Sometimes, "Just write!" doesn't work for marketers, especially when it comes to social media. Being relevant and timely are cornerstones for businesses on social networking services like Twitter and Facebook.
As large (or as small) as your company is, sometimes there just nothing worth writing about, but you have to do so, anyway. You've set a precedent with your Facebook fans and Twitter followers with how often you post and what you post about – and, they've come to expect nothing but greatness from you.
Sometimes, inspiration slips away and you're left alone with nothing, facing a looming deadline. Often, looking to oddball sources can lead to incredible inspiration and leave you with oodles of ideas to Tweet or post about.
1. Tweet or post company press releases or news updates.
2. Comment on what you're competitors are doing.
3. If you've had a recent failure or public relations disaster, share with your followers what happened and what you're doing to fix it.
4. Launch support for a charity or non-profit that your company supports.
5. Write responses to what your followers say about your posts or Tweets.
6. Ask a question to your followers about your products, their experience or what they'd like to see you do or try next.
7. Answer general customer questions about your company, products or services.
8. Interview your CEO or president.
9. Post a touching story about how your products or company, itself, made a difference in a community.
10. Recommend articles written by industry leaders.
11. Talk about the history of your company and how it grew to be what it is now.
12. Comment on legislation or governmental regulation that could positively (or negatively!) impact your business.
13. Write about what the mission of your company is.
14. Congratulate staff for their hard work.
15. Search for the top keywords in your industry.
16. Tweet or post best practices within your industry.
17. Google Alerts, RSS Feeds, Flickr (sometimes a picture is all the inspiration that you need!).
18. Retweet or link to a timely news article that will interest your followers.
19. Link to product reviews.
20. Tweet or post a well-received archived article or blog.
What are your sources for Tweets or Facebook posts when you're stuck? Where do you get your inspiration for your social media sites?
Let us know on (where else) our Twitter page or Facebook page.
