No more staring at your phone struggling to come up with something to post. I've got you covered with 50 social media post templates PLUS a formula for engagement.
The Formula for Writing Social Media Posts for Engagement
We often think of frequency (how many times we post) on social media but engagement is a better metric to think about because it has a bigger impact.
Think about it this way - you could talk to a friend every day of the week but if it was boring conversation, you wouldn't be inclined to keep that up. Whereas if you talked once a week but it was a great conversation, you'd likely want to talk to that friend every week and you'd look forward to it.
This is how we can look at engagement on social media = sharing content that keeps people engaged and coming back for more.
So what’s engagement on social media? Its:
Likes
Comments
DMs
Shares
Saves
Profile Visits
Website Views
And each of these things are weighted differently in the algorithm. Before I lose you because I started talking “algorithms”, know that you don’t have to know everything about this. All you need to know is that the algorithm likes engagement and the more engaged an action is, the more it’s weighted.
For example:
A comment is more valuable than a link
But a share is more valuable than a comment
When someone is sharing your social media post that’s a huge step so the algorithm likes this more. So when you’re thinking about your social media posts, you want to write them in order to encourage more engagement.
“Please remember that engagement takes time but there is a formula that will help you encourage engagement with your words. But don’t give up if you don’t have tons of comments or shares right away. Give it time.” - Amanda McKinney
The Formula:
Hook + Story/message + Call to action
Hook - the words that will get attention. This can be a question, a bold statement, or buzzwords. This is what will get attention quickly and keep the person reading.
EX: Self care isn’t just baths and massages.
Story/message - a little more information about whatever your sharing about. This can be long or short but it’s about elaborating on what you started in the hook.
EX: Self care isn’t just baths and massages. Don’t get me wrong, a long massage can be self care but that’s not all it is. Self care can be taking 5 minutes to dance to your favorite song and smile, or taking a walk, or making your favorite smoothie (instead of the kids favorite) or simply taking a long deep breath in and deep breath out.
Call to action - this is when you ask the person to take an action. And when it comes to engagement, this isn’t asking for them to buy something, it’s asking them to take an action related to engagement.
EX: Self care isn’t just baths and massages. Don’t get me wrong, a long massage can be self care but that’s not all it is. Self care can be taking 5 minutes to dance to your favorite song and smile, or taking a walk, or making your favorite smoothie (instead of the kids favorite) or simply taking a long deep breath in and deep breath out. What does self care look like for you today? Tell me in the comments because when we share it with others it helps hold ourselves accountable and sometimes that’s what we need.
That’s the formula! So the next time you feel stuck, use this formula to help you.
PRO TIP:
It often helps if you work backwards: Start with the CTA and let that help your writing.
For example, if you know you want to get more engagement through comments, you know you will need to end the post with a question that people can answer in the comments so you wouldn’t want to ask something super sensitive that people might not want to share publicly.
“You can use this formula for all posts or just when you’re feeling stuck.” - Amanda McKinney
**This is blog post is based on a podcast episode. If you'd rather listen to this information, use the player below or find episode #50 on the Marketing Yoga with Confidence Podcast.
How to Bust Through Social Media Writer's Block
What’s the key to busting through this social media writer’s block?
Create a list of ideas and words from your students
Using a formula for writing posts
Planning ahead so the pressure isn’t there in the moment
Creating a List To Make Writing Social Media Posts Easier
This can be a simple Google doc where you consistently add ideas as you think of them. Maybe you see someone else post something and you want to share something similar. Great - add that to your list. But my favorite way to add ideas to your list is when your students ask you questions. Let’s say your student says to you after class “how can I practice yoga at home?”. This would be a GREAT social media post or multiple posts really. Add it to your list and continue to add questions to your list as your students ask them.
Planning Ahead
Just like creating a list can help you, planning ahead can too. It’s like planning your road trip before you get in the car. It helps to make decisions before you actually have to make them so the pressure isn’t in the moment. This can look like writing out social media posts in that ideas document as you have them. Or it can look like pre-scheduling posts for the upcoming week. If you know you want to post 3 times a week on Instagram, why not get it scheduled so it’s guaranteed to happen. Here are some tools that you can use to do this for FREE:
50 FREE Social Media Post Templates Just For Yoga Teachers
And because I know it can take time to get used to this formula I want to give you 50 social media posts that you can use immediately. It’s set up like mad-libs. I give you the framework and then you put in the words that help the post sound like you.
“Promise me that you will take these free social media posts and make them your own. I want your social media posts to sound like you. Use this as inspiration and have fun posting. Yes, it’s possible!” - Amanda McKinney
Enter your information below and grab the 50 free social media posts written just for yoga teachers!
Your next step
Download the 50 social media posts and then make them your own and post them! Don't forget to take action AFTER you download the posts. In order to see results, you have to take action and actually post them to your social media channel(s).
Until next time give yourself permission to post for engagement and grace along the way. I’ll talk to you soon!
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