“Not on a school night!”

When you decide that there is more to life than a Wednesday Wobble, or is that just something ‘older’ people say?!. “Wednesday Wobble” that’s what I used to call it back in the day when off to the pub/club I would trot with my girly gang! “Not on a school night” was not in my vocab and worrying about how I was gonna get home, didn’t even enter my head until it was time to actually go home! Minnies was the place to be and that was where we were! Dancing and drinking, having fun without a care in the world! 💃

Don’t get me wrong I wasn’t reckless. I always made sure I had enough cash in my pocket, a coat in the Winter and a few taxi business cards shoved in my purse. That was about as far as the pre-planning of this weekly event would stretch (as well as the truth in that last statement!) ☎️

Fast Forward

Fast forward 15 years and making it past 11 p.m. is an event in itself! I can’t think of anything worse than being the wrong side of 5 gin and tonics, freezing cold, feet aching, standing on ‘the square’ preying for a taxi urggh my idea of hell! Curry and chips from Martins Chippy was the only thing keeping me warm back then and this post-event ritual kept us coming back for more! 🍟

Memories

Those certainly were the days but they are firmly in the past now where they belong! Great memories but I am now a fully grown-up adult doing adulty things don’t you know! For example, going to bed at a reasonable hour so that I am fresh for my yoga session in the morning, focusing fully on my business and my future, not drinking during the week, balancing my books rather than wasting my cash and avoiding toxic people like the plague! The list goes on and on! 💰

Pay the price

The fact is, that we all go through ‘a phase’ of going out, partying, having fun and overindulging…don’t we?? OK maybe not ALL people experience this but EVERYONE I knew was. So I believed that the friendships would last forever, they didn’t. I hoped that I would stay skinny, I didn’t. I thought that this was my reward for working hard every week, it wasn’t! Eventually, I understood that health & well being is everything or pay the ultimate price…which is different for everybody I guess! 😳

Growing up

An abusive ex was all the excuse I needed to get my glad rags on and get out the door but there are more important things to do with my time and money now! Spending time with my loved ones. Being outside in nature. Thinking clearly. Making sensible decisions that serve me. Deciding that there is more to life than a “Wednesday Wobble!” like oh I don’t know…a good book (a rarely have time to read so maybe not the best example), a chick flick or an early night…its called ‘growing up’ isn’t it?! Oh well, I suppose it had to happen eventually! ❤️

If you want to reach out to me, please don’t hesitate. Drop an email to amanda@va4biz.co.uk. Alternatively, leave a comment on this blog or my social media.

Featured Image;
Media Source: https://unsplash.com/photos/O_CLjxjzN3M
Photo by Emma Matthews Digital Content Production on Unsplash

This blog post will explain how using a free instagram app to turn your audience into customers can easily be achieved by using the linkin bio feature provided exclusively by Later, a social media scheduling tool/app combo. Please read on….

BACK STORY

I read a post on Instagram this morning, encouraging me to click a link and download a FREE self-help e-book. The business owner even helpfully included an arrow pointing directly at the link in their post! ➡️

Nothing unusual so far…sounds good right!? 😁

In the immortal words of Destiny’s Child ” lemme say…No No No No No…” 👎

You may be wondering why….

Is it safe…? 🙄
Is it really free…? 🙄
Is it another scam…? 🙄

No – its because the link doesn’t work!!!???? 😭 #soannoying

INSTAGRAM & LINKS

And the reason has nothing to do with a typo – it’s because Instagram does not support links in captions/posts (at the time of writing!). You would be surprised how many business owners use (hyper)links in their professional Instagram feed. This is potentially damaging for their brand and will result in potential customers, who want immediate access to information before making a purchasing decision, going elsewhere!

FREE INSTAGRAM APP

I recommend to ALL my clients, my clients, clients and I highly recommend to you, that you could also be using a free Instagram app to turn your audience into customers! If you are already doing this, congratulations, you are ahead of the Instagram game! Later, is a free social media scheduling website/app combo, which has a very clever and exclusive Linkin bio function.  Upgrades and more features are also available! Click the image below or click HERE to visit their website.

HOW TO TURN YOUR AUDIENCE INTO CUSTOMERS

Let me explain..if you go to my Professional Instagram Account (click the image below or click HERE after you’ve read this post of course 🙏 p.s. please follow me if you haven’t already) and click the ‘link in my bio’. You will be given the option to click on any of my recent ‘active’ posts. Pick one and you will be taken to the external URL (website) associated with that post.

Now imagine this is YOUR professional Instagram account and how useful this could be to your business and your current or future customers. Directing your audience to an e-book in the cloud, a menu on a website, a product page on an e-commerce shop or to a.n.other website which you have referenced in a post, will create brand loyalty and engagement and convert your audience into customers! It really could… 😎 #freefix

HERE’S HOW YOU CAN HAVE THIS TOO

So how can I help you achieve this…easily? Together we can;

• set-up your FREE Later account (and download the app) so that you can get on top of your Instagram game ✅
• link to your Instagram professional account, Facebook Business Page, Twitter and Pinterest accounts (you don’t have to have all 4) ✅
• create content and post to 2, 3 or 4 social media platforms simultaneously ✅
• set-up the Linkin bio feature so that your audience can access information quickly and help them make a decision to buy ✅
• access the free built-in stock photos feature so your posts will be next level ✅
• use Later’s Search by Hashtag feature which lets you find user-generated content in Instagram ✅
• sit back and relax! ✅ OK that bit is temporary….you still have work to do!

In line with the current COVID 19 situation, this can all be completed online via the Zoom platform using screen sharing (or Teamviewer if necessary). All you need is a good internet connection, a laptop and your phone!

ONE-OFF SPECIAL PRICE – £100 –

Click HERE to book your free 30-minute discovery call/zoom via my online calendar – or book any of the services that I currently offer. No obligation/contracts/tie ins.

Please click HERE to read reviews from my happy clients. This offer is available until 31.08.2020.

#toptips
#hireava
#socialmediascheduling
#freeapp
#professional
#outsource
#virtualassistant
#instagram
#socialmediamanagement

I have written this blog ‘How to increase engagement on LinkedIn’ in answer to a question in my private Facebook group (if you would like to join us, please read to the end!). This list is not exhaustive and is in no particular order but it is my broad perspective on the topic, which in itself is huge!

If you need to speak to me about social media support and coaching, my virtual assistance services, utility warehouse or fullpower energy, please book a FREE 30-minute call – click the image below to access my online calendar;

Content

It goes without saying that content is king and the most important aspect of your LinkedIn profile and Company Page (if you have one), particularly when it comes to engagement. If you are not providing interesting, compelling, valuable, consistent content that has been optimised for best performance on the platform, then your engagement will suffer. Click the image below to find out what kind of posts do well on this platform;

People

To build an instant network of people that know, like, and trust you and therefore are more likely to engage with you, have you considered importing and inviting your email list?  If not, click the image below to find out more;

Note: Depending on your geographic region, you may NOT be able to invite contacts who aren’t already on LinkedIn.

You can also grow your connections from directly within the platform of course by inviting former colleagues, friends, recommended/suggested accounts, and anyone else you know on LinkedIn.  It’s absolutely OK to reach out to people you don’t know but make sure you include a message telling them the reason why you are inviting them to connect with you!  Also, don’t forget to engage with others on the platform – this goes without saying but I said it anyway!  Join groups, get involved, put yourself out there and talk to people, comment, like, and share other people’s posts!

Profile

At the time of writing, statistically anyway, personal profiles on LinkedIn receive more views and engagement than company pages, although the popularity of company pages is increasing!  If you haven’t set one up yet – I highly recommend that you do so to increase your overall engagement on LinkedIn.  Click the image to find out more;

Make sure that you keep your profile (& Company Page if you have one) up to date so that you don’t appear to be inactive or get left out of key criteria search results.  It’s also a great opportunity to tell your audience who you are and what you do!  There are plenty of articles online explaining this is much more detail – it’s quite the science! Click the image below to find out more;

Photos

LinkedIn is a platform for business professionals, so it’s important to showcase a professional appearance and on your Profile and Company Page you have 2 opportunities to do just that – with your profile and cover photos – notwithstanding all your future posts of course! This won’t necessarily increase engagement on LinkedIn but it will serve to show your audience that you are a professional who should be taken seriously!  Canva is a very useful tool to have in your back pocket.  Click the image below to find out more;

Accuracy

Download a free account on Grammarly and let them proof your writing for you. (You can also install a plugin on your WordPress site if you have a blog for example). If you choose to upgrade your account, the tools you can access will take your writing to the next level!  If that’s important to you, you might want to think about upgrading.  Click the image below to find out more;

Recommendations

Recommendations are essential for socially proofing your presence and increasing engagement on LinkedIn.  If you don’t have any on your profile yet, ask for one (or three) from someone you know or have previously worked with.  Click the image below to find out more;

Social posting (un-paid)

Organic posts that do well on LinkedIn are predominantly text-based (unlike most other social platforms).  It’s worth noting here that the first 2–3 lines of your post are critical because everything after that is hidden unless the viewer clicks on ‘see more’!

It’s also worth noting here that sharing external links is to be avoided.  Place them in the first comment box of your post instead!  For the same reason, videos uploaded directly to LinkedIn will perform better than sharing external videos such as ones from YouTube.

And finally, be consistent and strategic with the frequency and timing of your posting to LinkedIn. Have you thought about using a free app to schedule your posts to LinkedIn for example? If not, click below to read my previous blog post which gives you step by step instructions on how to set-up and use SlackSocial. Remember to use relevant hashtags, include a call to action, and occasionally mention other people (i.e influencers) but don’t overdo any of it! 

How to schedule a post to Linkedin for free

Social posting (paid)

LinkedIn offers a variety of opportunities for paid targetted advertising which will increase engagement on LinkedIn including sponsored content, text ads, sponsored messaging, dynamic ads and there is even an opportunity for ad placement off LinkedIn.  A future blog post maybe?!  Click the image below to find out more;

There are so many ways to increase engagement and improve your visibility on LinkedIn but to avoid overwhelm – play the long game and pick just 1 or 2 of these and then just do that!  One step at a time…

Credit – https://www.socialmediatoday.com/news/20-linkedin-tips-to-help-boost-engagement/545369/

If you would like answers to your social media questions/support or training, please request access to my private Facebook group using this link – https://www.facebook.com/groups/socialmediatrainingsupportgroup/

If you would like to schedule a FREE 30-minute call with me – please click this link and book a convenient date/time in your calendar – fb.com/book/va4biz.co.uk/