Social Posting Strategy: Building Community and Connection

[taslimakhatun119]

Why Is Building Social Community and Connection Important?
In a world where social media has become synonymous with endless scrolling and mindless consumption of content, digital marketer, author, and podcaster Katie Brinkley argues that we must return to the original purpose of social platforms: making meaningful connections.

In her recent book, The Social Shift: The Road Back to Community, Katie traces the history of social media, from early platforms like MySpace that facilitated friendship, shared common interests, and dialogue to modern networks like TikTok built for endless streams of impersonal content. She contends that while new technologies have connected more people than ever before, many interactions have become superficial at best.

For business owners, it can be overwhelming when people say you must post constantly to see results. When do you have time to build your business if you’re always on that content hamster wheel? Social media is an affordable marketing and brand loyalty tool. But creating content just to create it is pointless, Katie believes.

Authentic community-building efforts on social media platforms require laos telegram strategy and intention. Businesses and influencers must shift their mindset away from vanity metrics like follower counts and toward nurturing genuine relationships.

Understand who you want to reach and how your business can impact them. Then, you'll attract the right audience who want to hear what makes you and your business unique. If you cultivate an engaged social media community, you’ll form a loyal tribe of brand devotees. Authentic connections can happen fast online if you have the intention. It's hard to show who you are online, but magic happens with the right strategy.

Community-building will matter more than ever in the internet era of Web3 and decentralization. So, you must be intentional with your social media time and presence today.

How to Build Community and Connection With a Social Posting Strategy
When you implement the right social posting strategy, you'll reach the people who matter with just a few quality weekly posts. You'll understand what content your target audience connects with.

You can raise awareness around your ideal customer's struggles and educate them on solutions. With greater strategy and awareness, your social presence will attract more ideal clients, even with less frequent posting.

Ultimately, it’s about reaching the right people with the right message. Implementing an intentional social media strategy allows you to build a meaningful, loyal community and awareness for your business.

Katie details a four-step strategy for creating authentic social media communities rather than simply seeking self-promotion. This streamlined framework entails four types of social media posts. Each post serves a specific purpose tailored to user needs and platform algorithms:

Step 1: Awareness Post
The first step is creating an awareness post about your ideal customer's problem. Use whatever social media channels work best for you.

For example, Instagram Reels work well for broad reach, while LinkedIn polls are good for easy engagement. The goal is to throw a wide net to reach and pique the interest of as many potential customers as possible before giving a sales pitch.

Ready to Supercharge Your Marketing Strategy?
Social Media Marketing World
Get expert training and an unbeatable conference experience when you attend Social Media Marketing World—from your friends at Social Media Examiner.

Broaden your reach, skyrocket your engagement, and grow your sales. Become the marketing hero your company or clients need!


GET THE DETAILS
social-posting-strategy-awareness-post-example-1
It’s like Forrest Gump on his fishing boat throwing out his net to catch shrimp. He might catch some other things, too, but he hopes to catch as many shrimp as possible. Your awareness content is the net catching any potential customers. Give your target audience a taste of the problem and solution so they want to learn more.

Discussing problems builds awareness because it positions you as the solution before people even know they have that problem. When you post about a common struggle your ideal customers have, it taps into what they're already searching for answers about. Even if they didn't know they had that pain point, they now see you have the solution.

It comes down to deeply understanding your ideal customers and their frustrations. Create content for their needs, not yours. When you address their hidden problems, you become the expert they didn't know they needed.

Maybe you’re selling services instead of a product. For example, if you’re a realtor and want to make people care that you are selling houses in the suburbs of Littleton, CO, you could make a post that says, “Littleton locals—are you feeling like you’ve tried all the restaurants downtown? Think again! Here are the top 5 NEW dining hotspots opening in 2024 that you need reservations for ASAP… ”.

The goal here is to position yourself as a local real estate expert. It tackles some misconceptions that there are limited dining options in the suburbs.

The key is knowing where your ideal customers are online and tailoring awareness content for each social media platform. It’s not a copy-paste strategy.

On your Facebook page, simple text posts with colored backgrounds grab attention and get reach. For example, Katie created one announcing her new book—a quick line made many people aware it was published.

On Instagram, Reels work best. For example, Katie created Reels revealing three tools she uses weekly that reduce social media overwhelm and save her customers hours in a workday, quickly pointing to each one on screen. It makes people aware there are time-saving tools they could implement.

social-posting-strategy-awareness-post-example-2
The point is to meet your audience where they are with the type of content that the platform best amplifies. Create customized awareness posts for each social media channel you use.

Step 2: Elaboration Post
The next step is the elaboration post. You take the topic you spotlighted in the awareness post and go deeper, establishing more trust and expertise through helpful ideas, tools, tips, resources, or data.

If your awareness post was on LinkedIn, do a LinkedIn article or newsletter to elaborate. If it was on Instagram, create a carousel post expanding on the awareness Reel.

Elaboration is your chance to prove to new and existing followers that you truly understand their problems and can provide solutions. It shows the human side of your business.

You can write content, but going live to elaborate can feel more authentic. For example, share a weekly live video to elaborate on your awareness post theme in a Facebook group.

Awareness posts tend to reach more people and attract new eyes to your content. The elaboration posts go deeper for those already engaged and loyal followers.

Katie often bases her awareness posts around a topic she wants to cover on her podcast. For example, she asks her audience who still uses Threads. Then, the responses and data from that awareness post give her great content to elaborate on for her engaged online community.

So, the awareness brings in a broader reach of new people, and elaboration nurtures the discussion with existing fans. Together, they add value and generate interest and trust through free, helpful content. When people see you genuinely want to educate them, they’ll be more inclined to purchase your paid products or services eventually.