Do you find it easier to make sense of the ideas in your mind when you put pen to paper? Of course social media marketing is a digital job, but a lot of the background work can be done in a non-digital way. I’ve had a chat with Jeni Machon, of Blue Raspberry Box, to get her thoughts on the subject.
“I love stationery with fun and inspiring designs (that are still practical and usable). I call it motivating stationery because it keeps me motivated to stay on track with my tasks, and keeps me organised too.” -Jeni
A visual reminder to keep you on track
There are so many things to remember when it comes to your social media marketing, feeling overwhelmed is normal. If you’ve found that physical notes work best for you in other aspects of your business, it’s a good idea to use the stationery for your social media marketing too.
“There’s less of a chance I’ll forget a quick note written on my to-do list than a digital note. Purely because I’ll walk past my desk and see the note. Notes and reminders I email to myself or are on an app tend to get hidden and forgotten about. The physical act of writing something down helps you remember it, and it’s much easier to open a planner or notebook to double check something than switch on a laptop or get into your files on your phone. Without a plan you won’t know what you should be doing. You can get distracted and forget important things. You won’t have anything to review or any way to measure your progress to be able to make a better plan. You (and your brain) feel better knowing what you’ll be doing the following day.” -Jeni
Different ways to use stationery
“I use the calendar page in my planner to keep track of all my social media planning. For repeatable posts (testimonials, how to work with me, tips) I write them in pen. Sometimes I print out a calendar to ‘messy plan’ first, (or use a pencil in my planner) then copy into my planner (I like to keep my planner organised). Once the post is scheduled, use a highlighter (different colour for each platform) so I know the post is scheduled (I also write the time the post is scheduled for in case I want to add another post that day). Once you have a plan that works for you, you can repeat this each month to save time.” -Jeni
A common challenge small businesses face is finding ways to stay consistent with their social media plan. Creating new and exciting content on a regular basis is hard enough without wasting time staring at a blank screen with no ideas. Here are just five simple ways stationery could help you save time:
• Have a list of Post Ideas. When someone asks you a question, when you see something and think you could do the same, when an idea sparks in your mind, write it down. This will save you time when it comes to creating a plan.
• Track your progress. Are you growing steadily or do you need to rethink your plan?
• Make a note of what works for you. Again, when it comes time to create a plan, knowing what worked before will save you time.
• Create a habit tracker.
• Set yourself goals and keep track of your progress.
Creating a plan
“Spend some time working out your content pillars and looking at what you need to share and when. Make a list of the type of content you want to share, then look at your plan to figure out when to schedule these for. Write in pencil first, print out a calendar to do a ‘messy plan’, or use small post its to be able to move topics around until you are happy with your plan. I’ve even printed out small images of my graphics to have a more visual plan that I can move around. It can take time to find a way to plan that works for you. You need to use your own plan that works for you and your business, not someone else’s plan.” -Jeni
The process of creating a plan is different for everyone but here’s what I do with my clients: throughout the month I’ll keep note of the random thoughts they share with me (remember your Post Idea list?), then I’ll send them a report and make note of their most powerful posts. Then the computer can go away for a while. I have a phone call with them to figure out what their main goals are and then I get a calendar and put a date to all of those ideas. I like to use colours to quickly identify what type of post it is.
My Featured Guest
Jeni is a stationery and planning addict who turned her love of stationery into a business, Blue Raspberry Box, a monthly stationery subscription letterbox to help other female business owners ditch the procrastination, enhance their productivity and brighten up their workspace with fun and motivating stationery.
If you want to hear more from Jeni, check out her Facebook Group!
If you’d like to be a Featured Guest on this blog, please send me a message. I’m looking for people who have experiences or thoughts on various social media related topics, but you don’t need to be an expert!
Thanks for reading! I share a blog like this one every other Tuesday, and if you feel like they help your social media presence, and more importantly, your business – then please consider leaving a tip.
Tesni xx
