Creators Lab: Basic Social Media Strategies

New Media Lab with Robert Southgate

Rob follows up with Kevin on his homework and if the changes had an effect. Together, they decide on the best hashtags to use and agree on a solid show description. Kevin's question this week has to do with audience engagement. The answer lies in this week's topic - social media basics.

Each week, Rob answers questions from Kevin Long and offers advice for how to have a successful podcast. Good for newbies and seasoned podcasters alike!

Learn more, subscribe, or contact us at www.southgatemediagroup.com. You can write to Rob at [e-mail] and let us know what you think. Be sure to rate us and review the episode. It really helps other people find us. Thanks!

Kevin's Twitter @TheSwamppit

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SHOW HOSTS: Rob Southgate

SHOW EDITOR: Rob Southgate

PRODUCER: Rob Southgate

#NewMedia #Podcasting #Business #YouTube #Blogging #Vlogging

Transcription

00:00:00 This is a really difficult question. Oh, that's a great question. That's a good question. That is a great question. It's a really good question. I love this question. And I think this really is going to help me kind of meditate and grow on it. Want to hear the answers checkout season two of new media lab with Robert Southgate new episodes every Tuesday available on Spotify. I tunes. Google hod Cass and wherever you subscribe to your favorite podcasts. Welcome back. Everybody to the second episode of new media labs, creator lab with me, rob Southgate and with having long. Hey, kevin. Hey, how are you? I'm doing great. How are you doing today? I'm doing well. Thank you. You're going to be doing a lot better in a second. When I start talking about what has happened with your show this week. Okay. So let's go back talk about we'll do a little recap of what we did last week. I've got some suggestions before it gets suggestions, though. I do wanna talk about what happened which you don't know about. So first of all last week. What we talked about was I gave you homework. I wanted you to write a detailed description, and I wanted you to come up with a tag. And I wanted you to get me some hashtags that we could use for Nautilus social media for tagging the show. You did not send me the. The tag yet. Which is okay. I just hold on. I took with you wrote. You sent me a paragraph, and actually I'm going to pull that up to and that way we can read your paragraph than I'll I'll explain what I changed a little bit. And actually, it's any of these kind of things and this is an important point. Should be looked at as a living document. It shouldn't be the kind of thing that you go.

00:01:53 Yup. I did it done. You know what I mean? Right. That's where we run into trouble. So here's what you wrote your description that we were adding as they showed description, not an individual episode. It said there was a rich history of tabletop gaming and in the Kevin long show. Kevin and his guest talk about all the additions of dungeons and dragons in some of the shows Kevin builds characters after reading the complete handbook and other weeks, he talks about character concepts and other story outlines not bad, not bad. I made some tweaks to it. Basically what I? I did do it is. I wanted it to flow a little bit better. I also wanted to get a well, let me read it. I got a couple of things out of there that were unnecessary words, necessarily language. So that we can actually make it read a little bit better and add a little bit more to it. And in fact, even reading it now, I want to add a couple of things that we could do later. So here's your description. There is a rich history of tabletop gaming and on the Kevin long show. Kevin and his guests talk about all the additions of dungeons and dragons, Kevin and his guests build characters after reading the complete handbook talk about character concepts and discuss various story outlines. It's it's a little more defined like it more to work from what I want to add as I was reading it. I was Kevin and his guests twice. I'm going to change that I also wanna get in some of our keywords. Now.

00:03:18 This is where we went into the hashtags, and you came up with four now where did you find those? I I don't. I think I typed in the right address that you gave me, but I typed in hashtag of fi. And it brought me to like a little huddle. Like a bid me where I in dungeons and dragons in. That's what gave me right? You did you were in this place. I'm sure okay. So here's what you missed. And this is something that is good to know. Because is probably because I've done it enough that I figured out. Oh, don't forget this part of it. You typed in dungeons and dragons and did search in your hashtags. You did not write dungeons and dragons guess what word probably needs to be there, dungeons and dragons, right? So so the other thing, and this is the part that that I figured out a while ago because I wasn't paying attention. I was like, oh, I want to do dungeons and dragons, boom, here's what I got defy E D, R, PG and tabletop. And then I'm like, wait a minute. Each of those should type in and see what it gets because what if something is bigger. Right. So I went through all the different iterations. And here's what I came up with going off of what you had. Oh, what you had those weren't the ones you gave me you gave me five eighty dice five fantasy and gaming.

00:04:48 All excellent. I added to that deity five eight dungeons and dragons DND RPG and tabletop and the way I came about those was by typing in like, I typed in DND, right? I got some different ones. I typed in RPG was terrible. It just gave you like Asian letters didn't really do it. But typing in five AD and defy it gave me a couple of different things. Wonderful. So now, we have eight in fact, let's see if I have any others. On here. I did put dragon magazine because that is actually another potential one. I think that's the only one I added. So we have nine different tags. We can use those went in tags and keywords on Lipson. But Kevin those are not those are not really valuable. I tunes doesn't use tag tag tags and keywords what they're valuable for. Is. You wanna have that list? And when you do your social media throughout the week to promote this episode you want to use those hash tax. So we came up with your description. We came up with a good set of hashtags a solid set of hashtags. Okay today. I posted an episode. It was of your your Monday. I can't think of the name because I'm drawing a blank as it Monday. Magic monday. I posted magic Monday today, and do you mind to be giving how many downloads you get on an episode? No. That'd be an easing. Okay. We'll get there.

00:06:28 So I posted a magic Monday today and on this episode. I did these things I not only changed your description this week and updated it an added those tags. On the description this week when I posted I added those to the specific episode. I also took something you said in your description and made that your subtitle. So now on every episode, we publish your subtitle says Kevin and his guests talk all about the additions of dungeons and dragons, so now dungeons and dragons hits as a single word as multiple words if somebody is searching for it shows up as an important word to Google. So now Google knows this show is about dungeons and dragons, so we eat. Okay. So now, we are in a much better place. We've niche down like we talked about we've gotten those keywords in here. And the other thing I did then was the stuff that was my part of this. So I went in to your to the settings. And I made sure you were updated on. Various platforms, and guess what? I found. Well, I dropped. I dropped the ball. So I did not have in here some of the different things. So I added your Facebook. This is in settings on Lipson, you if you go to settings you can put in keywords and Email and all that stuff. I put in the Facebook URL, I put in your Twitter handle what I found was you were not posting too.

00:08:08 I put an I tunes to even though it was posting the I tunes. I put in that address goes faster, you were not posting to tune in radio. You are not posting to Stitcher. You're not posting to Google play or Google podcasts or Spotify. You are now. So I went through and I made sure every one of those even though technically they don't add up too much for most shows you're there now or you will be in the next couple of days. Those even though you think well if apple is ninety five percent of the downloads. Why do I need to be on all of them? You do you need that all of them? Because what if your show what if the people that listen to tune in radio or totally into your dungeons and dragons show, and you get four hundred dollars on that on tune in radio. And I tunes gets you twenty. We don't know. So the point is for everybody making podcasts out there get him in every channel you can unless that channel is paying you have Stitcher says we want you to be exclusive. And here's a bunch of money to do it. Heck? Yeah. I'll be exclusive. But if they haven't done that. Why would you stay with one put it everywhere? Get it where the customer is getting in front of them that was something I hadn't done it's done. Now, let's get into the thing. You really want to hear about town stew?

00:09:28 Today. We post this episode right on average when we post a new episode you get about twenty downloads of that particular like that day. Okay. I'm not going by particular episode. I'm going by downloads on your feet. Okay. This is an important thing to clarify because the number. I'm going to give you is. Not today's episode did this number. It's your feed to this number today. And if you look at your feed average, it's it's you know, a couple of day, and then I'll post road you'll get like twenty okay? Which you and I have been happy with so far. We're like, hey, why not it's twenty people urge you that's pretty rock and great, right? Yeah. Okay today. I edit those keywords I updated the description, I added into those other things, but that's not live yet. So the only one that was really live was I tunes you had one hundred downloads today. Wow. And it's only one o'clock Austin, Chicago. So yeah, man, I think it had an effect will find out tomorrow. If it right. If it continues if you if we start seeing that. Everyday. Let's say it goes up to twenty a day would we're not posting something guess what those little tweaks had an effect. And if they didn't I'll eat my hat because I'm telling you. I know it did. Right. So there you go. We are. We are on our way to building audience now before we move into the next thing.

00:11:04 Okay. I want to ask one thing. Yeah. On the show. I like to get whatever question you have before start giving out assignments. So what kind of questions do you have the question today is going to be how do we get more involved with our audience, and and the new media lab, you talked about engaging your audience, and I want to know how to be better at here's the topic. We have this week. Let's do it because I know how to engage the shows that I'm listening to on social. Oh media. I just don't know how to get people to engage Mike show. Excellent. Oh, Kevin you made by day. What my assignment is this week ties into this pervert? Okay. So we're gonna jump ahead from like normally what the idea of the show was was I was gonna help through these little building walks to try to help make your show a brand and build it up. Right. And after we talked last week, I thought okay. Well, these were some really basic things getting those those notes, right and everything getting the tags. Then I thought well, you wanna see more motion. Even though I think what we had today was pretty darn good motion five times. We just went up by five hundred percent. That's good. I wanna see it keep going. So you're right engagement is a keyed everything. Now, this is going to be a slower burn. But we're going to try something K. So first of all, let's go over what social media platforms. You have the show on what do you have?

00:12:41 I'm on. I do Facebook and Twitter are the ones that I most active on, but I do have an Instagram account. Okay. And the Instagram account is that four swamp. It is at four the come long show. Or is it your personal? It's a personal. It's a personal. Okay. Let's take that one off the table. Okay. That's not what we need to use. Although I would suggest thinking about at some point getting an Instagram that is the Kevin long show. Okay, instagram. Okay. Here's why with these different platforms. If you have a Kevin long show Instagram when we post something you can post like seventeen hashtags, and it's not weird. Okay. And this is something that I've said before to people, and I get brushback. I don't get brushback from people that actually know the social media kind of etiquette and rules. I get it for people that are like, no, it doesn't really matter. Or no, I do it this way. We'll great. There are no hard and fast rules. But there are some things that do make a difference. So first of all, let's let's talk about these Instagram you could do up to seventeen hashtags there is a trick to get more. But if you have seventeen good hashtags you're off to the races. Okay. When you're using Instagram, and let's just talk about that for a second. Then we'll move onto what matters to you Instagram is a visual medium. So you want to make sure you take like the artwork from the show if you have some if you don't let's start. We'll talk about that on another episode. Kevin k-.

00:14:20 If you if you have behind the scenes pictures, or like in your case, you do gaming throughout the week. Take pictures of like your books. Take pictures of your dice take pictures of things related to DND, even if it's a page out of the book or a quote out of one of the books, or when you do your monster of the week or magic Monday, you take a picture of that from the book and you posted on Instagram and you're like, hey, it's the bag holding. That's what we're talking about this week that works beautifully oppose hashtags or things people are looking for. And you put it a good amount of them. And it can be like like I do things when I post because I'm kind of a coffee addict, I take pictures for Instagram where I'm holding a coffee Cup, and I'm like podcasting today. And I'll bet hashtag podcast podcasters, Chicago podcasting media new media coffee coffee addict. Like all these things. And you'd be surprised I have a huge amount of followers that are like these coffee bloggers IB huge amount that are podcasters like because I use those hashtags it gets noticed. Okay. But you don't do Instagram yet. So we're not gonna worry about that for this week. What I want you to do is. We're going to do a Facebook and a Twitter strategy. Okay. You wanna put the pick those you've got those nine hashtags right right now on on Facebook. I know they take hashtags, but it's actually been tracked. If you read some of these sources about social media about you know, what works and what dozen this hashtags don't really work on Facebook. In fact, the the the post without hashtags tend to do a little bit better the ones with I don't know why it makes.

00:16:12 When you click on the activity, tag and type in listening to gaming with Scott are the this old good. So so it's just like I said if you can be everywhere with your podcast feel free to use hashtags everywhere with this. Okay. All good stuff. And when you say, you're listening to gaming Lescot. That's an excellent thing. I wish everybody did that for every show there listened to because it sells people where you are. It might entice them to listen, I know that I've clicked on shows when I've seen that pop up. So that's an excellent practice from a personal standpoint. And also from your show because it says Kevin long is listening to me. What Scott anyone that follows? You is going to see that be like a look, there's another gaming podcast. This is cool. You want to build it like reciprocity between the podcasts. And if you mentioned a podcast, make sure you tag them put an at gaming with Scott when we do this. We need. Make sure we put hey gaming at giving. What Scott we talked about you on today's show. Right. Okay. So I've got thoughts here with with Twitter with Twitter you wanna use no more than two maybe three hashtags. I know you can use more it starts to cluttering people. Don't look at them. Sometimes when it has too much starts to look like a bought. Okay. So if you have to hash dad's, you're in good shape. Now, you have nine hashtags to work with what that should mean to you is, hey, every time I post maybe I wanna switch up those hashtags right guy and easy way to do.

00:17:48 Do. It is to use a an app called tweet deck where you can go in you sign in you've got your Twitter account when you you can go in and say, here's what I want the tweet to say, here's the image. I wanna use with always use an image on Twitter if tax people go right past it. Okay. So they they see the image. They read the thing. On tweet deck. You can say you can schedule it. So now, you can say, you know, what I wanna make sure that my show is hitting on Tuesday. I wanna make sure that that between seven AM and noone like once on our a tweet goes out. That says, hey, we've got to do episode today. You can send the same tweet all five times. Let's say you're doing five on that day. Okay. And it said the same tweet just change the hash tags on each of them or you can change your verbiage a little bit. So it's a little bit more interesting. If if you're doing like, the the bag of holding maybe there's a couple of different images of bags of holding or images that would be kinda cool that you'd be like, yeah, I could put this on air it or even the the show logo for one of them changing it up a little bit. You don't have to do twenty tweets a day. Okay. But the day launches maybe five would be really good.

00:19:08 Okay. The other thing you can do that. Let's say as we're starting. In fact, we will do it this way for this week do five on the date launches you had a magic Monday happened today. Figure out five tweets. Okay. And space out like once an hour. Then we can get into timing. And all that another time. I don't care what it is right now five tweets different hashtags, use them up. Okay. And if you wanna do if you more you can keep in mind that a tweet has a twenty minute lifespan at best. So don't worry that. Oh my gosh. I'm tweeting too much the person looking at the tweets unless they're only looking at your feed your going to go away. They're not gonna care that. You're tweeting every hour, right? Make sense. So let's start with Twitter with that. And then said another thing today is is Monday your show hit today. So setup five tweets I want you to do the exact same thing on Thursday with the same show. But now put ice e or I see why am I in case you missed it in all caps. Why do it with the hashtag? And put that I so it's in case you missed it. I had a new show boasts new magic Monday posted on Monday. Check it out or we did a magic Monday about blank today. Check it out and then use your hashtags. So getting your doubling up you're getting double the hit. And it is a people that you have this show out there and what it's about.

00:20:46 Okay. So that's one thing. We'll try that. You're talking maximum of of or a minimum of ten tweets over the course of between now. And next Monday. Let's see what happens. And if you're like, man, I can't do that. Today set them for tomorrow tomorrow and Thursday. Okay. That was good for the regular Kevin long show. Do it. What do we post on Wednesday Thursday? So do I'm gonna switch it up on your man. Okay. Do either today or tomorrow for Thursday do five for the Kevin long show on Friday? Do in case you missed it for magic Monday and on Monday of next week do five in case you missed it for the Kevin long show. Okay. Let's see if these numbers change now Facebook this goes back to your question. Yeah. Finally, Mr long-winded got back to the question. You ask about engagement? So one way to do it or to try, and you may get some you may not. But on your Facebook page. We posted new episode today. Make sure you post a link to it. But you wanna say something? Engage as anybody used this. What what was the magic Monday today? Let's go look and see. One that hit today was the deck of many things are so is there a question related to the Decca many things that you could ask is. Against snow. So ask a question or say, you know, magic Monday deck of many things discussion threat, and then then put a description underneath it. That says like like, let's talk about the Decca many things. And then asked your questions what experience if you guys had what was the best time you used it or whatever it is.

00:22:33 Okay. And hopefully, you'll get somebody. That'll right now, here's the key. With all of that. You're you're chumming the water by saying, hey, I want you to talk to me as soon as somebody talks to you make sure it doesn't have to be in that minute. But before you go to bed at night. Make sure that every interaction has had a reaction from say something back engage with them. Get them in conversation. Okay. Okay. You may or may not get any. That's okay. You gotta keep doing it. You wanna know how those shows get interaction? This is exactly how they get. Interaction. Perfect. I have a lot more to say about how to been late all of this. But for now, I think that gives you a good solid thing to work from your homework is do those tweets and make a thread for this episode gets conversation going. Okay. Cool. Sounds great any other questions. Kevin not at the moment. All right. Why hope this is working for people? I hope they're getting some good information. Like, I said, the creators lab is a way more casual discussion. I try to come in with an idea that I wanna share a homework I wanna share and Kevin tries to come in with a question. I hope it's helping and I I hope it's going to help you Kevin because I'm telling you jumping up to one hundred downloads today that was shocking to me. So let's hope that rain continues.

00:24:05 Yes, for sure why don't you give your social media? You can find us on Facebook just type in the Kevin long show. And you can find us on Twitter at the swamp pit great. And he will have a thread for the episodes. You can get in conversation about this episode, and please do and Kevin I'm going to give you one more tip before I go. Yeah. And this is something that when I said, give your social media, you should have done, and I wanna make it. So that it's ingrained in you. And it should also be on your your show notes, which it's not give your Email K. So make sure you give your Email whenever you can. Because a lot of people even though you say, here's my Twitter. Here's my Instagram. Here's my Facebook. Here's my YouTube channel a lot of people engage through Email. So give it and make sure it's in your show notes, and actually your homework. Their last thing is text me or tweet me or. Message me with your Email, and I'll put it on your show notes going forward. Sweet. So what's your Email? Kevin you can Email us at the Kevin long show at gmaiLcom perfect city. We're gonna we're gonna get you in good habits. And I can't wait to see where this goes. Wouldn't it be cool? If we actually made this show rock the house that would be great. I think it can. I love the show.

00:25:29 All right. Kevin. Thank you so much and everybody else we will talk to you on Thursday with the next episode of new media lab. I hope you enjoyed this last one with Brent hand. So this week's guest is Andrea Klender. Andrea is awesome. She does a thing where she's your podcast, boss. I've been interviewed. Martha I got interviewed by her at a women in podcast festival. She was on the SIM G podcast festival out at blue-box. Cafe. She is really fantastic has wonderful ideas. And. You're probably gonna want to listen to her show in conjunction with this show as soon as you get a load of what she has to say. So the guest for this Thursday is Andrea Klunder from your podcast, boss. You're gonna love it.