What voice do you use in your social media posts?

Recently, I was pondering this question as I was reading the LinkedIn posts of a couple of social media colleagues. I wondered if perhaps I should mimic their approach when writing my posts. Then after further reflection, I realized that it’s better for me to continue to use the style I’ve always used.

“What is your style?” you may be asking. My natural approach, in case you hadn’t noticed, is to take a “how-to” style for my posts.

My bachelor’s degree was in English Education, and I have a master’s in Health Education. Even though I only taught briefly, ever since college I’ve been hard-wired to be an educator. It’s that training that led me to name my business Boomers’ Social Media Tutor. I felt that I could identify with the word “tutor” much better than “consultant” or some other descriptor.

 

How Do I Figure Out My Voice?

As I was writing this blog post, I realized that many people struggle with figuring out what voice they should use. So, I typed this question into Google: “What’s my voice when it comes to writing social media copy?”

The first entry that popped was Kevan Lee of Buffer’s article: “How to Find Your Social Media Marketing Voice – The Best Examples, Questions and Guides.”

I especially liked how the author split this question into two parts – one’s voice and one’s tone.

Here’s a quote that spoke to me:

“Voice: Your brand personality described in an adjective. For example, brands can be lively, positive, cynical, or professional.

Tone: A subset of your brand’s voice. Tone adds specific flavor to your voice based on factors like audience, situation, and channel.”

By way of example, my voice is positive, professional and informational. For my tone, I picture my target audience of business owners 50 and older who want to understand social media better.

If you are struggling with what kind of voice and tone work best for you, I highly encourage you to read this article. In addition, ask your clients and colleagues how you come across to them. They may provide you some feedback about your voice that you can use to validate it or to change it.

 

How About You?

How did you discover the voice that you use in your social media posts? Has your voice changed over the years? Does it change based on the social media site you are posting on?

 

About Joyce

 

Joyce Feustel helps people, especially those age 50 and up, to become more effective using social media, especially LinkedIn and Facebook.

She works with business owners, business development professionals, business consultants, job seekers, and more – ranging from entrepreneurs to people in large corporations. Find her at www.boomerssocialmediatutor.com.