Those dreaded words: upskill. It’s become such a buzzword, especially during Covid-19 when it seems like every woman and her Chanel purse was taking an online course to improve their existing skill set.
Upskilling can be costly, with academic institutions offering courses in social media marketing costing up to $3000, or a simple grad cert in marketing or similar costing almost as much. So how do you upskill when you’re a small business owner with not a lot of financial turnover?
Thankfully, there are plenty of other content creators out there who offer free resources and if you’re not a marketing or social media whiz, they’re a lifesaver! Finding them can be a bit tricky, but thanks to regular updates to algorithms on our social media platforms (or stalking as I like to call it), once you access one, you’ll start getting ads for a whole lot more.
From there, it’s simply taking the time to browse through the options and find what suits you best.
Oh, of course, you don’t have time, but I do, so here’s my list of the best free resources. It’s a mix of print and video so depending on how you process your information will determine which works best for you.
Alex Tooby: 10 Instagram secrets
This video runs through some current information on how to use Instagram. Alex runs through how algorithms work and the ways to take advantage of them so you don’t lose engagement.
Clare Wood: the ultimate Instagram engagement checklist
Comprehensive list but easy to read and understand. Perfect for beginners to Instagram. Includes a list of Instagram post and story prompts.
Sandra Chau Design: 6 must have images for your brand
A fantastic resource if you struggle with knowing what photographs to use on your social feed. Easy to follow guide of what photos you should have as part of regular content. She doesn’t teach you how to take them, but that’s what a professional photographer is for.
Mums with Hustle: Instagram stories strategy and 3 secrets of turning your Instagram followers into customers
The Instagram stories straegy is a downloadable document that contains idea prompts, but most importantly useful apps for creating engaging content. If you’re not familiar with these apps, you can book a workshop with me and I can go through it with you.
The other resource is a video, and Tracy provides tips and tricks in the lead up to her live masterclass. The way she does it is quite smart and engaging too. She also provides a workbook so you can participate in the class, rather than sit back and watch, ensuring you get value out of the resource.
Pep Creative: 5 ways to double your social media following in 2020
An extremely comprehensive guide on how to leverage social media to your benefit. The document has a lot of content to digest and good ideas on how you can improve your social media, so if you are diligent in applying all the learnings, you can start seeing results.
It goes without saying that all of these creators also offer paid courses, which are cheap compared to what you’d pay at a university. There’s nothing wrong with paying for any of the courses the above ladies offer, as long as it fits in with your business goal and vision – there’s no point wasting money if you’re not going to end up using or sharing what you’ve learnt.
I will be offering free resources on my website soon and would love to know what sort of information would be of use to you. Let me know in the comments below, or send me an email at fempoweredcommunications@gmail.com. You can also DM me on Instagram at instagram.com/fempoweredcommunications.
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