(and why this can be compared to food prep)

I was reminded this week of why I often use the analogy of fitness or weight loss and social media. You might find that a strange connection, but bear with me, there is a method to the madness.

For the last few months I have been working with a variety of small and micro businesses in Regional NSW as part of a series of programs for Rural Financial Counselling Services in Central West NSW as part of their Small Business Programs, leading them through a high touch version of my signature training program - the Digital Ascent. 

Each week we talk about a key facet of the Digital Ecosystem ( Web, Social, Content & Search ) and break down the realities of what it is, how it works and how you should implement it. 

This week we have been chatting about Social - which is always a popular component, often because it tends to be the area of the Digital Ecosystem that most people either believe they understand more easily or it is the area that can be the only part of digital marketing that matters, which of course is not the case. 

So why do I believe that good social media planning/posting is like food prep?

I did a quick search online to look for the answer to this question - “why is food prep so important for weight loss”. I could have asked “Why is food prep so important for healthy living”, or “saving money” or any similar question, the response would have been similar. 

The first item that popped up, had these 10 headings below. 

• You will save money

• It will help you lose weight 

• Grocery shopping will become easier

• You will learn the art of portion control

• You won’t waste food

• You will save time

• It is an investment in your health

• You will gain more willpower

• It will reduce stress

• It will bring variety to your meals
  

I am going to show you how with a few minor tweaks - all of these headings can be modified slightly to suit why planning and scheduling social media posts is more effective for your business. 

Read my versions below.

1. You will save money

This is an easy one - and guess what I am not even going to change the heading.

Food prep does save you money - you are subjected to impulse buys, you buy what you need, you can buy in bulk.

For social media - you can create and schedule in bulk. It is a known scientific fact that when we repeat tasks or are highly focussed on a task, we get in a state of flow and we work faster and more efficiently. What might take 15mins per day to post something is significantly reduced and your time is freed up to focus on what you should be doing - generating income for your business, not creating social posts.

You may even find this cheaper if you outsource these activities than when you compare this to your hourly rate!

2. Your feed with look better

Mmm - how to rephrase number 2? Without wanting to get into a body shaming exercise, when we lose weight or focus on healthy eating we feel better about ourselves, our clothes fit us better, we move more easily - we look better from the inside out.

Planning your social feeds, means they will look better too as you can create things with a consistent look and feel that reflects your brand

3. Content creation becomes easier

When you know what to buy, shopping is much much easier, we are less distracted and can get in and get out quickly. When you think about what you are going to post on social media, the entire process of social media content creation becomes easier as you can focus on what to say/share and you can then schedule them in advance. 

4. You will learn how to craft a better message

When we prepare meals in advance, we can easily grasp what is required for a meal, as we can see how much we need to put into each container - it becomes a visual cue. When you see your social media posts in a spreadsheet one after the other, you start to see how you are speaking to your audience. You can pick up on inconsistent language

5. You won’t waste ideas

Food is wasted when we don’t know what to cook with it. Hands up if this is you? I know it is totally me. Swap out food and replace with ideas and you have this item stitched up. How often do we miss key dates/themes/community items because we don’t plan them in advance. Building up that bank of images that you can use later, means that you will have something to draw from when you are in a creative funk. 

6. You will save time

Who likes shopping for food at Woolies? No-one! It’s why we shop online or sign-up for a subscription service. We loathe it!

Creating social media in an ad-hoc way is also a pain. We do waste time when we only create social media posts one day at a time. It is far better to have most of your items prepared in advance that you can either dip into as and when you need. Just like a pre-prepared meal in the freezer when you come home late from work - when you just have it ready, you feel so much better!

7. It is an investment in your business health

Yep - it sure is. Effective social media helps to build brand awareness, customer advocates and helps to convert prospects. It’s an investment in your future business, not just what you are doing today. It helps build your sustainable, profitable and enjoyable business of the future.

8. You will gain more willpower

Habits are life changing. Lock content creation into your regular work cycle. Once you start you will never go back. 

9. It will reduce stress

Social Media can be stressful if you worry about what to say, what not to say, doing it, not doing it. A plan reduces this stress immensely. Not everyone can just create something to say on the spot, so preparing your social media in advance can give you confidence that it will be a good reflection of your business.

10. It will bring variety to your social posts.

When we don’t plan our meals, we can end up cooking the same stuff all the time, because that becomes easy for us - but ultimately boring for others. Social Media works the same - when you have items planned in advance you can see if you are favouring a certain style of post, or certain message/product or service. It also helps you see what you might be missing.

Struggling to get effective social media out into the world?

Why not book in for a quick chat about how I can help with that?