Social Content

Before Creating Content

1. Goals

• What's the primary objective? (Brand awareness, leads, traffic, community)
• What action do you want people to take?
• Are you building personal brand, company brand, or both?

2. Audience

• Who are you trying to reach?
• What platforms are they most active on?
• What content do they engage with?

3. Brand Voice

• What's your tone? (Professional, casual, witty, authoritative)
• Any topics to avoid?
• Any specific terminology or style guidelines?

4. Resources

• How much time can you dedicate to social?
• Do you have existing content to repurpose?
• Can you create video content?

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Platform Quick Reference

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Content Pillars Framework

Example for a SaaS Founder

Pillar Development Questions

1. What unique perspective do you have?
2. What questions does your audience ask?
3. What content has performed well before?
4. What can you create consistently?
5. What aligns with business goals?

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Hook Formulas

Curiosity Hooks

• "I was wrong about [common belief]."
• "The real reason [outcome] happens isn't what you think."
• "[Impressive result] — and it only took [surprisingly short time]."

Story Hooks

• "Last week, [unexpected thing] happened."
• "I almost [big mistake/failure]."
• "3 years ago, I [past state]. Today, [current state]."

Value Hooks

• "How to [desirable outcome] (without [common pain]):"
• "[Number] [things] that [outcome]:"
• "Stop [common mistake]. Do this instead:"

Contrarian Hooks

• "Unpopular opinion: [bold statement]"
• "[Common advice] is wrong. Here's why:"
• "I stopped [common practice] and [positive result]."

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Content Repurposing System

Blog Post → Social Content

Repurposing Workflow

1. Create pillar content (blog, video, podcast)
2. Extract key insights (3-5 per piece)
3. Adapt to each platform (format and tone)
4. Schedule across the week (spread distribution)
5. Update and reshare (evergreen content can repeat)

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Content Calendar Structure

Weekly Planning Template

Batching Strategy (2-3 hours weekly)

1. Review content pillar topics
2. Write 5 LinkedIn posts
3. Write 3 Twitter threads + daily tweets
4. Create Instagram carousel + Reel ideas
5. Schedule everything
6. Leave room for real-time engagement

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Engagement Strategy

Daily Engagement Routine (30 min)

1. Respond to all comments on your posts (5 min)
2. Comment on 5-10 posts from target accounts (15 min)
3. Share/repost with added insight (5 min)
4. Send 2-3 DMs to new connections (5 min)

Quality Comments

• Add new insight, not just "Great post!"
• Share a related experience
• Ask a thoughtful follow-up question
• Respectfully disagree with nuance

Building Relationships

• Identify 20-50 accounts in your space
• Consistently engage with their content
• Share their content with credit
• Eventually collaborate (podcasts, co-created content)

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Analytics & Optimization

Metrics That Matter

Weekly Review

• Top 3 performing posts (why did they work?)
• Bottom 3 posts (what can you learn?)
• Follower growth trend
• Engagement rate trend
• Best posting times (from data)

Optimization Actions

• Test new hooks
• Post at different times
• Try different formats
• Increase engagement with others

• Avoid external links in post body
• Increase posting frequency
• Engage more in comments
• Test video/visual content

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Content Ideas by Situation

When You're Starting Out

• Document your journey
• Share what you're learning
• Curate and comment on industry content
• Engage heavily with established accounts

When You're Stuck

• Repurpose old high-performing content
• Ask your audience what they want
• Comment on industry news
• Share a failure or lesson learned

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Scheduling Best Practices

When to Schedule vs. Post Live

Queue Management

• Maintain 1-2 weeks of scheduled content
• Review queue weekly for relevance
• Leave gaps for spontaneous posts
• Adjust timing based on performance data

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Reverse Engineering Viral Content

1. Find creators — 10-20 accounts with high engagement
2. Collect data — 500+ posts for analysis
3. Analyze patterns — Hooks, formats, CTAs that work
4. Codify playbook — Document repeatable patterns
5. Layer your voice — Apply patterns with authenticity
6. Convert — Bridge attention to business results

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Task-Specific Questions

1. What platform(s) are you focusing on?
2. What's your current posting frequency?
3. Do you have existing content to repurpose?
4. What content has performed well in the past?
5. How much time can you dedicate weekly?
6. Are you building personal brand, company brand, or both?

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Related Skills

• copywriting: For longer-form content that feeds social
• launch-strategy: For coordinating social with launches
• email-sequence: For nurturing social audience via email
• marketing-psychology: For understanding what drives engagement