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Status updates are the most important part of social media.

Sharing quality content on your social accounts is the key to being successful on social media.

Here we are going to go over what a status update is, how to write a good one and how to use social media to drive traffic to your blog.

If you are not currently using any of the social platforms for your business, you are missing out on a potentially huge customer base!

So, What are Status Updates?

Updates are a little bit different on each platform but are generally the same fundamental idea across each platform.

Examples of status updates would be Facebook posts, Tweets, Google+ posts, or a Pin on Pinterest.

It is how you share information with your followers, and also how you see what other people and businesses are up to.

Are you Using Social Media for your Blog?

Having a blog or a website isn’t very useful if nobody knows it exists. As the saying goes…

Doing business without advertising is like winking at a girl in the dark. You know what you are doing but nobody else does. ― Steuart H. Britt Click to Tweet
Social media quote

The same idea applies to having a website that nobody knows exists. Think of social media as free advertising for your blog.

The basic idea of connecting social media to your blog:

  • The way your account looks is not as important as the content you share—quality content is more important than a perfect profile image or cover photo.
  • Your blog is where your online content lives.
  • Status posts are one way to push that content out into the world.

Often, we get so worried about how our profile looks that we forget what truly matters. Of course, the appearance of your profile, such as your profile picture, cover image, and username, are all factors that matter. But they are not nearly as important as what you are posting.

More than you need a perfect looking profile, you need to have a solid strategy in place for how you are going to fill up your accounts with useful and quality content.

Why Are Status Updates so Important?

  • Because social media is a powerhouse marketing platform where you can achieve multiple goals with just one update.
  • Because you can drive thousands of visitors to your website with just one post.
  • Because a single post can increase your likability factor, drive tons of traffic and generate shares that could expose you to new customers.

Are Your Status Updates Driving Traffic Back to Your Blog?

Traffic is the key to a successful blog, and the best way to get traffic is through your social content.

Another very important part of growing your blog is social shares.

Not only will people share your blog posts directly from your website, but they will also share Facebook statuses, retweet your Tweets and repin Pinterest pins.

You need people to want to share your updates and posts, and the way to do that is to have share-worthy content. Status updates that make people want to click and share them.

That is how you build a big follower base that will really move the needle for your business.

What is the Purpose of Status Updates?

  • Sharing content from your website and driving traffic.
  • Establishing trust with your audience, showing them your personality and getting to know them.
  • Scaling your audience by growing your follower base and generating shares.
  • Sharing company news, announcements, new products, specials and more.

What Makes a Good Status Update?

A good status update is more than just sharing how your day is going or sharing a photo of your pets. A good status update will evoke a reaction from your audience. Also, you want your audience to feel like you are simply having a conversation with them. Your tone should not be too formal or sound like a sales pitch.

Conversation with customers will increase sales, even if the product or service is never mentioned. – George Farris Click to Tweet
Product sales quote

You want your updates to:

  • Make people want to share your content.
  • Drive traffic back to your blog.
  • Educate your audience about you, your beliefs and your business.
  • Build a relationship with your customers and grow your audience.

These are all ways in which status updates can help grow your business. Not every post needs to contain all of these elements, but you want to at least try to resonate with your audience every time you post.

Social Media should be Social!

Keep in mind that social media is supposed to be fun. People are not on social media to read boring corporate sounding articles – they are there for entertainment and distractions from real life.

Conversational or humorous updates always do well. Your updates should be the most informal of your writing. They should feel like simply a person talking about a business, rather than ad copy.

Try to make your content sound as personal as possible, almost as if you are having a conversation with another person directly. Think of it this way: how would you speak to someone if you were on the phone with them? That is the same kind of voice you should try to evoke in your updates.

What Makes a Click-Worthy Content?

A very important factor in driving clicks to your website is your headline. We talk about headlines and give examples in our “5 Not So Crazy Ways to Get Your Blog Posts to Go INSANE” post.

Headlines not only apply to blog posts but to statuses as well. A catchy headline is the difference between someone clicking on or sharing your content vs. not engaging at all.

Curiosity wins every time. Use your headline to make it so that people can’t resist clicking to find out more.

Share-Worthy

Just like your blog content, you want your status updates to get shared (retweeted, repinned, etc). People will share updates that are evergreen and can stand alone, for example, a piece of advice or inspiration that lives within one update. Funny or inspirational updates seem to generate the most shares.

However, again, be intentional here. Make sure that what you’re sharing is relevant to your business or brand, not just random content. Share funny or inspirational content, but also share information specifically about your business.

It is easy to see what content is working on social media. You can easily see what types of Tweets or Facebook posts are being shared the most (going viral), and draw inspiration from those. Pay attention to what people are sharing!

People share, read, and generally engage more with any type of content when it’s surfaced through friends and people they know and trust. – Malorie Lucich Click to Tweet
Content marketing quote

Don’t be Borning!

The worst thing you can do is to share a vague, boring status. An update that says simply: “Read my new blog post!” is not going to generate as much engagement as one that says: “Read my new blog post on the best weekend travel destinations on the west coast!” or “Find out the top 15 destinations on the west coast for a weekend getaway” or even better, “Think you’ve seen the most beautiful places on the west coast? Think again. Here are 15 destinations you probably haven’t heard of”.

The first headline is not likely to receive many shares or clicks. It provides no intrigue for the reader, it does not pique their curiosity. In contrast, the last update would generate more shares and clicks because people would want to know what travel destinations they are missing out on.

The Wrong Way to Update

Now that we’ve gone over what makes a great status update, we need to talk about what makes a bad one. If your accounts are not growing as quickly as you’d like, or you aren’t seeing a lot of engagement from your audience, it may have something to do with what you post.

Here are a few things that make for a bad update:

  • Not sharing anything at all—remember that the worst update is no update!
  • Being either all business or no business—it is important to find a middle ground.
  • Using the wrong tone—being too formal or sales pitchy.
  • Thinking that everything needs to be absolutely perfect. It’s okay to just make small talk or ask a lighthearted question.
  • Forgetting to mix things up a little bit—you need to share more than just links to your blog.

Reverse Engineer your Goals

When it comes to your marketing strategy, start with the end in mind. Every time you post content think of what you want your status to achieve. Here are some examples:

  1. Words of wisdom posts exist to encourage shares and increase your likeability factor.
  2. An update about your products may exist for the purpose of driving clicks or to move people along in the buying process.
  3. Use your time wisely and make sure that each update has a purpose.

A Few Things to Keep In Mind

  1. Try conveying the same message three different ways and see what generates the most engagement.
  2. Mix in videos and images.
  3. Pay attention to your stats—the platforms are changing constantly. Because the algorithms are always changing, it’s important to pay attention to what is working now. Don’t get caught up in the same routine, be adaptable and able to change with the algorithm updates.

In Summary

Social media has changed the way that customers interact with businesses. The way you use it will determine whether or not you are able to grow your business.

Status updates are the key to an exceptional profile. What you write in your and post is much more important than things such as your cover image or username. The three main purposes of status updates are driving shares, driving traffic and increasing your likability factor.

Be sure to keep things casual and conversational. Remember, social media should be fun. You don’t have to be all business all the time.

Hopefully, this has been a useful resource for you in learning how to connect the dots between your blog and your social media. Remember, don’t overcomplicate things, use social media to be social and truly try to engage with your audience and you will be off to a great start.

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