For small businesses, starting to use social media to market their business is a process:
- First, start using social media (you’d be surprised how many small businesses don’t!)
- Second, set up business pages and profiles — not just personal ones
- Third, make sure you post relevant content regularly — and respond to comments, @ mentions and DMs (direct messages)
- Finally, use paid ads to target and retarget your customers (and potential customers just like them)
Believe it or not, Step 3 can be the hardest. After all, even with the best intentions, how do you post to Facebook AND Instagram AND Twitter…and still have time to run your business?
That’s where crossposting is so valuable. You can create content in one social channel…and quickly share it in another to keep all your channels fresh, up to date, and worth visiting.
One post, three social networks, plenty of chances to get seen
Take a look at a recent example from Hibu – where the same post was shared on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram:
You may need or want to make subtle changes that work best for each platform or audience (in this case, the Facebook post used a static image and Instagram and Twitter used a video) — but you don’t have to! You really can share the same content across social networks to get more exposure with much less effort.
And if you create your post with Instagram, you can crosspost to Facebook and Twitter with one click!
Sharing DIFFERENT content across social channels
While crossposting the same content (images especially) can absolutely save you time and effort…you may not want to “recycle” content every time. Or you may find that your audience isn’t interacting with a post on Facebook that they already “Liked” on Instagram.
Consider re-packaging your content as you switch channels:
- A series of Facebook pictures could be turned into a gallery on Instagram
- A video you tweet or retweet on Twitter without any introduction could become a longer post on Facebook
- An Instagram post that didn’t get much engagement can be turned into a Facebook poll
Remember, there’s no “one size fits all” way to share content on social. Experiment with what works for you, and pay close attention to what works for your customers. Keeping an eye on likes, shares, retweets, comments and more should give you a real-time view into what’s working for them.
Share here, share there – just as long as you’re sharing SOMEWHERE
We know that not every local business has the time or resources to keep up with posting new, relevant content to multiple social media channels. Crossposting is a great way to save time and effort, but what matters most is that you’re posting SOMETHING valuable regularly to at least SOME of your channels.
Participation is definitely more important than efficiency when it comes to building and connecting with your customers on social media. Start small, focusing most of your efforts on one platform (like Facebook, Instagram or Twitter)…and then start using crossposting to double or even triple your impact!
