Content ideas for your business during Lockdown
As we enter into the next phase of the nation-wide lockdown, it might be a little harder to grasp our new normal and how to proceed with content creation for your business. Staying connected is now more important than ever, with people and businesses relying on social media to stay in touch with friends, consume the news, and be entertained.
In fact, Facebook and Instagram have seen a 40% increase in usage due to Covid-19, with views for Instagram Live and Facebook Live doubling in one week.
But just because people are spending more time on social media doesn’t mean it’s business-as-usual.
We’ve collected a short list of tips and ideas to help you craft improved content strategies for social media. If you read below, you’ll find more useful information to get you going amidst the crisis.
1. Stay ahead of the updates
Keep up with the updates of what’s going on in the world, in the country and in your industry. Ensure that you communicate the news with your audience and followers, the more forthcoming and accurate you are with information, the more they will trust you as their source of information.
2. Be the listener your customers need
Acknowledge the current circumstances in all of your messaging but make sure that your copy is not riddled with tone deaf messaging. That way, your customers will trust that you’re an authentic brand that cares.
3. Don’t stop posting
Your followers are spending more time online than ever before, and you want stay connected to them! If you’re unable to market or sell your products or services right now, focus on sharing content that aligns with your brand values instead.
The copy in your captions is more important than ever before as it can provide context for the content that you perhaps shot weeks ago.
4. Be empathetic
Truth is, we’re all going through a shift during this nationwide lockdown and the coronavirus pandemic itself. Some people have lost their jobs, and some have had to take salary cuts and struggling to make ends meet. In all of your messaging, show empathy. Don’t just push products and services, even if it’s targeted for after lockdown. For example, don’t simply promote your work-out gear with buy now messaging, acknowledge that some people are going through a hard time and for those who have the capability to shop work out gear, they can do so for deliveries after the lockdown has been lifted.
5. Share your experiences and opinion
Experiences can be universal and unify most people. Mostly, because they’re relatable. Humanise your brand by sharing your experiences and acknowledging your hard times. Share an opinion that you have, whether it’s regarding the pandemic or industry news. But be careful not to share controversial opinion which might land you in hot water, or even worse, which might result in loss of customers. Sharing your experiences will trigger engagement from your customers. This, in turn, can offer you data and insights which you can use later. You have options to share this on IG or Facebook Stories or Live if you do not want the content to last forever on your feed.
6. Play fun and engaging games with your customers
Professionalism and fun coexist. Be the brand that lifts people spirits up by offering a mini chance to break away from the current circumstances. An example of an acceptable fun game to play with your customers is the houses game which has gone viral on social media. How it works is, you create a list of different houses and place different people or things and ask your customers to choose which house they would have liked to be in lockdown with. For example, if you’re in the fitness business, you will sort the houses according to types of workout or even well-known instructors and specialists. The essence of it is to create engagement.
If you need ideas suitable to your specific small business, contact us via marketing@spottmedia.co.za and we will assist you in the best way we can.