Tips to keep your credit union’s social media on track

How many times has your credit union’s social media engagement been stopped and re-started? Has your team been able to keep a consistent cadence of posts? 

If not – do not worry, you’re not alone. Credit union employees often wear many hats and rightfully prioritize helping members, so social media can often fall by the wayside. Throughout the COVID pandemic, social media has been elevated as a crucial communication tool as branches and physical interaction were limited. This digital connection will remain important in the “new normal” as more people look online for information. 

Here are five ways to get your social media calendar back on track so your employees have a playbook with a long-term vision:

1. Know your goals – part of the chaos some credit unions experience is that they don’t have a written set of goals for their social media accounts. Who is your target audience? Why are you putting in this work? With a goal in mind, you can streamline content for your account and give it less of a “hodge podge” feeling.
2. Plan with a calendar – employees may dislike the idea of a content calendar because it makes them think they need to plan a month in advance with no room for “spontaneous” events. You can always break away from the calendar with timely posts that can’t wait, it’s simply a tool to help provide cadence. The purpose of the calendar is to help you strategize and plan posts with “campaign mentality” versus random posts that don’t connect. It goes back to #1 – ensuring you are meeting your goals.
3. Create templates for imagery – it is a proven fact that images bring more engagement to social media posts. In fact, research suggests that Gen Z won’t even read or notice posts in their social feeds if there are more than five words on the graphic. But … sometimes credit unions skip the graphics because they take time to create. One word: templates. Templates greatly streamline this process and ensure a consistent look for your account (a.k.a. branding). Creating one branded template makes it easy to switch photos and text without needing to redesign custom graphics for each post.
4. Schedule posts in advance – another time saving tip! Most social media platforms now allow you to schedule posts in advance, or you can use a tool to do this. However you choose to do it, scheduling in advance ensures consistency of posting – don’t rely on freeing up 10 minutes a day to post … because things come up.
5. Keep a file of ideas – one of the more challenging components of running a social media account is keeping the fresh ideas coming. Challenge your teams to contribute thoughts or ideas for posts or mini campaigns. Keep these in a file that you can reference when your idea meter is running low. 

These simple tips can help provide strategy and consistency for your social media presence while also allowing you to focus on what’s most important – serving your members.