(#WorkloadWednesday) I’m a “list” person. I make lists for almost everything I do. My lists run the gamut from; To Do, To Call, Grocery, Chores, Need to Fix (broken into 2 lists: needs immediate attention or would be nice), Vacation Essentials, Christmas and so on. I enjoy checking off things completed on my lists and as crazy as it may sound, I also enjoy carrying forward any unchecked items to my next day’s “to do” or “to buy” list. Luckily for me, having list making expertise is very useful when brainstorming ideas for social media.

At dlvr.it, we’ve brainstormed quite a few lists over the past year especially around social media best practices, creating compelling content and product related tips and tools.

With the holidays fast approaching, we want to share three of our favorite lists from prior posts and one new infographic we found (see below) for the busy time-strapped business owner looking for last minute social media and blog post ideas:

blog-list-postList #1: Three Quick Ideas to Boost Customer Retention

List #2: Three Quality Blog Post Ideas when Faced with a Deadline

List #3: Fifteen Last Minute Social Media Marketing Ideas to Implement Before the Holiday Rush

List #4: Thirty-five Creative Social Media Content Ideas (Infographic)

Three Quick Ideas to Boost Customer Retention

Here are three easy to implement social media marketing ideas that will instantly boost customer retention. I promise, these will take very little time out of your busy day but will deliver BIG returns.

  • Write a thank you Tweet. Think of a person who has helped your business in the last month. Get in the habit of saying thank you. You might just brighten up their day. Queue up a few thank you Tweets to trickle out over the week.
  • Tweet a customer and ask how they’re doing – no sales talk, no ulterior motive. Be genuinely interested in your customer or client. It helps solidify that you care about their needs.
  • Tweet, Facebook or Pin a tip. Send a quick message that is relevant to your customers needs. Make it a weekly or regularly scheduled action.

Three Quality Blog Post Ideas when Faced with a Deadline

We use a variety of techniques to craft quality content on a deadline. The following blog post ideas will help you to engage your customers, especially when turn-around time is tight:

  1. Infographic Opinion Post: Find a compelling infographic, cut it into pieces and add your commentary in a blog post. We all have an opinion! Search for relevant infographics in your area of expertise on Flickr, Google Image search, or Pinterest.
  1. Just the Facts: Compile stats to make a case for any topic that your audience will find useful. For example, ask a question and use 3rd party data to back up your answer. “What drives readers to click headlines in a social media stream?” See an example.
  1. Piggyback Post: Find your competitors’ top linked posts and make them better. What content of your competitors attracts high quality links? Here’s how you find out:

Step 1. Enter a competitors URL into Open Site Explorer

Step 2. Click on the Top Pages tab

Step 3. Look for pages with at least 100 Linking Root Domains

Fifteen Last Minute Social Media Marketing Ideas to Implement Before the Holiday Rush

Use this social media marketing plan checklist for last minute ideas to help you win more followers, earn more clicks and promote your brand.

Social Media Marketing Plan Checklist
1. Boost Customer Retention  No time like now to reach out to your customers to say Thank You.
2. Share Evergreen Content You created great blog posts this year. Look through your archives and stats and republish a few of the favorites.
3. Expand Social Reach with Auto-add Hashtags Boost reach across social media. Automatically add hashtags to relevant keywords in your titles.
4. Turn Twitter Favorites into Testimonial Tweets Leverage your Twitter Favorites feed. Quickly turn the feed into a stream of testimonials. Let your customers help you promote!
5. Create a Holiday Drip Marketing Program It’s not too late to keep your brand top-of-mind with our easy-to-create drip marketing program
6. Post After Hours According to Facebook data, the best time to post is when your store is closed.
7. Raise your Facebook Engagement Rate Want more Facebook likes? Review the seven statistics that can quickly get your fans to like you on Facebook.
8. Create an Etsy RSS Feed ChrExpand your Etsy store reach. Cross-promote your goods on Twitter, Facebook and Tumblr.
9. Cross-post Pinterest Pins Pins are not just for Pinterest! Share your Pins across your other social accounts.
10. Create Email-to-Social For those last minute promotions or when creativity sparks, instantly share your inspiration across social using old-fashion email.
11. Update Blog Posts with New Calls-to-action Look into your archives and breath new life into older content still driving traffic. Update your best performing blog posts with your most recent promotions.
12. Add Google Analytics to Shared Links You can’t improve what you can’t measure. Automatically add tracking tags to all your links shared on social.
13. Add Blog Posts to Slideshare Expand the reach of your blog content quickly. Convert blog posts into PDFs that can be shared on Slideshare.
14. Cross-post Instagram Photos Give new life to Instagram Photos. Cross-post Instagram photos on Twitter, Facebook, Google+ and Tumblr.
15. Boost Search with Social Media There is evidence that shows social shares do impact search. Optimize social for search.

 

Thirty-five Creative Social Media Content Ideas

Who has time to productively think through content for all your social media needs? To jumpstart the creative juices, Constant Contact brainstormed this fantastic list of creative post ideas perfect for each of these popular social media networks. Use these ideas for inspiration. Choose the ones that make sense for your audience, and add your business’s unique personality to make them your own.

35 Creative Social Media Content Idas

Thankfully, this blog list is now complete. Do you have any lists or tips to share for the busy time-strapped business owner looking for last minute social media ideas? We would love to hear from you.