How consultants can find their people on social media!

This week, I spent some time with a new-ish friend who is a consultant and was looking for a way to come up with content ideas for social media. He isn't a marketing or communication expert, but he wants to establish a social media presence so he can attract potential clients and showcase his expertise.

We started our collaboration meeting with a nice conversation and then got down to work! There are a few things I wanted him to think about before we got into content ideas. The idea is to find your people on social media.

Which social media platforms is he looking to use, and why!

This matters because you want to make sure you are posting where your customers are looking! For many service providers, this would be Linked In. But it may also be Facebook, X, Bluesky, Instagram, TikTok or YouTube (there are others as well).

For my friend, we'll call him J, we determined LinkedIn as the best place to start.

Next, we started to talk about how customers will be searching for his business.

This matters because we want to include search terms in both his LinkedIn profile and in the posts when people are searching. Make sure you think about the words your potential clients are looking for - not just the name of your services. In my world, nobody is searching for "employee engagement communication strategy." They are more likely looking for "how can I stop employees from quitting?" or "my team keeps leaving for other jobs, what can I do?" Sometimes, you need to think like your client!

Then, I led J through a quick exercise:

List three things you did for/with clients in the past week (or so):

• problems you solved for people

• workshops you led

• projects you worked on

• proposals you shared

Then, list three things you did in your personal life this week:

• games or events you attended

• professional development opportunities

• chores/tasks around your house/apartment/yard

• family stuff (if you are comfortable sharing)

Next, we talked through ways to make these bullets into posts - and how you can find the right balance of professional and personal connections to truly reach your potential clients.

People buy from people they know, like, and trust. By finding a balance between what makes you great at your work and what makes you interesting and relatable as a human being, you'll reach people, and they'll begin to know you, like you, and eventually trust you.

It's important to remember there are people lurking around your social media posts. Some are visible and interacting with you - liking, supporting, and commenting on your posts. But there are likely even more people watching, reading, and learning more about you. One day, when they need you, they'll reach out to buy from you IF you made an impression and they are thinking about YOU when that need arises.

So J and I worked on a plan for his messaging, and I am excited to see how his social media presence grows! I am grateful that we connected and that I was able to help him brainstorm some ideas!

This is an easy way to get a little inspiration on what to post! I also created a cool infographic that can help you boost your social media engagement - download here!

Bring your clients closer by sharing more about you - let them get to know you, like you and trust you so they'll eventually buy from you!