Story telling is the foundation of great social media
Now that you’ve completed your persona and identified your target audience it’s time to tell your story.
This is not a bio — share your signature story. A heart centered story that tells the truth, reveals something personal. private, painful. Think Oprah Winfrey, Ellen DeGeneres, and other leaders.
When sharing personal causes, it’s better to “run with the pack” and align yourself with communities of similar interest. These connections can bolster your results. You will have a different experience when someone shares the same story as yours and this allows you another way of revealing yourself.
Share what feels right.
If you’re uncomfortable with your first thoughts, find something else that you can talk about.
Be careful not to over share. Topics like children, divorce, death should not be shared through social media.
Test your ideas before jumping in with both feet. See if your content is resonating with your audience and receiving your desired response.
Remember, social is not about spouting opinions – it’s telling the truth.
Secondary Thoughts
In addition to your primary niche, think about secondary conversations you can have.
What are you passionate about? How can you identify yourself in the crowd?
What are your favorite:
- Causes
- Charities
- Passions
The goal here is to find something important and resonate with your audience.
Ellen DeGeneres is a stand-up comedian, television host, actress, writer, and television producer. Ellen is also a strong supporter for human rights, Veganism, animal rights and AID’s awareness. Her sharing of her personal story endeared her to her audience and has made her more popular than ever.
Oprah Winfrey is a media proprietor, talk show host, actress, producer and philanthropist. Oprah is also outspoken about overcoming adversity and has become a benefactor to others. She used her passion for self empowerment within her television show and it resonated with her audience making her a media mogul in the process.
Sir Richard Branson is an English business magnate and investor. He is best known as the founder of Virgin Group, which comprises more than 400 companies. Richard is also an extreme adventurist and has set several World Records. He was able to leverage his passions to promote his businesses. He also is a strong advocate for humanitarian causes including International Rescue Corps, Prisoner Abroad and environmental causes.
When you’re going for thought leadership – you can not make it up… You have to wait for the community to say it first.
Not everyone will align with you – and that can hurt.
You will have negative criticism – pleasing everyone is impossible. How you handle negatives can go a long way to turning the negative to a positive.
- Do not be emotional! It will only cause more damage if you reply upset, angry or insulting.
- Avoid frustrating your users when they are trying to get information.
- You must “listen” to what is being said in the conversation.
The goal is to provide a positive experience for your audience and customers so that they can become ambassadors and tell their friends about you.
What your online identity says about you…
There’s more to social media than creating a few accounts and posting content… You also need to consider your image (or your businesses). It only takes 50 milliseconds to create an impression so you want to present yourself in the best possible way. Think about what image you want to convey to your audience and use the best possible resources to create that image (including hiring a professional photographer).
