The Best Websites to Spark Ideas for Social Media Posts
By Ashley on September 3, 2014 in Social Media
Finding Inspiration for Great Posts
Coming up with ideas for social media posts can be difficult. Creativity is not everyone’s forte and writing does not come easy to all. The good news is you do not need to be an expert content writer or social media genius to come up with engaging content.
Where Do I Start?
When searching for ideas, think of these basic categories:
- Geographic Location: Are your clients local or do you assist people worldwide?
- Industry: What type of business do you have? Is it medical, financial, retail, service, etc.?
- Demographics: Are most of your clients a particular age or gender? Do they have similar education levels or job types?
- Complementary Businesses: What type of businesses could help refer clients to you, but do not compete with you?
News Websites
Sharing a recent story in the news can help spark conversation. Offer your opinion, a different perspective or pose a question about any particular article. Examples include CNN, Huffington Post, Forbes, or your local news site.
Magazine Websites
Magazines have many interesting articles to share in a wide range of topics. They usually offer more interesting and creative content than a news article. Examples of great magazines to start with areMental floss, Wired, and Entrepreneur.
Industry Specific Websites
Websites that are specifically geared to your industry offer ideas that directly relate to what your business is about. Most of our clients are lawyers, so examples of law-specific sites include Avvo’s Blog and the resources and questions sections on lawguru.com. We also recommend checking out FindLaw’s legal blog directory which lists numerous blogs related to law.
Forums & Discussion Websites
Reading conversations taking place among other people can help stir up your own thoughts and ideas. Forum sites such as quora.com and answers.com have thousands of questions others are asking and answering. Use one of these questions to pose your own opinion or simply browse the different categories to come up with your own ideas.
Other Social Media Pages
An excellent source of share-worthy content is on the social media sites themselves. Check your favorite website’s Google+ or Facebook page for something to share on your own page. Use the search bar in Twitter to search for relevant or trending hashtags and retweet something you find interesting. Pinterest is another great site to find new ideas, especially quotes, photography and design related items. If you are looking for a video to share about a particular topic check YouTube or Vimeo.
How Do I Use It?
Now that you know where to look for ideas and inspiration you must find ways to implement them. There are basically two ways of doing this. Share the link/photo along with your own interpretation or use the content you find as inspiration to create your own content. Remember that in order to be successful on social media you need to connect with your audience. Share things that are significant and move others to take action. If you are not influencing your followers, you are falling short.
