Make Your Content Work for You

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Make Your Content Work for You

As the year draws to a close, I figured it was a perfect time to talk about something we all want to get better at: making your content work for you. Creating content is a LOT of work, and folks outside the social media profession often underestimate how much time, knowledge, and creativity it takes to create quality content that your audience will enjoy. 

Based on my and Elise Miklich’s presentation at Upstate Social 2019, I’m sharing some tips for making your content go further. We shared 10 tips for overwhelmed small business owners at Upstate Social, and today I’m sharing five of my favorites from that presentation.

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How to Run a Successful Instagram Takeover

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How to Run a Successful Instagram Takeover

For over three years now, I’ve been working on a project called I Heart ROC. We tell the stories of Rochesterians living in and loving Rochester, NY. One of the ways we’ve been able to grow our following is through Instagram takeovers. When I joined in May 2016, we had about 800 Instagram followers. By October 2019, we’d reached 13,000 followers. Because Instagram takeovers have been such an effective strategy for us and for many others, I thought I’d share some tips on how to run a successful Instagram takeover.

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7 Takeaways & Action Items from Upstate Social 2019

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7 Takeaways & Action Items from Upstate Social 2019

Last week in Rochester, social media beginners, fanatics, and experts alike gathered at the Temple Building downtown for the 5th annual Upstate Social Sessions, the largest social media conference in New York State outside of New York City. It’s jointly founded and run by two badass women, Danielle Raymo and Leah Stacy. This year was the first time the event spanned two full days, and it was jam-packed with great #content. Seriously, the word content was said so many times I started to forget what it means.

It’s easy to attend a conference, walk away with a head full of ideas, and head back to work inspired, but lacking time to implement it. So here’s a list for you of 7 key takeaways from the event and 7 action items you can tackle to start putting that knowledge to work!

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Recap: Social Media for Small Businesses

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Recap: Social Media for Small Businesses

I recently had the opportunity to teach a class at the Rochester Brainery, a community classroom space that offers one-time classes on pretty much any topic you can imagine. Whether you want to make a wreath, learn about paranormal activity, or decorate a cake like a pro, the Brainery has you covered. 

My class was on Social Media for Small Businesses; we had a great group and the attendees asked awesome questions. The class was comprehensive and chock-full of examples and activities! On the blog today I’m sharing just a taste of what it was like and some key takeaways that may help you as a business owner.

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5 Creative Tactics to Try on Social Media

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5 Creative Tactics to Try on Social Media

Keeping it fresh on social media can be a challenge. Once you get in a groove, it’s easy to keep delivering quality content in the same old ways. Clever tweets with images in them. Carousel posts on Instagram showing off new products or event photos. Enticing Facebook events that make everyone want to click “Interested.” 

That’s great! But we can take it to the next level with just a bit more effort and planning. Here are five creative tactics you can try on social media.

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9 Takeaways from the Storytelling & Social Media Symposium

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9 Takeaways from the Storytelling & Social Media Symposium

This week I had the honor of presenting at the Rochester Regional Library Council’s Storytelling & Social Media Symposium at St. John Fisher College. The event was very well rounded, with sessions on Leadership & Storytelling, Data-Driven Storytelling, and How to Craft Your Message and Share it Strategically on Social Media. Everyone shared tons of great content and ideas, so I wanted to recap some of the highlights from each presentation.

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