Category: Social Media (Page 2 of 6)

How to Optimize Your Instagram Link In Bio

May 19, 2022 / Gail Oliver, Online Small Business Consultant

You want to optimize your Instagram Link In Bio because right now, the Instagram bio only allows you to use one link, unless you use a link extender. A link extender means that when visitors click on the link in your bio, it will go to a page that has several links on it, which you can even customize with your branding. This is mine.

Within this page, you can link to your ecommerce site, blog, specific blog posts, and other social media pages.

I use Link.tree, and they offer four packages, from free up to $20 a month. The more expensive packages mean you can also sell directly from your link extender page – saving customers the extra steps of going over to your ecommerce site – as well as collect emails right from the page, even collect payments.

It’s worth checking out if Instagram is a major source of traffic and marketing for your business.

About Me

A 20+ year marketing professional, small business consultant, ebook author & blogger, my advice has been featured in the NY Times, Success Magazine, American Express, Big Commerce, Business2Community to name a few – so this is professional advice you can trust!

I have consulted for thousands of small businesses since 2012. It really does help to talk to someone who is objective to get a new, but professional, perspective. I have also written publicity pitches for clients that resulted in them being featured in Real Simple Magazine, Apartment Therapy, House Beautiful, Vanity Fair, Houzz, Martha Stewart, Glamour Magazine, LONNY, DesignMilk, Emmaline Bride,– just to name a few. Learn more about my marketing services here.

SEO-Friendly Content Ideas for May

April 25, 2022 / Gail Oliver, Online Small Business Consultant

Need some SEO-friendly content ideas for May?

Every month, the top searches on Google are typically questions. You can take advantage of answering these questions in your blog or social media posts as an easy way to drive traffic to your business.

For example, based on past Google Search Data, these should be the top questions for May:

What do you write in a teacher appreciation card (May 4^th)
What is Cinco de Mayo celebrated for? (May 5^th)
What horses are in the Kentucky Derby? (May 7^th)
When is Mother’s Day 2022? (May 8^th)
What happens during a lunar eclipse? (May 15th)
What is a flower moon?
How fast do Indy 500 cars go? (May 29^th)
When is Memorial Day 2022? (May 30^th)
What is Memorial Day and how is it observed?
What side does the tassel go on graduation cap?
You might also like, What to Post to Social Media in May

For your social media marketing, you would like my 365 Social Media Post Ideas.

For your blog or content marketing, you would like my 365 Blog Post Title Ideas.

Be Sure to Also Check Out:

About Me

Do you need your Brand Story written or an SEO-Optimized Blog Post or a Personalized Business Consultation? As a 20+ year marketing professional and small business consultant, all of my services are super affordable.

I have consulted for thousands of small businesses since 2012, and my advice has been featured in the NY Times, Success Magazine, Yahoo Business, American Express, Big Commerce, Business2Community to name a few – so this is professional advice you can trust!

My Publicity Pitch service has also gotten my clients featured in Real Simple Magazine, Apartment Therapy, House Beautiful, Vanity Fair, Houzz, Martha Stewart, Glamour Magazine, LONNY, DesignMilk, Emmaline Bride,– just to name a few.

How to Create Social Media Posts Using Canva

February 10, 2022 / Gail Oliver, Online Small Business Consultant

Want to know how to create social media posts using Canva?

I’m creative but I’m not a designer, so thank goodness for Canva! If you’re not using this amazing free tool to create your social media content (not to mention other marketing materials) I have a few tips, but first an overview.

Starting Points on Creating Social Media Post Using Canva

Join Canva and get a free account.
Decide what type of post you want to create by simply searching i.e. Instagram Post.
Choose either a blank template, or one of the free design templates, which you can also completely alter.
Let’s say you choose a blank design. You click on “Elements” (in the side bar) to add a graphic, photo, video, audio, table and more from their inventory.
What if you want to add your own photo or graphic? Then go to “Uploads” and upload your image.
Now you need to add text. If you struggle with fonts, use one of their free “Font Combinations” (in the side bar) or select from their huge list of free fonts in the drop down menu.
When complete, hit the “Download” button in the upper right corner (select PNG if it is a static image), and the image is ready to post.

My Canva Tips

If you want to use one of the Canva templates, but worry that other businesses will also use it, then simply change the color scheme, swap out a few of the graphics or fonts for different ones, or just move things around.
If you struggle with colors, try the Canva Color Palette Generator.
If you upload your logo, Canva will automatically add your brand colors to the color palette.
If you are looking for photos to use beyond what Canva offers, try free ones at Unsplash.
To create a carousel post, simply use the “Duplicate Page” icon in the top right corner (or the “add a page” button at the bottom), and create up to 10 slides (the maximum allowed on Instagram).
Always include your business url on every post.

Now take an idea from my best-selling 365 Social Media Posting Ideas Calendar and drop it into a Canva template and you’re ready to go!

8 Instagram Reel Ideas for Small Business

January 12, 2022 / Gail Oliver, Online Small Business Consultant

It has been proven that videos and reels on social media get higher engagement. They do not have to be complicated to make a big impact, so here are some Instagram Reel Ideas Small Business.

Effective Reels from Big Brands

This reel from Burt’s Bees is cool because it is a very quick transition from one product to the next.
This video from Pottery Barn is simply stop motion to transition in one piece of the table setting at a time.
With this reel from Bauble Bar, the model has on new jewelry every time she snaps her fingers.
This reel from Barbie shows how you can use static images and make them look like a video, simply by the type of transition effect that appears between images.
This reel from Justice also looks like a video, but it is again just stop motion with four images featuring the products in different positions as it transitions from one image to the other and then goes in reverse.
The store Mark and Graham simply took four images, and used stop motion to make it look like a video.
A time lapse video of you creating your product (or demonstrating how to use it) is fairly easy if you just string together short clips, like this video from Michaels.
Even your giveaways will get more engagement if you make them animated graphics complete with music, like this video from World Market that you can easily do in Canva.

My Instagram Reel Ideas

If you sell clothing, show your model walking down the street and every time she passes behind a building and reappears, she is wearing a new outfit.
If you’re a fitness trainer, show a spliced together video / reel of you running up various outdoor stairs in your city.
If you sell wedding gowns, film a bride walking down the aisle and with every step forward, her gown changes.
If you sell jewelry, show a video / reel whereby the model has one piece of jewelry added to her look one at a time until she is completely decked out in layered necklaces, earrings, bracelets and rings.
If you sell cosmetics, focus the video on the model’s eyes and every time she blinks, her eye makeup changes.
If you sell wall art, create a stop motion type video / reel showing a gallery art wall being reconfigured in 3 different ways, all using your art.
If you sell real estate, splice together a video / reel of some of your listings showing their holiday lights coming on, one after the other.
If you’re a restaurant, post a video/reel that transitions from each of your menu boards for the past week.

Need more social media posting ideas? Check out my best-selling 365 Social Media Posting Ideas.

You might also like Free Business Card Templates.

Be Sure to Also Check Out:

Social Media Marketing Articles

Best Trending Hashtags Instagram

December 4, 2021 / Gail Oliver, Online Small Business Consultant

Want to know the best trending hashtags Instagram or on Tiktok? Well it depends on the day. But it is a great opportunity for your small business to get seen.

In fact, a really great hashtag strategy for you to jump to the front is by starting your own trending hashtag based on anything that is going on in the world, in pop culture, top searches and more.

How to Find Potentially Trending Hashtags

Start by taking a look at the day’s news:

Is there a new #royalbaby born
Has a certain celebrity done something special i.e. #britneyswedding
Is it the anniversary of something historic i.e. #dday77thanniversary
Is it a fun national day i.e. #happynationaldogday

How about is there a question someone wants answered? Questions are particularly popular hashtags on Tiktok as people like to search for “how to” videos:

How to make banana bread? #howtomakebananabread #bananabreadhack #bestbananabread
Why is a tomato a fruit? #tomatofruitorvegetable
Where can I get free stuff on my birthday? #freestuff #mybirthday #birthdaydeals

Other Ways to Find Trending Hashtags

Another awesome way to find trending hashtags is to set up an account with Google Trends.

Every day you will get an email whereby Google Trends will tell you yesterday’s hot searched topics. Likely, these searches stick around for a few days, maybe even weeks, so you can quickly turn into a hashtag that might start trending or already is.

They might be bizarre, but they are what people are looking for. Some examples of popular Google searches:

Golf hats for big heads #golfhats #largegolfhats #oversizedgolfhats
Easy undo for medium length hair #easyupdos #promhair #hairstylesprom
Run rule in college baseball #runrule #collegebaseballrules

Hashtag PDFs

What is Social Media Marketing?

November 29, 2021 / Gail Oliver, Online Small Business Consultant

What is social media marketing? I get asked this a lot. It really is a marketing tactic that only started less than 20 years ago, when Facebook started. Now we have Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, Snapchat, Tumblr, YouTube and TikTok.

These social media platforms are free to use and to post to. They all have audiences in the millions, so that makes them very attractive for small businesses.

What is Social Media Used For?

But business was never social media’s original purpose. The original intent was for people to be able to communicate and share information with friends and family. However, business has taken over. Every business has set up a profile on at least one if not all of these social media platforms. They post content daily promoting their business, and they advertise on these platforms as well.

Each of these social media sites has a different format, and a different audience, but the goal for small business is to use social media to get infront of their customers.

Social Media Marketing Tips

To be successful on social media, especially if you are a small business, is to just focus on the platforms where your customers lie. Otherwise it will become too time consuming for you.

For example, Facebook tends to have a audience of people ages 35 to 60. Instagram is more for 18 to 35, and Tiktok is quite young at 12 to 25.

Social Media Marketing Ideas for Small Business

The key to making social media attract attention for your small business, is to not just post your products. What you want to do is post content that interests them, as well as answer questions.

For example, if you sell jewelry, post a graphic that features various ways to organize your jewelry, as this is a top Google search.

Alternatively, post pieces of your jewelry as part of an entire outfit, using the popular hashtag #ootd (stands for outfit of the day).

Social Media Examples

If you need some good examples of how businesses use social media, here are some of my favorites:

Social Media Marketing PDFs

Social Media Marketing Articles

What to Post to Social Media in December

November 7, 2021 / Gail Oliver, Online Small Business Consultant

December Social Media Post Ideas

Need some December Social Media Post Ideas?

Below are a few creative ideas from my best-selling 365 Social Media Ideas for 2023.

I have just released my 365 Social Media Post Ideas for 2024 which you can download today on Etsy for just $2.97 – it’s a steal and the inspiration will make your social media marketing for 2024 a cinch!

December Social Media Post Ideas

December 1: Post a quote about freedom on this 67th anniversary of Rosa Parks not giving up her seat on the bus.
December 2: Post a DIY reel from a craft blogger for “How to Make a Christmas Bow”, which is a top Google search every December #instareel.
December 3: Post a carousel post of your favorite advent calendars for 2023 (it starts today).
December 4: Post a recipe carousel for one or more of the top Google searched cookies this month, which are sugar, shortbread, gingerbread and peanut butter blossoms for national #cookieday today.
December 5: Post a poll “How Long Do You Leave Up Your Christmas Tree?”
December 6: Post a “Yay or Nay: Peppermint Bark?”
December 7: Post a time lapsed reel of holiday lights turning on – either on a street in your neighborhood or just a prominent Christmas tree in your town #waitforit #instareel #christmaslights #holidaylights.
December 8: Post a list of the “Best Christmas Family Games for 2023”.
December 9: Post a carousel of merry Christmas wishes to write in holiday cards for national #christmascardday today.
December 10: Post an answer to a popular search such as, “Who was the first woman to win a Nobel prize” for the announcement today.
December 11: Post your 3 favorite social apps for national #appday.
December 12: Post a list of the top 5 family Christmas movies on Netflix (a top search this month), for a post that is sure to be liked and shared #currentlywatching.
December 13: Post a poll asking people their current holiday mood using an emoji #christmasmood.
December 14: Post a “11 Sleeps Left Until Christmas” graphic .

Get all the brand new ideas for 2024 in 365 Social Media Post Ideas for 2024!

Visit My Etsy Shops:

Attention Getting
Our Best Laid Plans

Recent Reviews

Top Google Trends Searches in November

October 20, 2021 / Gail Oliver, Online Small Business Consultant

Why is it important to know the top Google Trends Searches November? As an online seller it can help you:

Determine social media content that might get more engagement;
Get ideas for your store blog that you might be able to optimize for SEO and drive more traffic;
Identify a hot new product idea or service.

Below is a list of the top Google searches last November, that may give you a heads up for next month. I get a list of the top Google searches today, and it can be a real eye opener as to how people search.

One of the interesting things I noticed for both Black Friday and Cyber Monday trending searches is how people search for these sales for a specific store or a specific product i.e. weighted blanket Black Friday, Amazon Cyber Monday.

You will also see how many of these trending searches on Google are actual questions. Maybe this is because people are use to asking questions into their phone now.

Anyway, I hope this list of top trending Google searches for November helps your marketing efforts.

Want More Ways to Drive Traffic to Your Online Store?

My 12-Month Marketing Plans are packed with tactics that work.
My Best-Selling 16-Month Social Media Post Ideas Calendar will make posting to social media super easy.
My Best-Selling 2022 Etsy Holiday Sales Planner that has tons of holiday selling tips, stats, top search phrases, planning pages & more for an incredible price right now!
Book a 30-Minute Phone Consultation with me for one-on-one advice.