Carol Stephen
Social Media Doldrums: Survival in Six Steps
Whether your business is a startup or a long-standing business, you’ll sometimes suffer from the social media doldrums. The doldrums can be defined as a period of stagnation or inactivity. It might occur in the middle of the summer or during a holiday. There is nothing happening, there are no boats on the horizon, and there is no wind at all. Naturally, you’d like to escape the doldrums as quickly as possible!
Share Posts from Like-Minded Companies
Share Posts from Like-Minded Companies
Sharing might seem like a non-intuitive way to escape the doldrums, but there are others creating ideas and content who would love the boost. Meantime, you get a little time to reflect and create a long-term escape plan. Some personal favorites are:
- Tess Wittler, who writes about blogging for construction companies,
- Blue Steele Solutions, who write about marketing strategies and solutions,
- Bridget Willard (You Too Can Be a Guru), who writes about social media, and
- Robert Nissenbaum (Tactical Social Media), who covers brand awareness and recognition.
Comment on Blogs to Escape the Doldrums
Comment on Blogs
Commenting on others’ writing is a fabulous way to spark new ideas for your own social media or blog posts. A good place to start is with people who are sharing your content or commenting on your posts. Starting a conversation on a blog beyond “great post!” can help the creative juices flow again. Ask a question or say something that will move the conversation beyond the entry level. For instance, “what made you think of writing about this topic?”
Read Articles
Read Articles
Articles within your own niche can help to stimulate new ideas and help you create an action plan to escape. For instance, Copyblogger is a terrific one. Take note of which articles attract you. What headlines brought you there? Could you use a similar headline?
Power out? No problem. pic.twitter.com/dnQ7pOgC
— Oreo Cookie (@Oreo) February 4, 2013
Think Back
Go back to memorable moments. These moments might be times when ads caught your attention from your childhood, events that are important to the country as a whole, or to a game that you played. It could be anything, really. For instance, do you remember Life cereal “Give it to Mikey! He hates everything!” ad? People quote that ad all the time. Or the more recent Oreo cookie tweet during the Superbowl of 2013? There are moments that people enjoy revisiting.
Go Into the Stillness
Go Into the Stillness
Like a stale meme, you want an easy answer. Sometimes running straight into the fire, or lack thereof is the right thing to do. This is perhaps the most difficult cure, and also the most “zen.” Every business has its ups and downs. Sometimes a period of absolute quiet is necessary for the next period of growth. Being still and calm might drive you insane as a business owner. Unless you’re an introvert, that is. Here’s my article on Six Facts About Introverts and Social Media That Will Impress Your Friends, by the way.
Feel the Pain
Explore the Pain
If you’re having a period of the doldrums, perhaps your clients are, too. How about writing about the pain that life in the doldrums creates for you? After all, you’re not going to be reaching the top of Mount Kilimanjaro every day. And, to use the sailing metaphor, you won’t sail your boat under the Golden Gate Bridge every day, either.
Ever Been in the Doldrums?
What did you do to get out? Leave me a comment!
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