Getting off the starting block of a social media campaign is easy in theory, but putting fingers to keys is the greatest challenge. 

Probably 90% of what a promoter does to get started is not promoting:

• Deciding on the media
• Signing up for an account
• Learning how to do it
• Thinking about what to say, then how to say it
• Finding the time and pushing away the distractions
• Writing something
• Writing something consistently
• Doing all the other stuff to get people to read what you’ve written…

And the list goes on.

Find your motivation.  It is either a carrot – finding something you enjoy about the process, or a stick – finding a pain point in the current that stimulates action. 

Doing something real can be painful.  For those who do not find delight in the process of posting online (which is just about everyone), the best way to start is with a plan that is simple and easy. 

Here’s the plan:

One sentence – what’s your objective? 

• Define what you want to achieve with your campaign. Whether it’s increasing brand awareness, driving website traffic, or boosting sales, having clear objectives will help build motivation.  Just one sentence is enough to start.  You can refine or build on it at a later time.

One more sentence – who are you targeting?

• Determine who your campaign is intended for. What is the type of person that will be interested in your content? 

One final sentence – what problem are you solving? 

• Use a very short sentence:  “My content will help someone solve their problem of …”

Open your social media account

• Whichever account it is, a blog, website, Facebook… just open it and find the “Post” button. 
• If you’re feeling good about the progress so far, you can think about which social media platform to focus on FIRST.  Based on your target audience’s preferences, select the appropriate platform. For instance, Instagram is great for visual content, while LinkedIn is better for B2B campaigns.  Where is your audience?

Create Compelling Content

• Now that you found the “Post” button, think of something to post. 
• Forget the talk about developing high-quality and engaging content that aligns with your campaign goals. That’s what you eventually want to do, but right now we’re looking to make things simple and easy.  The first one is always the most difficult, but it gets better.  So how?
• Spend a few minutes getting ideas from others.  Draw inspiration from what is already out there.  Find a post you like, make some modifications (or say the exact opposite) and add your own personal flair to the analysis/perspective/artistry or any other dimension that can say “Hello world, this is ME!”. 

Do it again

• Don’t sit around and brew over the pain of the initial experience.  Do it again as soon as you can. 
• After a few times, you may start to feel comfortable.  This moment is when you can begin to push yourself further, to think of more creative posts, images, videos, infographics, and more. Your content should resonate with your target audience and reflect your brand’s voice.

That’s all.  With a few iterations (and the accompanying realization that the world didn’t explode when you posted), you can begin to add some structure and even a bit of complexity to your promotional campaigns. 

We’ll save the complexity for another day.