Marketing yourself can be the classic “left brain, right brain” balance. On the analytical side, you have a mission: to build your brand. On the more artistic, right-brain side: you want to have fun with it and do it in a way that’s creative.
You want your social media to work for you from a seller aspect, sure. But you’re also a creative – not a corporation whose one goal is to shove their product down people’s’ throats.
So how do you make creative content for your social media outlets without them screaming “BUY MY STUFF” to people?
Combine lifestyle imagery with your product SHOTS.
Solo text is boring – images should be in the majority of your posts. Make your posts sell the lifestyle your audience will want to be a part of. Music shirts? Take pictures of friends wearing your shirts while playing guitar or chillin’ in cool record store. But be sure to make your lifestyle shots consistent by giving them all a similar vibe/aesthetic.
Pro-tip: friends make perfect models.
Brands that NAIL this: Urban Outfitters (their pics show you what you want your room and LIFE to look like (above.))
GET PEOPLE ENGAGED.
There’s a ton of ways to get your audience involved on social media in a way that builds brand loyalty while also being damn fun. A good place to start would simply be by simply talking/responding to customers on your social media outlets, maybe hosting polls or contests like “caption this!“, having people use a hashtag specific to you/your brand when they post pictures wearing your product, etc.
Brands that NAIL this: Forbes has a list of companies particularly good at creating content that makes them follow-worthy and how to get engaged with your audience. Urban Outfitters nails this too with their #UOOnYou and by posting their favorite customer shots.
Show your audience you get them.
Instead of just linking to your products, try also posting:
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- Relevant pop-culture news
- Fun facts your audience would dig
- Memes/internet gems that your audience would appreciate
Brands that NAIL this: ThinkGeek (even the product images they tweet out are accompanied by on-point and relevant references (above).)
Get YOURSELF engaged (not, like, married-engaged)
The whole “Throwback Thursday” #TBT game on Instagram might seem like something that people with way too much time on their hands do. But participating in things like #TBT or trending hashtags gets you noticed by other people participating in those hashtag games, and shows you’re taking the time to get involved with the community. Doing that, commenting on other peoples photos, just getting engaged with other humans on social media can help in a big way.
Get personal.
Doing something cool? Post about it. Post pics of you working, at your comic convention table, post a picture of your ticket stub to Star Wars: The Force Awakens, post a picture of the new comic you bought that you’re super stoked about, etc.
Brands that NAIL this: Tara McPherson posts cool pictures that combine her life with her art (above)
OFFER YOUR CUSTOMERS A LITTLE SOMETHING EXTRA
This kind of includes everything I’ve mentioned, but I can’t stress it enough. When you can offer your customers something that isn’t directly related to what you’re selling, its shows that you see them as more than breathing wallets. If you see a funny comic? Post it. Have an awesome recipe for something? Share it. Have a playlist you’re really into? Suggest it to your customers. Be a person to them.
Brands that NAIL this: Urban Outfitters and Free People offer customers DIY recipes, crafts, interviews to read, music suggestions, etc. And Threadless’s Lance Curran does a “beer and comics” weekly pairing that often features a beer from his own brand, Arcade Brewery (above).
Be a Guest Blogger
If you have the time and don’t mind gettin’ your writin’ on, this can be a really awesome way of promoting yourself. When I started contributing for HelloGiggles, not only were people sharing my articles, people were also seeking me out to see if I would contribute to their blogs. The key here – make sure what you’re blogging is relevant to your audience. If you make geeky tees, don’t contribute to a financial advice blog (plus, *yawn*).
Featured photo courtesy fantastic.pk
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