Look Better Online: 12 Months Of Resolutions For 2013
It’s pretty difficult to stick to New Year’s Resolutions.
We create a laundry list of big picture things to focus on each and every day of the year… it’s no wonder why we lose sight of the list after a couple of months- it’s exhausting!
Breaking up the “big picture” goals into actionable chunks will make your resolutions for 2013 attainable, and less exhausting.
While I can’t help you much with weight loss, finances, or your vow to say nice things to your co-host more often, I can help you set goals to improve your online presence this year.
Here are online goals for each month in 2013 (so no giving up after January!):
January: Take a fresh look at your social media platforms, and your pages on the station website. Start the year out right by updating your copy (yes, including that bio you wrote in 2009!) and creating new graphics.
February: Don’t wait until you need a new job to boost your presence on LinkedIn. The new interface makes it easier than ever to create an impressive profile and make new connections. To get started, check out the best article I’ve seen on optimizing your LinkedIn profile, from Hubspot.
March: Do something kind for someone else at least once a week this month. Write a LinkedIn recommendation for someone you know. Show thanks to a local business that supports your show on Facebook by posting praise on their wall. Send personal tweets on behalf of a local charity campaign.
April: Creating online content involves writing. Whether you write like a pro or write like a first-grader, there is always room for improvement. Sign up for a local writing class, or read a blog a day on writing. Here are a few of our favorite blogs on writing:
– Write to Done
– Jeff Goins
– The Write Practice
May: Show some love to your blog. If you aren’t blogging at least once a week, make that your goal. If you are already blogging regularly (Cheers to you!), focus on drafting compelling headlines to increase traffic and executing the skills you learned last month.
June: Do you know how your website traffic stacks up? Chat with your station webmaster during the first week of June and find out. How do your pages compare to those of the other jocks at your station? Set goals to increase your website traffic, and monitor the results weekly to see which blogs, videos, podcasts, etc. receive the most traffic.
July: Do a competitive analysis of your social media presence. In addition to comparing yourself to your in-market competitors, look at radio outside your market, too. What types of your competitors’ content and posts receive high engagement? Are there areas in which they are lacking that you can capitalize on? Take what you learn and weave it into your strategy not just for the month of June, but for as long as it’s providing results.
August: When brainstorming for fall book, add a social media dimension to your promotions and events. Look for creative promotions outside of radio for inspiration.
September: Use Twitter for show prep, in addition to your regular routine. Review the Twitter trends for “of the moment” hot topics before the show. Create lists for hot categories, so you can fine-tune your search each day. To get started, check out our recommendations for must-follow Twitter accounts here.
October: Consider new platforms. Are there any niche social media platforms on the rise that are popular with your format’s target demographic? If you are succeeding with the social platforms you’re already using, add a new platform to the mix.
November: Focus on creativity. While this will improve your content creation for your social platforms and website, it will also benefit your on-air content creation. Here is a favorite exercise of Randy and Angela that you can practice each day:
Try Morning Pages, as recommended by Julia Cameron’s best-selling Artist’s Way. Write three pages, long-hand (not on your computer) every morning for a month. If you can’t write when you wake up, do it later in the day. Don’t get hung up on specifics. Just do it. And call us if you don’t have some kind of creative shift. Read more about Morning Pages here.
December: Review your results from 2013 and craft a strategy for 2014 to build upon that success. Remove anything that didn’t work. Find ways to improve upon the things that did work. Add some new things (new content category, for example) to shake things up. And enjoy the holidays!
Feeling ambitious? I wrote a similar post last year called “A 12 Month Resolution for 2012: Build Your Own Personality Brand.” Read it here to add those goals to your 2013 monthly resolution list.
Photo credit: Amani Hasan on Flickr via Creative Commons
