The Savvy Manager’s Guide to Posting Like a Pro
You already know what makes you stop and read a post, it’s just a matter of teaching yourself to do those things with your Workplace posts.
Think about the best posts you’ve seen while scrolling through your personal social media accounts: the ones that made you stop the scroll and read.
If you can picture any of those posts, then congratulations! You already know what great, engaging posts look like. It’s just a matter of teaching yourself to use those same tricks in your Workplace posts.
Not sure how to start? Don’t worry- we’ve got your back.
Below are three big tips to posting like the pros:
Embrace your inner influencer
As any good influencer will tell you, the first step to getting people to read your posts is making sure they don’t scroll past it. That means having something really eye-catching in it: a video, a great looking image or an animated gif. The good news is that making these is a lot easier than most people realize:
Use the Workplace mobile chat app to record a short video and send it in a chat group. Or create an open group and record a Live video of yourself in it. Afterwards you can download the recording or just share it out as a post in other groups.
Use free tools like Canva to quickly make great visuals and infographics to add to your posts. Everyone will think you’re a graphic designer.
Create animated gifs for your posts by creating a slideshow and using slide animations to animate text and images. Then export the file as an animated gif or video. Tada! You’re an animator! #yourewelcome
Instead of writing a long and formal post or chat, just go Live and talk to people. Add a few bullet points as highlights to the recording post afterwards.
Get your readers involved
Posts with a lot of likes, reactions, and comments are more likely to show up in people’s News Feeds. The best way to get people to do those things is to use your post to have a conversation with them:
Tag anyone who helped you do whatever it is you’re posting about and give them a big thanks. Tag their managers too for some guaranteed comments.
Tag managers of other teams and definitely your boss’s boss. Ask them to share the post with their own teams. #socializeyourstuff
If you want comments, ask for them. Have readers answer a question or do something in the comments. Either put the ask at the top of the post or leave it as the first comment so people see it. Never put it at the bottom of the post!
- “Tag someone in the comments who will find this interesting”
- Comment below to welcome/congratulate/thank
- LET US KNOW: What’s one question that you’d love to be answered?
- GIF OFF: Comment below with a gif to share how you feel
Pro Tip: Let people be themselves:
Embrace fun challenges to help people express themselves and get to know each other. Check out our Fun Friday campaign kits for ideas like catch the emoji, show and tell, and mini missions. The posts are already written and have great gifs- all you have to do is post. It's a great way to get people into the mindset of responding to each other's posts.
Know what to post about
Note: If you don’t have a team group yet, you should fix that! And if you want to brush up on posting basics, start here .
If you're not sure what you should be posting about, as a manager, then look no further. Below is a list of the basics.
4 things you should always be posting about in your team group:
Share a photo of them and a short message from the new hire. Ask them some questions about themselves (some serious and some silly) and put the answers in the post to share with the team.
Once a week have everyone on the team (and you) write a “Top of Mind” post with sections for last week’s progress, this week’s priorities, any problems getting in their way and any news in their personal life they want to share. Read and respond to every one.
Before each team meeting create a poll post and add the agenda items to it. Then encourage people to add their own agenda items to it. During the meeting, have someone create a doc in your group and take notes. Share these notes in a post after the meeting.
Post monthly recaps, announce big projects, and talk up the great things people on your team have done. Be sure to pick groups that will get the info in front of the right people. Don’t be afraid to create your own “FYI” group to share these things with other teams as well.
If you’re ready to really go pro, check out our Anatomy of a Great Post infographic and our guide to getting savvy with post insights.
