Information in this blog post was obtained from the Content Marketing Institute and HubSpot Blog.

When creating content to post on social media have you ever felt overwhelmed and don't know where to start?

This blog will outline five 5 simple steps for creating content to post on your social media. We will go over aligning content with strategy, selecting the type of content to share, choosing the platform to use, creating a story in your post, and scheduling your post. Each step will provide elements for composing social media posts. This will give you the information and confidence to create content for your brand or company!

1.    Aligning Content with Strategy

When thinking about what content to create you first need to have a clear marketing strategy. These two should align as the reason for posting content is to meet the marketing goal of your brand or company. The goals of your marketing strategy should be at the top of your list when creating content. Setting goals includes your content and the goal of your content. For example, your content could be producing a blog post, and the goal is to increase website traffic.

• Marketing Strategy: What are you trying to accomplish with your content?

• Audience: Who is the target audience?

• Concise Messaging: What problem are you solving? How do you best convey this in content form?

• Branding: What makes the brand distinct? How can you communicate these attributes?

• Discoverability: How is your content being found? How are they being found by search engines?

• Analysis: What metrics will help measure success?

  
  

It is important to ask yourself about each of these parts before diving into the content you are creating. By starting with these questions it will help align your content with your marketing strategy.

2.    Selecting the Type of Content to Share

There are many types of content that you can share. There are times when it is most appropriate to use each of the different types of content.

• Video: There are different types of video content. Video content can be pre-recorded or live. Types of live videos include broadcasts, livestreams, and webinars. Videos on social media exist in many forms like posts, live videos, stories, and reels. Using video content can be beneficial when creating “how-to”, interviews, Q&A, behind-the-scenes, product reviews, vlogging, etc.

• Audio: Types of audio content can include radio, podcasting, and music. When thinking about using audio it is important to remember that it can provide a unique human element that is exclusively accessible through your brand or company. Music resonates on an emotional level with listeners.

• Visual: Visual content has a strong dominance on social media. Most people learn best through images. It has been statistically proven that including visuals in your social media posts will generate a higher engagement rate and immediately capture the audience’s attention.

• User-generated Content: User-generated content is content that is created by someone else outside of the company. This type of content is shown to be authentic and more shareable. It is great to share this content because it helps show that people use and enjoy your products.

  
  

  

These types of content can be used as primary or secondary content. As a creator, you have the opportunity to integrate different types of content when publishing creative content that is unique to your brand or company. This will help create engaging content and help with your marketing strategy.

3.    Choosing the Platform to Use

Choosing what platform to use when sharing content is a crucial step. Now, when it comes to platforms most businesses exist on multiple ones. You may or may not want to use them all for the specific type of content that you are creating. There are three key steps in the selection process for choosing which social media platform to post on.

• Target Audience: Find who your target audience is and which social media platform they prefer to use.

• Content Marketing Goals: Create your goals based on why you are using social media from your marketing strategy. A key component of creating goals can come from the AIDA funnel: Attention, Interest, Desire, and Action.  

• Platform Analysis: Include an analysis of each social media platform. From there, select the platforms that will best match your content marketing goals. Consider the demographics of each platform and how it can help your company or brand.

These are 3 factors to consider when choosing which platform or platforms is best to publish your content on. This will affect who it reaches, how your content performs, and how it can help reach your goals.

4.    Creating a Story in Your Post

It is important when creating content, you are using strong storytelling in your post. This will help create memorable, engaging, and personalized content. You want to connect with your audience on a deeper level. Being able to utilize emotion successfully will allow your post to transform into content that others remember.

• Power of Emotion: Using emotion in your posts can move your audience in meaningful ways. This allows for open discussions regarding vulnerable topics.

• Tell Your Brand Story: When telling your brand's story you want to be consistent and communicate clearly. You want to create content that represents your brand's values.

• Incorporating Personalized Elements: Personalized elements in your social media post heavily rely on how well you know your audience. You want to understand your audience and tailor your content to them.

  
  

Extending to emotional connections will create a deeper relationship between the brand and the audience. Including storytelling in your content will enhance the relevance and relatability of your overall message. Personalizing content will help capture your target audience's attention. For more information about adding storytelling to your post, go read my colleague Carly's post about it here.

5.    Schedule Your Post – Best Times to Post on Social Media

After brainstorming and creating your content post, it is time to execute the strategy. A timeline needs to be set with start and end dates for a successful execution. When thinking about the timeline of publishing content it is critical to also know the best time to post on social media.

• Instagram: Fridays are the best days to post. During weekdays early mornings and early afternoons are the best times to post. It is best to avoid posting on Sundays and later times.

• Facebook: It is best to post during the weekdays in the late morning (9-10 AM). Avoid the weekends.

• TikTok: Times and days vary. Posting on weekdays early morning and afternoon, and Sunday evenings.

• X (Twitter): This platform allows for a more flexible window when looking at days and times to post. Post on weekdays during late mornings and early afternoons.

• LinkedIn: Post during the weekdays between 10 AM and 12 PM. Avoid posting on Saturday, Sunday, and Monday.

• Pinterest: Post late afternoon and early evening on Friday, Tuesday, and Thursday.

• YouTube: Weekend posts during afternoons or 9-12 PM.

  
  

These are key times and days that are peak times when posting on social media. You must consider these when scheduling your post.

Next time when you are creating a social media post you don’t have to be overwhelmed! Following the 5 simple steps when creating content will give you the confidence you need. Each step holds significant details and information on what to consider when composing a social media post. Now it is time to put these steps into action and create a social media post for your brand or company!

Resources

Harris, J. (2025, April 2). 6 Creative Visual Content Examples From Award-Winning Brands. Contentmarketinginstitute.com. https://contentmarketinginstitute.com/video- visual-content/visual-content-best-practices-examples

Lehr, A. (2024, April 24). New Data: What Types of Content Perform Best on Social Media? Blog.hubspot.com. https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/content-social- media-popularity

Needle, F. (2025, March 25). The Best Time to Post on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, & Pinterest. Hubspot. https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/best-times- post-pin-tweet-social-media-infographic