Is Social Media Helping or Hurting Your Biz Goals?

With our first nursing blog, Kleneice and I launched to a non-existent audience.  The same time that we were trying to build a following of loyal readers, we were also trying to build our social media presence across Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and Twitter.  After that stressful experience, Kleneice and I were determined to launch Humble & Whole differently.  Instead of releasing the blog into space, we wanted to build a meaningful, engaged community first that could celebrate our launch with us.

Instagram was the perfect platform for the job.  To this day, many of the women we connected with at the beginning of our journey on Instagram a year ago are still following along and supporting us today.  The key takeaway here is that we had a realistic, attainable goal of cultivating a small, engaged tribe before launching our blog and we selected the social media platform that made sense to reach that goal.

Are your social media platforms helping or hurting your goals? 

After months of consulting bloggers and entrepreneurs, Kleneice and I have noticed there is a disconnect between the strengths of the social media platforms and the goals our clients are trying to achieve with those platforms. Many of the bloggers and entrepreneurs who we have helped have come to us with realistic goals, but were using unrealistic methods to attempt to reach those goals.  

For example, there is nothing far-fetched about wanting to steadily grow a mailing list, increase blog traffic, or make more sales / serve more clients.  However, reaching those goals will depend on using the right methods and resources.  Many bloggers and entrepreneurs have consulted us for help, only to discover that they were expecting too much from a social platform or were trying to achieve a goal outside that platform’s capabilities.  

For example, we’ve done several consultations where entrepreneurs have expressed frustration that Instagram wasn’t driving major traffic to their blog.  While there certainly are exceptions here, it just isn’t feasible for most IG users to get major traffic from this platform.

Before we design a strategy for our clients, they have to fill out a questionnaire that requires them to explain their goals.  This is intentional.  Kleneice and I cannot effectively design a strategy if we don’t know what goals our clients are trying to achieve.  Our work entails analyzing those goals and then strategizing what actions they need to take on the social media platform that’s best optimized for their goals.

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What is each social media platform actually capable of?

Facebook - This is one of the best platforms to use in business because it’s optimized to help you achieve multiple goals. Facebook has the potential to drive traffic to your website, build a community, and network with potential clients and industry peers.  Facebook can build your mailing list as well.  

How? We’ve experienced success meeting these goals by showing up in the right Facebook groups.  There are groups for almost every niche and purpose.  There are FB groups specifically for blog and social media promotion, that when used over time, can push you towards meeting your goals.

Instagram - The shining strength of Instagram lies in its ability to serve as a community building platform.  Instagram is designed to keep users engaged within the app (hence only 1 clickable link allowed).

The culture of Instagram is not fast-paced updates, but rather, a sense of community on each post.  Instagram is not a good fit for expecting extensive growth of your mailing list or a surge in blog traffic.  If you’re interested in cultivating a strong, loyal community and making genuine connections that result in relationships and loyal clients, then Instagram is worth your while.

Twitter - This platform updates almost at the speed of light and is perfect for networking.  When used intentionally, Twitter can also serve as a community building platform.  Twitter chats, for example, are great for hosting meaningful discussions catered to a specific audience and industry.

Because Twitter updates so quickly, it can be tough to get visitors to click on links to your blog posts or freebies.  The shelf life of one tweet is at best 18 minutes, meaning it is unrealistic to heavily rely on this platform for blog traffic and significant mailing list growth.  

Pinterest - Oh, Pinterest!  We will never stop sharing our love for this platform!  Pinterest is designed to share high quality content to connect users with exactly what they’re searching for.  

The nature of Pinterest encourages users to leave the app to explore what they find, making this the perfect platform to upload your blog posts and mailing list opt-ins.  If you’re hoping to grow your mailing list, gain more blog traffic, and attract your ideal clients, Pinterest can absolutely make that a reality.

Social media platforms are powerful tools for any online entrepreneur to consider when attempting to reach their business goals.  However, it’s important to consider whether your methods are making it harder to reach your own goals.  

Are you allowing the social media platforms to operate in their strengths?  A social media strategy can only be successful when the platforms that are being used are in alignment with your business goals. 

P.S.  Are you an entrepreneur in the health and wellness industry struggling to land clients? Then you’ll want to check out our free video series, 5 Days to Consistent Clients!