I think we can all agree that at some time or another, we have all felt overwhelmed by social media! Perhaps it’s something you feel quite regularly? Have you ever tried deleting the apps for a week only to download them again and still feel the exact same overwhelming feeling you had before?
In this blog post I’m sharing some tips to help take that overwhelming feeling away, along with some questions that perhaps you’ve found yourself asking. I’ve also created a free download, just for you! If you’re a Christian church, business, community or individual, and are wanting to create an effective online presence, my 7 Quick Steps For Reviewing Your Social Media Channels will help you to get started, and contains a checklist to help you in your social media journey.
Psst…when you sign up for your free download, you’ll also receive my Little Notes of Light monthly newsletter too!
“I don’t know what to post”
A question we’ve all asked ourselves right?!
Do you often feel overwhelmed because you’re unsure of what to post on social media? Believe me, I’ve been there too!
Why not share a simple welcome post, so people can get to know you better? Did you know that you can also pin it to your profile for more visibility!
Think about your audience. Consider sharing a question someone in your social media audience may ask you, and answer it for them. Perhaps think of a few questions that you can share for people to answer and engage with. Share little snippets of your day-to-day life, what you’re enjoying, content you have been loving, perhaps a book that you have enjoyed that someone else may enjoy too.
If you’re a church, share a little bit about who you are, when your services are, photos, videos, content from your congregation, inspiring Christian content that can help and encourage. Why not share a testimony or share scripture and daily readings?
Remember, what you have to offer and what you post is unique, because there isn’t another you!
Top tip – Take a look at Hastag Authentic: Finding creativity and building a community on Instagram and beyond by Sara Tasker, and Little Stories of Your Life: Find Your Voice, Share Your World and Tell Your Story by Laura Pashby.
“I haven’t logged in for ages”
A great starting point is to simply start engaging with others. Let people know that you are online, find new accounts to interact with, and as I mentioned in further up, share a little about what you’ve been up to. If you’re a business, share your website, your products or services, share more about who you are and how you can help, and what you offer.
But, don’t get caught up in the numbers. You may not have as many followers as someone else, but that doesn’t mean that you won’t create more engagement. Growing your online presence can be a long process, but remember to celebrate the small wins in-between. It can be an enjoyable process as you get to learn, grow and nurture it as you go along, creating something that is unique to you.
Did you know that I have a monthly newsletter called Little Notes of Light?
Included in my newsletter is little notes to inspire you throughout your day, including stories, reflections and inspiring Christian content. It also contains encouraging content to help you in whichever season you are currently in, and it will help to equip you in your journey of faith. Subscribe here.
“I might not be able to post consistently”
Did you know that Buffer (a social media scheduling platform ) offers a free subscription? It may be a limited version, but it does the job! It’s what I’ve always used. This allows you to create content and then add it to Buffer to schedule it. It saves a lot of time, and it means that you can post consistently and daily without feeling overwhelmed.
Creating that consistency through Buffer really helps to save time, and also allows you to spend the time you’re now saving on other things! Plus, Buffer saves your recent posts so that you can simply repost them with a click of a button.
If you do decide to go for the paid version of Buffer, it just means that you will have access to lots more on their site, including being able to schedule a lot of social media posts!
Hootsuite is another really great social media management software, although you do have to pay for a subscription to use it. But having used it myself before for different social media platforms, I do recommend it if you don’t mind paying a subscription for it. There are lots of other options too.
“I’m not a graphic designer”
Don’t worry, neither am I! But that doesn’t matter at all, because there are some really great online programs you can use to create eye-catching, professional, fun, colourful, artistic and stand-out graphics that are also tailored to your branding.
I’ve been using Canva for years. Because we use it so much David and I switched to the pro version last year, and haven’t looked back since! Don’t get me wrong, the free version is just as good, you’re just a little more limited in terms of what’s available.
I absolutely love Canva! I even have the apps on my iPhone and iPad so I can use it on there to download graphics I want to use and post on social media. I mainly use it to create graphics for my social media accounts, Instagram stories, Pinterest, my newsletter and blog. I also use it within my business, and for creating templates for my clients.
Whether you’re looking to create graphics for your church or community’s online platforms, your business, or your blog, Canva is definitely the place to be! Can you tell I love Canva?! There are hundreds and hundreds of illustrations and different elements to use for your graphics, including templates for all your social media channels, or for if you want to create your own logo. I even used Canva to create my business cards, as it has that option too.
“I just want social media to work better for me”
With millions of people already on social media, and more joining daily, sometimes it’s easy to feel a little lost amongst a HUGE online community. It can often leave us asking the question above.
Unfortunately, there isn’t really a quick fix for this, unless of course your post goes viral. You just never know! But by doing some of the above each day, you’ll start to notice a difference. For even more suggestions, I really do encourage you to grab my free download too!
If you’re on Instagram, make use of the millions (I’m guessing there are millions) of hashtags that are available to use in each of your posts.
Top tip – look for the hashtags that have less that a million posts using them; the lower the number of people using a hashtag, the more chance your post will get seen.
Posting consistently lets your followers know that you’re active. Whether it’s a post on your feed or an Instagram or Facebook story, your audience will know that you’re there.
Remind your audience who you are and what you do. As they get to know you better and get clarity on what it is that you do, you’ll create a closer connection with your followers on a much more personal level.
Remember to engage with others on social media. This is such an important point. Whether it’s your church congregation, people who are joining your church online, members of your community, your clients or potential clients, or followers of your channels and blog, engaging with others is essential.
Top tip… Highly recommend giving this blog post a read over on David Barton Music, which he has shared some tips and ideas to help you navigate social media if you’re just starting out, and are wanting to use it for promoting yourself and/or your business.
If you’re still feeling a bit overwhelmed, did you know that I can help you make social media work better for you, to gain clarity and direction, to help you grow and nurture your social media accounts, creating an effective online presence for your Christian church, community, business and individual use?
I offer a range of different services to help you to do all of the above and more. My aim is that by the end of our time working together, you’ll come away feeling inspired, encouraged and equipped, whilst feeling refreshed, not overwhelmed by social media, and you’ll look forward to using all that social media offers to help your accounts grow and more. I will meet you exactly where you are. My aim is to be flexible in a way which responds to your own needs, aims and mission.
Click here to read all about the 6 game-changing things you get when you work with me.
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4 thoughts on “Practical Tips for Dealing with Social Media Overwhelm”
Social media is tricky. The graphics part is my least favourite as I am more of a writer than drawer. Good advice!
Your suggestions for engaging with others, using scheduling platforms, and leveraging graphic design tools are helpful. I appreciate the emphasis on building connections and clarity in communication. Taking these steps will definitely make social media more manageable.
This is so useful, especially as I often cycle through not really doing much on my social media as I don’t feel inspired to do so. I have (sort of) started figured out a better schedule that works for me so that I can post something on a set day (this is mainly for Instagram) and not put too much pressure on myself. This was super encouraging — thanks!
I really appreciate the tips in this post! I’ve been struggling to keep up with all the social media platforms and I feel like I’m drowning. This is a great guide to help me get started and feel more in control.