule only allows you to consistently post once a week, then post once a week. If you can consistently post every day, then you will outperform someone posting once a week, sure. But, it’s better to post once a week for 3 years than to post every day for 2 weeks and then disappear for 6 months.

Also, you need to keep the branding and style consistent. It will make your brand and your business recognisable and do the hard work for you. A consistent brand and message build trust.

Not tracking results

This one baffles me. How can you know whether your social media marketing is working for you if you’re not tracking the results? The simple answer is, you can’t.

Think about implementing a process to ask your audience where they heard about you, what made them come to you, and how they knew yours was the business for them. You’ll be surprised by how many have been following you and your progress for a long time on social media.

They may have met you at a networking event, but you built the trust with them online.

Keep an eye on your analytics within the social media platforms. Each of them has their own way of finding the data, but this should help you to see what is working and what needs to be improved.

The social media platforms will show a variety of information regarding your content. Make sure that you know what your goals are before you start looking at your analytics, as you can fall into the trap of looking at vanity metrics. For more information on analytics and goal setting, read my strategy blog.

If you are serious about improving your social media content and getting it working for you, follow these steps, and you will notice a marked improvement in your content’s performance.

These are just some of the common mistakes I see people making with their marketing content. If you feel confident that you aren’t falling for any of these pitfalls, but your content still isn’t converting, book a call with me and let’s discuss more things you can do to improve your content and get more clients through social media.

How to Write a Social Media Strategy That Actually Works

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Social media strategies are essential for anyone who wants to achieve a goal with their marketing; without one, you are simply posting without purpose. Without a strategy, your social media content will easily become inconsistent, and you’ll fall behind the marketing of your competitors.

When it comes to writing out a strategy, I genuinely believe that the written word is better than the typed word. There have been studies linked to writing by hand that suggest that we remember things better once we write them down. It works for me and many people to write things down, so grab a notebook and pen and let’s get into how to write your social media marketing strategy.

Goals

Firstly, let’s talk about goal setting. I see so many people who write unrealistic goals with their social media marketing, and it quickly leads to feelings of overwhelm and which can lead to burnout and feelings of worthlessness. That’s not what I want for you.

Remember back in school when teachers would harp on and on about “SMART Targets”? I used to think it was just some new buzzword that they had all decided was going to take the world by storm. It wasn’t until I started setting goals for my business that I realised that they were right.

 So, let’s write some SMART targets as our goals. For those of you who don’t recall what SMART stands for, it’s: specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound.

Although for the purpose of this content, I’m going to reorder them.

Your goals need to be relevant to your business strategy. If your business goal is to increase your brand awareness over the next 12 months, you likely don’t need your social media strategy goal to be about monetising your content. But if you instead focused on increasing your reach, it would support your business goals.

Next, let’s look at “measurable”. We need to be able to measure your goals. So, yes, that does mean looking at your analytics. Sorry about that, but if we don’t measure the goal, we will never know if you accomplish it. So, rather than our goal being “to increase reach”, we can write that we “want to reach 1 million people with our content”. Far more measurable.

Is that goal achievable? Not likely when you are first starting out on social media. So, we need to adjust the number of people we are trying to reach so that it’s still high and a goal to be worked towards, but it’s not so high that it’s unachievable. Why not write we “want to reach 2,000 with our content”; still a high number for a novice, but it’s achievable.

Then, let’s look at the specific part of the instruction… because reaching 2,000 people isn’t enough. We need to know who they are and where they are. So, perhaps we want to refine the goal to something like “reach 2,000 sole traders, entrepreneurs and business decision makers on LinkedIn with our content”.

Now we know who we are targeting and where.

Let’s round it all off with the last element of the SMART acronym: time-bound. To know how to measure our goal, we need to know when we are going to get the measuring stick out. Otherwise, we are looking at our analytics for the sake of it, and, trust me, nobody does that. We look at them to ensure we are hitting our targets.

For me, a social media strategy typically runs for 3 months. This is because social media marketing moves at such a pace that we need to be able to adapt our strategy if something in the market changes. You can always repeat a strategy if it’s working for you and there have been no changes. That makes our example goal: “Over the next three months, we want to reach 2,000 sole traders, entrepreneurs and business decision makers on LinkedIn with our content”

Instantly, we can see that a plan is forming. Just from writing out our goal, we can see so much information about what we are going to do to achieve it.

Planning

Stick to no more than two goals as a maximum in your strategy (otherwise, your messaging can get confused). We then need to think about how we are going to achieve them.

Break down the steps you need to take to achieve your goal. For the example goal I have given above, some of my steps would likely be:

  • Send 10 connection requests on LinkedIn per day to people in my target audience
  • Post content on my profile regularly that will appeal to my target audience
  • Research keywords and content that will give my content greater reach to include in my posts
  • Engage with all comments on my posts to increase the reach of my content
  • Message new connections to grow relationships and show the algorithms that I am an active user of the platform
  • Update my profile to include the keywords I have researched that will be relevant to my audience and ensure that I am being searched for the right reasons
  • Review and keep a record of my current reach on LinkedIn

Do you see how quickly and easily we have written a plan for how we are going to achieve our goal?

Once you’ve written out the plan to reach your goals, your strategy has almost completely written itself, as we know what we want to achieve and how we are going to achieve it.

What else to include?

Finally, I would like to look at the factors that will hold me back from achieving my goals. If you notice from the steps I’ve written above, I haven’t written anything unachievable in terms of time commitments. That’s important because when you are running a business, time is your most important commodity.

By naming and writing down the things that will hold you back from achieving your goals, you can start to address them and ensure that they don’t derail your plans.

Once you have these elements written down, you have a strategy that’s built for success.

I genuinely believe that social media marketing with a strategy is simple to do and should be done by every business owner. Stick to these simple steps and you will have a strategy that will work for you: write down your SMART goals, write a plan of how you will achieve them, don’t overstretch yourself and be aware of the pitfalls that can stop you from achieving your goals.

For more help with writing your social media strategy, book a Strategy Call with me today, and I will help you to write yours at a time that suits you.

Why I started and what drives The Social Dragonfly?

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Why did I set up The Social Dragonfly? This is a question you often get asked when you start your business, and, for many, it was something they always wanted to do. But that’s not why I started it.

In 2018, I was given the responsibility of doing the digital marketing for the charity I was working for at the time. I got so good at doing their marketing that I was headhunted by a Northampton-based social media agency.

I worked for the agency for a long time, and in March of 2022, during a routine employee review with one of the directors of the company (and my boss), I was asked, “Where do you want to be in 5 years time?” and my answer was simple: “Your side of the table.”

In hindsight, it was an ironic statement. I wanted to be running my own team as part of the company. Conducting employee reviews and going to networking events and business retreats to grow the reputation of the company. I did not envision myself running a business.

A few months later, around May 2022, I had gone to my first successful networking event as part of the business, and I remember having the thought: “I could do this for myself, but I would never leave the company, as I love working for them.” I never planned to work for myself.

Fast forward a few more months, and the devastating news was broken to me after I returned to work from 2 weeks’ annual leave that the company would be closing as of the end of the month.

I

I was facing unemployment.

I asked the director of the company what that meant for me and the clients the company had. It was the director, and my good friend, who suggested that I start my own company doing what I was amazing at.

So that’s what I did. I spent time thinking about my business name, my personal and company values, the services I wanted to offer, the prices I would charge and the clients I want to work with… so much to plan in just a few weeks!

I had so much to think about, and yet there was one thing that I hadn’t really thought about. I hadn’t considered my north star objective when starting a business. I didn’t have a purpose. A goal I wanted to achieve…

But over the last three years of running my business, I’ve discovered that I do have a mission. Something that I want to achieve with social media marketing.

I’ve worked with a business coach for the past few years who has helped me to realise that my passion and purpose revolve around making social media marketing fun, exciting and less work with more results.

In 2025, I had an epiphany that the best way for me to do this, to have the greatest impact on business social media marketing, was to focus on the coaching aspect of my social media marketing business.

It’s my favourite moment in business when delivering a coaching call, training course or supporting my membership when I see the light come on behind their eyes when they realise that they can do their business social media.

I found my drive and my passion within my business long after I started the business, and now it’s my main message on my own social media marketing.

Want to find out how I use my social media marketing expertise to get your business flying on social media? Drop me a message.

Why is social media so important to your small business?

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Social media marketing remains the easiest and cheapest way to promote your business and introduce yourself to potential clients. It’s become the indicator of “success” for many business owners. But why? When did we give our measurement of success over to an algorithm we don’t understand? 

Let’s take a look.

When you start your own business, you’re constantly told to “post about it on social media”, but nobody tells you why. It’s the one bit of advice that isn’t very helpful when you’re already feeling overwhelmed.

The truth is, it’s not about becoming an influencer. It’s about growing your audience. It’s about getting your message in front of your target audience. It’s the top level for your sales funnel that gets your message in front of a large number of people who can begin to travel down the know -> like -> trust path.

On average, it takes 7 points of contact before someone remembers your name. It can take up to 21 points of contact before they understand what you do, and up to 49 (!) points of contact before they trust you enough to buy from you.

49 touch points with someone before they are ready to buy sounds ludicrous! It sounds like an impossible task to a new business owner. How on earth are you to achieve that simply, quickly, and effectively so that you can get that much-needed cash flowing into your business?!

The answer is simple: regular and consistent posting on social media. 

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Most of us will, at some point in our lives, have created at least one post on social media. Whether it’s sharing a meme with our friends, or checking in at the pub, or ranting about something that has annoyed us. The problem that most people have is not “how” to post, it’s the why behind the post. We know we need to post with purpose, but our brains throw up all the reasons why we can’t.

When you start your business, each post suddenly becomes a business marketing decision, and we apply a lot of pressure to ourselves, because now every post has the potential to earn us customers, but it also has the potential to turn customers away. That’s the last thing we want, right?

It’s a daunting task!

That’s where I can come in. It’s my job to help make all of that seem so simple… because social media marketing should be simple, easy and effective. Think about how many people already like you; your friends, your family, your (now ex) colleagues… They like you because they got to know you. 

That’s what social media marketing is all about: helping more people get to know you online so that they can like you, trust you and buy from you. It builds your connections so that people recommend you because they trust you and allows you to “get your name out there” (which is a really nonsensical phrase in my opinion).

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Just like many small business owners will discover how essential networking is when they first start out, getting your social media marketing right is the best thing you can do to grow your business reputation. 

Social media marketing is essential for businesses; it can be the key to unlocking your next client. Let’s face it, we all want more customers, more business, and to grow our reputation. The most effective way we can do that is to use social media marketing.

If you’re a business owner looking to grow online, what’s holding you back from using social media?

5 tips for improving your videos

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I know so many people shy away from making videos, but videos on social media aren’t going anywhere. Here are my 5 top tips to encourage you to get in front of the camera and do a video for your business – you’ll thank me for it later!

You know you’re the expert in your industry, so you know what to say. Try saying it on video today!

1 – Look at the camera

This one is important – your audience can tell if you’re looking at yourself in the video and it can put them off…

Looking into the camera is a great way to connect with your audience – it looks like you are looking right at them. Take a look at some of the videos you watch when online, do you feel more connected with the people who look directly at the camera or the ones who are watching themselves?

If the idea of seeing yourself as you record puts you off, don’t have the camera on selfie mode; flip it and stand behind the camera. This is a great way to get used to looking directly at the camera lens when recording videos.

Another way to do this is to get a small sticker and place it on your phone next to the camera and use a post-it note to cover the screen so that you can’t see yourself. The bonus of this technique is you can write notes about what to talk about on the post-it note.

2 – Plan what you are going to say

When you are recording videos, make sure that you know what you want to talk about. Don’t just hit record and hope that it will make sense.

Of course, if you are using an audio file from TikTok or Instagram Reels, make sure you know the script that you need to lip sync to.

This is where the Post-it note on your phone can come in handy, as you can write notes on it to help keep you on track when your nerves kick in.

Think about what you want the video to be about. Are you giving top tips or updating people on what is going on in your industry? Make sure you stick to the subject matter and keep the video on track.

This will also help you to keep the videos short and to the point. Most videos on social media are under 3 minutes long, and while 3 minutes might sound like a long time, when you start talking about your specialist subject matter, those minutes will fly by. Plan what you are going to say.

3 – Smile

You love your business and what you do, right?

So smile and let the love of what you do shine through! It’s far more engaging to watch a video where the person speaking shows passion for what they are talking about!

If you’re engaging in your video, guess what? Your audience is more likely to engage with it!

It doesn’t have to be a full-tooth cheesy grin for the whole length of the video; you can smile warmly as you welcome people to your video. Smiling makes you seem friendly and inviting and people are far more likely to watch a video when they feel like the person they are watching is a friend.

Smile and have fun with your videos.

4 – Pay attention to what’s behind you

I don’t know about you, but I’m fascinated by people’s backgrounds in their videos!

Whether I’m watching Reels, TikTok, or YouTube, I can’t help but check out the background…

Think about this when you post your videos – have you got the dirty washing in the background? Or have you got cobwebs visible? Are you in your workspace?

When showcasing your business, the background is important. You can always green-screen it… use your skills in Canva to create a branded background for your videos.

5 – Remember to act natural

Just be yourself!

Remember, you are your business’s Unique Selling Point (USP); nobody else has a ‘you’ in their business.

Even I used to struggle on this one – people will tell you that I used to put on a horrible ‘phone voice’ in videos. Oh! And I used to forget to blink! I would be so focused on looking into the camera that I would forget to blink.

To stop doing it, I now imagine that my best friend is the camera, and imagine I’m talking to her, it makes me act more naturally and more like myself.

Whether you are just starting out in making videos or have been recording yourself for years, videos can make you nervous. Taking these simple steps to improve your videos will ensure that your audience doesn’t know about your nerves.

The algorithms on social media platforms are loving video content and show no signs of that changing. One thing is certain: if you want your business to succeed on social media, you need to get in front of the camera and start recording videos.

Give it a go – remember, nobody looks at you the way you look at yourself! Leave your insecurities at the door and press record!