Did you know that 93.2% of internet users aged 16-64 consume social media content?
To put that in perspective, 90.2% use the internet via a laptop, desktop, or tablet, 88.7% watch linear and broadcast television, and only 64.9% listen to music streaming services.
Despite so many people consuming content on social media, only a small fraction actually post on these platforms. Take LinkedIn, for example—it boasts over 1 billion members, yet only around 3 million users share content weekly.
When speaking with prospective clients who aren’t yet posting on social media, they typically give us one of three reasons. In this post, we'll explore these barriers and offer practical solutions to help you overcome them, so you can confidently start posting.
Reasons why people don’t post on social media
1. Time
We live in an era where to-do lists seem endless, and adding another task like posting on social media often doesn’t feel feasible. Even if it makes it onto the list, it’s likely to get pushed aside when more pressing tasks arise.
Unfortunately, we can’t give you more time, but we can show you how to make social media more time-efficient.
The Solution
The biggest time drain we see with social media is its reactive nature. While reacting to current events can be great for engagement, if you're pressed for time, it's not the best approach.
Instead, planning is key.
Whether you plan weekly, bi-weekly, or even monthly, setting aside dedicated time to prepare your content in advance will save you hours in the long run. You can either create a batch of evergreen posts to schedule or mark key dates in your calendar and prepare content around them.
By planning ahead, you make social media posting manageable—and much less stressful.
2. Confidence
Confidence, or the lack of it, often holds people back from posting. This is especially true for small business owners or individuals posting from personal accounts.
The root cause of this fear? Judgment.
People worry about saying something wrong, being too controversial, not sounding smart enough, or not looking perfect. These fears can easily stop someone from posting altogether.
The Solution
Confidence takes time to build, but the good news is, you can build it step by step.
Start small. If you’ve never posted before, a simple text post about your company or an unrelated third party is a great place to begin. Once you feel comfortable with that, you can gradually increase the complexity of your content. Try adding opinions, posting images of yourself with others, or sharing your insights.
Eventually, you’ll work your way up to creating videos where you’re front and center, confidently sharing your thoughts with your audience.
Remember: The key is to start small and build up over time. Each post will help boost your confidence.
3. Ideas
Ever sit down to create a post and hit a mental block?
Whether you’re planning your content in advance or trying to create something in real time, coming up with new ideas can be challenging. The pressure to post something fresh can be so overwhelming that some people avoid posting at all.
The Solution
Inspiration is everywhere—you just need to know where to look.
Here are some sources of inspiration to help you generate content ideas:
Competitors: Has someone in your industry done something you could improve upon or adapt?
Other Industries: Is there a concept from a different field that could be tweaked to suit your audience?
Your Own Content: Review your past posts. Is there something you can expand on or refine?
The more open you are to finding inspiration, the easier it becomes to generate ideas. Once you get into the habit, you’ll notice content inspiration everywhere.
Wrapping Up
Social media platforms thrive on user-generated content. The longer they keep users engaged, the more advertising revenue they earn. To achieve this, they rely on you and your content.
Although it may feel like everyone is already posting on social media, that’s far from the truth. This means there’s still a fantastic opportunity for businesses and individuals to stand out and reach new audiences.
Hopefully, this article has helped you identify and overcome some of the challenges that may have been holding you back from posting. Now, it's time to take that first step and start sharing your content with the world.
Until next time, thanks for reading!
Online Marketing Mastermind
If you’re a small business owner who’s struggling to come up with new ideas for their marketing strategy, our Online Marketing Mastermind might be perfect for you!
Starting from £50 per month, you will be part of a small, curated group of like-minded business owners who will meet online every month.
As part of these sessions, our Director will break down some of the latest marketing trends and best practices to show how they are applicable to you. Then each business owner will get to ask questions about the marketing challenges they are facing before being set a homework task.
In between sessions, you will be put into a WhatsApp group where you will be able to ask questions about the homework, seek support from your fellow group members and share your marketing wins.
To find out more and express your interest, follow the link below.
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