7 Quick and Easy Ways to Spruce up Your Social Media

You’ve taken the time to establish your social media platforms, made some friends and re-tweeted quite a few times.  Now what?  As time ticks on your social media channels may become just another routine for you and just another quick scan for visitors.  Below are 7 quick and easy tips that you can use today to spruce up your social media life

Change your Gravitar and profile pictures.

Nothing says a “new you” like a new look.  By switching up your online pictures you are refreshing your image online and increasing the chance of getting people to click to see what else is new

Add a video or infographic to your site.

The visual aspects of social media are not going anywhere.  Change up your normal text-based interactions with something more aesthetically pleasing.  With easily accessible do-it-yourself sites, adding a visual aid to your repertoire may be simpler than you think.

Start asking questions.

People love talking about themselves.  This is why we tweet and post in the first place isn’t it, to promote ourselves, business and brand?  Turn this fact on its side by asking your followers what’s new with them.  What’s trending in their current world?  What are they struggling with?  All it takes is a question to get the conversations (and traffic) flowing

Update your bio and portfolio links.

It’s a wonderful thing if you’ve been too busy to update your portfolio with all of the new work you’ve been doing.  But a portfolio that showcases your latest project from 2007 screams stale.  Take some time semiannually to show the world how current your workflow actually is, highlighting new skills, clients and growth.

Show off a different side of your personality.

Being business focused is great, but it is so important to humanize your social media accounts so that others can connect with you on a personal level.  Try sharing your weekend plans or cracking an (appropriate) joke once in a while to breathe some new life into your pages

Branch out.

Chances are that as time has progressed, so have your interests.  What once was your niche audience might now be trickling into different directions.  Devote some of your social media time to making those new connections you’ve been thinking about.  Add value by adding your input into discussions and forums, leaving not only an impression but a link back to you.

Limit yourself.

The key words for this article were quick and easy, and if you’ve read this far then chances are you really are looking for some simple social media practices.  Stay true to your aspirations by allotting a certain amount of time to social media each day (say 60 minutes max) and stick to it.  When the alarm rings, commit to logging off and get back to work because as important as promoting your brand is, building it will always rank higher.

What other ways can you refresh your social media?  Share your thoughts here!

About the Author: Kelly Gregorio writes about relevant topics that affect small businesses while working at Merchant Resources International, a merchant advance cash provider for over 10,000 small businesses. You can read her daily blog at http://www.cashprior.com/blog.