Lately, I’ve been getting more questions around this idea – “I need to post more on social media, but I don’t know where to start.”

Usually, the questions come from people who either:

• don’t know what to post about
• compare themselves to people with huge followings
• get frustrated because their stuff isn’t having the effect they want
• feel self-conscious because they don’t like the idea of talking about themselves

I get it – I’m like that too.

I hate the idea of bragging or putting on a fake personality or trying to be like an influencer.

If that’s you, I wanted to share some tips and strategies to get comfortable with posting online.

But I want to be really clear, I’m not a social media expert. I’m not an influencer with millions of followers, nor am I trying to sell you a course to build your following.

I’m just a guy that would prefer not to be on social media, but that’s gotten comfortable and confident with putting myself out there and I wanted to share some concrete strategies that might help you too.

Strategy 1: Be clear about your goal

Often overlooked because the implicit message is to get as many followers as possible – you have to be clear about what your goal is.

• Do you want more followers?
• Do you just want to make connections and network?
• Do you want to get people onto your mailing list?
• Something else?

I’m not here to judge whether you goal is valid or not.

The point is – you have to be clear about your goal so you can use the right type of posts and call to action.

Strategy 2: Be clear about your target audience 

The better clarity you have about your target audience, the more focused you can be in your efforts.

If you have a clear audience, then you can focus your efforts on the platform that they tend to hang out on the most.

And yes – inevitably, some people say their target audience is everyone. And that can be possible – eventually. But for now, focus your time and efforts so you don’t have to feel like you’re running in 20 different directions.

For instance, if your target audience is focused on business executives, your platform might be Linkedin.

If your audience is creatives and/or parents, maybe Instagram might be a better idea for you.

It’s easy to get analysis paralysis about which platform to post on, but if you just focus on who your target audience is, you can just pick one to get started on. And focusing on one platform is easier to wrap your head around than coordinating across multiple platforms.

Strategy 3: Reframe your mindset

Because we often see the people posting that seem to be really successful, it’s hard to get comfortable with the idea of putting something out there and only getting 10 views or 1 comment.

Comparison can be a real buzz kill.

Instead, look at everything you post as an experiment.

Approach it like a scientist and testing out different approaches to see which one resonates with your audience.

I’m not advising posting in a different style everyday – instead, try something a few times and if it’s not having the effect you wanted it to have, change one small thing about it and see how that goes for a while.

If you take the emotion out of it and look at it as an experiment, you don’t have to stress about getting it perfect every time.

Just put something out there and see how it goes.

For the first year I started posting online, I experimented with a ton of different formats, lengths, styles until I finally found a style that works for me and my personality. Whenever people commented on my posts or started following me, I would message them directly thanking them and asking what they liked about my post so I could get better that that. 

That feedback loop helped me get better (and I’m still working on it).

Another mindset shift to try: instead of putting pressure on your social media presence to build a following, think of it as a big business card. Think of it as a public blog where you get to share your experience/knowledge that people can look you up after the fact to make sure you have credibility.

Next Steps

Again, truthfully, if you’re looking for helping posting on social media and getting millions of followers, I’m not the right person (there’s actually a few good ones I follow that have pretty good content).

My only goal here was to help you get comfortable with the idea of even posting on social media.

At the end of the day, don’t stress about all that noise about posting multiple times a day, getting people onto your mailing list, writing catchy headlines, etc.

If you’re just getting started, just start sharing your thoughts one day a week on one platform.

All you need is one step forward.

Good luck!

Chris

PS – Found this helpful?  Still got questions?  Reply back and let me know and I’m always happy to chat more!