Top Tips For Writing Great Social Media Copy

Jun 8

Mastering social media copy is one of the hardest parts of being a great social media manager. You’re already stretched for time with your fingers in more pies than you can count… Now you have to try and think of something witty, funny or relevant to say that’s going to impress your audience and your boss?

Well the truth is, you don’t have to be a master. In fact, sometimes the best social media copy is the stuff that’s a little rough around the edges and truly human (very few audiences want to engage with a robot!). To help you take your social media copy to the next level, we asked our community of social media marketers for their top tips, and boy did they deliver. Here’s what they came up with…

Show your human side

The most popular response? Show your human side! There’s a time and place for bots, and it’s certainly not in your social media copy.

Be concise but also write like a human being. No need for jargon or things that you wouldn’t enjoy reading on other accounts
— Tereza Litsa (@terezalitsa) June 4, 2021

Think about the things you'd share with your friends or things that make you chuckle, they're always going to be the best performers. That and don't think to much, it's got to feel like someone just wrote it on their phone.
— Hannah 🌻 (@hannahsaywhaat) June 4, 2021

Write like a human! If you wouldn't say it, don't post it
— Entyce Creative (@EntyceCreative) June 4, 2021

Adapt your copy for each platform

Although it can be a lot easier to write one lot of social media copy and hit share to all platforms (no shade, we’ve all been there), it’s definitely not the best route to go down. Mixing up your copy and adapting it to each platform and the audience you have there is one of the best ways to take your copy from good to great, forgettable to truly memorable.

Mix it up and use the same 'story' but different copy for each channel...keeps it fresh for people following you in multiple places ☀️
— 👈 R☀️ss Middleham (@rossymids) June 4, 2021

🔷Adapt for each platform don't copy-paste

🔷Listicles do miracles everywhere on social basically

🔷Always add a visual element, may it be an emoji, a picture/GIF or a video
— Erika Marzano (@erika_marzano) June 4, 2021

Think about what you want from your audience

Your audience don’t have the time to read through lines and lines of waffle, nor do they want to. So before you write your social media copy, think about what you want from your audience. Do you want them to like your tweet? Sign up to an event? Download your latest guide? Whatever it is, hook them in and make your call to action (CTA) clear from the start.

Bring the hook as upfront as poss, stick to your ‘so what’, be human + avoid waffle ✍️
— Moni Watson (@moniwatson) June 4, 2021

Don't forget a call to action. Let people know what you want them to do / what they can do next!
— Luan Wise (@luanwise) June 4, 2021

If at first you don’t succeed…

… save it and try again! This is one goes out to the perfectionists reading this (and that’s got to be at least 50% of social media marketers, right?). If you write some copy that doesn’t feel quite right or you’re not happy with, don’t scrap it straight away: instead, save it and come back to it later in the day or week with fresh eyes. You can always make tweaks where necessary, but remember it doesn’t always need to be perfect. Sometimes the imperfect is more human and resonates with your audience anyway!

If you write something and you don't like it, don't delete it. Instead, save it for a later point. You may still want to rewrite it, but you can see what worked in your original copy and adapt it.
— Alex (@alexlduffy) June 4, 2021

Stand out from the crowd

One of One Minute Briefs’ top tips? Don’t write the same thing your competitor would. Harness your brand personality and write something that only you could.

1. Keep it simple.
2. Write to entertain yourself
3. Don’t write the same thing your competitor would
— One Minute Briefs (@OneMinuteBriefs) June 4, 2021

Do your research

One of Anna’s top tips? Research your topic before writing. No matter how experienced you are in social media marketing or your specific field, there’s always something new to learn.

🧐 Before writing, research your topic.

🧠 Stimulate imagination and five senses of your reader, but cross out adjectives and adverbs.

🔡 Use plain language and clever wordplays.

💮 Make your writing style a personal stamp, an unmistakable smell, a unique fingerprint.
— Anna Przybyll (@the_newsjunkie) June 5, 2021

Pay attention to the details

You might forget about those seemingly small, insignificant formatting details, like what your copy will read like on mobile or on different platforms, but these details are crucial to writing copy that stands out for all the right reasons. Just listen to Fi…

➡️ Watch copy length to avoid truncation on mobile
➡️ Write in a tone that resonates with your audience
➡️ Offer value
➡️ Make the copy work in harmony with the visual content
➡️ Optimise appropriately for each platform
➡️ Avoid typos and formatting errors 👍🏼
— Fi Shailes (Digital Drum) 🥁 (@Fi_digitaldrum) June 4, 2021

And that’s all folks! For more fantastic top tips and expert content, join our social media marketing community and follow SocialDay on all platforms (but especially on Twitter).