Social Media Post Ideas: 15 Smart Ways to Fill Your Content Calendar

Here’s something we can both agree on…

…finding the fresh social media post ideas for social media calendar on a consistent basis is such a pain in a@#.

To build a strong social media profile you need massive audience engagement.

But how?

There is only one solution:

Post engaging content on daily basis.

But there just one problem…

How would you find fresh content ideas for social media every day?

Fortunately, there’s a simple solution…

Building social media calendar can solve this problem.

In today’s post, I am going to share a secret sauce that will help you generate new and exciting content that will help boost engagement and keep your brand top of mind with your audience.

15 Smart Social Media Post Ideas to Fill Your Social Media Calendar

You are about to learn 15 smart ways to find killer social media content ideas that will keep your audience engaged and your content calendar full.

Are you ready?

Let’s dive in:

#1. Look to popular daily hashtags for ideas

Daily hashtags can offer you a treasure trove of content ideas.

The key is to understand the most popular ones and the right way to use them.

Used properly, hashtags are a great way to boost the visibility of your brand and connect with your followers.

From #Mondaymotivation to #FunFriday, having a recurring theme for each day establishes consistency for your brand and your audience, in turn, knows what to expect.

Spend at least a couple of months trying out different themes and see what resonates best with your audience.

Following are the best practices to find the best hashtags that increase engagement:

#2. Ask industry related questions

One of the best ways to build more connection with your audience is to show an interest in their opinions and thoughts.

Let’s say are in the travel industry, in that case, you can ask your audiences the following questions:

Asking these types of questions will encourage your audiences to engage with your post.

You want to encourage your audience to share information that others will find value in and you will definitely see a boost in your engagement rates.

#3. Highlight your customers

Your customers can function as a great source of unique content.

Show them some appreciation by featuring their customer profiles or sharing case studies with your audience.

On Twitter, you can do a Follow Friday (#FF) where you recommend that your audience follow the Twitter handle of one of your top customers.

…and if we talk about Facebook and Instagram, you can post customer profiles that are interesting, Q&As as well as case-study videos.

If one of your customers has a strong and loyal following, you can think about having them do an Instagram takeover.

This is a great way to get in front of a new audience that is eager to listen and engage.

#4. Share a reading list or favorite book

Everyone loves a good recommendation. A great way to provide some value to your audience is to share a reading list that is relevant to your business or industry.

These can be books you are currently reading or have recently read. If you need extra ideas, consider getting ideas from your coworkers or even your CEO.

People are always interested in knowing what the best and brightest have on their nightstand.

You can also ask your audiences which is the best book they have read till date and would like to recommend to others.

Furthermore, you can share your best reading tips to read books faster. People always want to know how they can read a book faster.

#5. Post a weekly roundup

As the end of the week approaches, it can be hard to come up with fresh content every time.

Here is an easy fix…

Compile a weekly roundup.

A great way to showcase your industry knowledge is to put together a post with a list of the top news stories of that week.

Moreover, you can also put together a compilation of new brands or people to follow.

Social media is flooded with content every day that makes hard for people to keep up.

To solve this problem…

…readers look to sources that share valuable and relevant content.

That is when you come to help.

As your brand becomes that source for them, they will reward you with their loyalty and eventually would end up being your client.

#6. Pick a common question and answer it

If most of your social media mentions revolve around the same questions, this will make a great idea for your next post.

Create a video or post that features one question and answer it as best you can.

Your audience will feel valued as well as you will save your time by proactively answering these questions.

#7. Share a snippet from one of your blog posts

If your brand keeps a blog that is consistently updated, you have a treasure trove of potential content.

Pick your latest blog post and find one take away and share it with your audience.

If your audience is on Instagram, you can post a related image and add your snippet as a caption or you can do a text-based post.

For Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn you can use this valuable bit of information as a way to entice readers to click-through to your blog site.

This type of short yet impactful content really appeals to audiences and encourages them to share your posts.

#8. Remember holidays and other notable dates

If you find yourself running out of ideas for fresh content, holidays and notable dates are great for generating timely content.

Additionally, they are also a great way to increase your social media audience engagement.

For instance – when a holiday like Thanksgiving comes around, you can delight your audience with a seasonal post.

During this time of year, everyone appreciates a great photo or inspirational quote to get them into the holiday spirit.

Things like pumpkins, favorite recipes as well as friends and families gathering are all great to include.

Not only this is also a great time to feature your business but also for the team that makes it all happen.

Create a more personal post with a nice group photo that can be used as a “seasonal image”. Your audience will love connecting with your business on a more personal level.

#9. Go behind-the-scenes

People love your brand, but they also want a deeper connection to it. Taking your audience behind the scenes is a great way to provide this.

Something as simple as a team member’s birthday celebration offers the perfect opportunity to showcase your workplace culture and in turn establish a deeper human connection to your brand.

Here are some other behind the scene content ideas you can easily create right now:

These types of posts have proven to lead to increasing likes, comments, and shares which is every brand’s primary goal.

#10. Share some funny content

It is obvious that people easily get bored seeing the same types of social media content every day and expect something fresh.

Funny content is the best solution to this problem.

Everyone loves a good laugh so keep on the lookout for opportunities to have fun with your fans.

Whether it is a funny meme or video, you want to make sure the style of humor you choose is relevant, true to your brand and is not offensive to your audience.

#11. Post multiple-choice questions

A great way to boost social media engagement with your audience is to allow them to offer their input with multiple-choice questions.

You can ask your fans what their favorite product is or what customer service qualities are most important to them.

Or, create quizzes so that they can show their intelligence.

#12. Share a beautiful infographic

Infographics are everywhere these days and you can find ones related to just about every industry.

Head over to Twitter and search for your industry and the word infographic and you will have plenty to choose from.

Pick one you think your audience will find value in and be sure to reference the original source.

#13. Use “Fill in the Blank” posts

Fill in the blanks are great for switching things up and they do not require much of you or your audience and people really enjoy them.

There are many fill-in-the-blank posts to choose from but these four are considered the best ones:

#14. Post a “Caption This” Photo

People love to show their intelligence especially when the crowd is so big.

Posting a photo or short video and asking your audience to post a caption is a creative and effective way to promote interaction.

You can also take it a step further and offer up a prize for the best caption.

Another option is to choose a topic and ask your fans to post a photo.

A great example for this would be “Post the first photo that you took today along with a brief caption. We would love to see it!”

#15. Run a contest or giveaway

Everybody loves free stuff so running a social media contest periodically is one of the best ways to drive engagement with your fans.

Simple contest ideas such as a photo caption contest, like or comment to win, post your own video/photo or asking a trivia question are all great ideas.

These types of contests typically generate hundreds of entrants so using hashtags are a simple and free way to keep track of who entered your contest.

Some rules of thumb to keep in mind when putting together a contest is to follow the guidelines of whatever platform you are using, make it simple to enter and keep the prize relevant to your audience.

Conclusion

Filling up your social media calendar with fresh and engaging social media post ideas does not need to be an overly time-consuming task.

The above list of ideas can be the start of creating a social media content bank that you can turn to anytime you are experiencing a creativity block and need some inspiration.

Always make sure you are setting time aside every week to schedule your content for the following week and be sure respond to comments and messages in a timely manner.

Share your best content ideas to fill up social media calendar in the comment section.