Back to School Basics for Social Media

As the days of summer draw to a close, parents need to hit
the store before their kids can hit the books. Thanks to big retailers using
the lull in summer sales to push back-to-school shopping even earlier, stocking
up on supplies now happens months before class is actually in session. Ready to
create back-to-school content that makes the grade? Put your thinking caps on—it’s
as easy as ABC.

Tailor Your Content

Social media has outpaced other outlets as the place where
parents and students research products, find recommendations, and get
inspiration. That being said, back-to-school season looks a lot different depending
on your target audience and demographics. Parents of young children will be
looking for first-day-of-school photo ideas, lunchbox options, and the best
school supplies, while high school and college students are searching for
accessories, décor, and gadgets. Study your audience and tailor your messaging
to reflect their unique wants and needs.

Target Your Audience

Earn an A+ in engagement by targeting your audience in the
places they’re most likely to engage. Reach mom while she’s planning lunches
and back-to-school photoshoots on Pinterest or chatting about class lists with
her friends on Facebook. For students, utilize engaging mobile first content (Instagram
posts and Stories, for example) to showcase products, ideas, and aspirational
imagery that gets them excited about the upcoming school year.

Highlight Your Products

The National Retail Federation anticipates that the average
family will spend
$669.28 on back-to-school shopping—a number that makes it the second-biggest
selling season of the year. With those kinds of numbers, you need to make sure
your product stands out and is worth the money. Laptops, décor, accessories, lunchboxes,
notebooks, backpacks and snacks are all top of mind during the back-to-school
shopping season, but no matter what product you decide to feature, delight your
audience with playful GIFS, helpful videos, beautiful visuals and innovative
contests and deals that put your product front and center.

Make Use of Video

Video is a must for social. While we won’t go into all the
stats that prove this (here
are just a few) keep in mind that a whopping 85%
of the total US internet audience watches videos online. Leveraging video on
social media is necessary to capture the attention of a content-hungry
audience, but even more so in a crowded and highly competitive landscape.
Utilize video whenever possible to showcase products, provide helpful tips and
tricks, or relate to your audience (#MomLife, anyone?) We guarantee you’ll see
your engagement and share rates skyrocket.

Pencils down! That’s all the tips and tricks we have to
share with you for this round, but if you’re looking for even more social tips
and tricks, contact us!

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