A Social Media Manager’s Six Secrets to Social Media Success

While attending the Fall 2024 National High School Journalism convention in Philadelphia, the Walsworth team met Kimberly Allen, a 16-year old copy editor for Hanks High School in El Paso, Texas. Kimberly, a clearly talented yearbook enthusiast, enjoyed finding ways to grow their audience on social media and promote their yearbook. We asked Kimberly what wisdom she would impart to her successor if she was to train them on her yearbook social strategies, and she shared her secrets with you in this blog.

MAKE YOURSELF KNOWN

When posting for your school, it’s easy to get lost in all the accounts clubs make. There’s student council, debate and even most sports have their own Instagram to keep people updated, so what can make your account stand out?

You must stay relevant. People will remember your account if they see your posts often, so post on a regular and frequent basis.

BECOME THE CORE SCHOOL ACCOUNT

You want students to know where they can find pictures of themselves. People want to see their friends and themselves when they see a post about a school activity, so make your account the place students will see themselves.

This goes for reposting other clubs’ posts too so kids know that even if they don’t follow every school account, they will still be able to stay updated on your account.

POST EVERYONE AND EVERYTHING

You want to ensure you have amazing coverage of each event your school holds. If it is a game, take pictures of the crowd reaction too. For the players, make sure you even get the ones on the bench cheering on their teammates. And do not forget the sideline entertainment – the cheerleaders and dancers bring an energy that radiates to everyone watching.

It is important to post more than just the obvious, like who is playing, because it takes a village to have a successful and entertaining game.

SEND A PHOTOGRAPHER TO EVERY EVENT

Make sure that for every event, whether it be a game or a community pep rally, you always have a photographer present. This helps you stay relevant and on everyone’s radar.

People want to see the people they know and themselves. When you apply that knowledge, you gain followers.

REPOST, REPOST, REPOST

As a yearbook account, you know you also need to make sales, but how do we do that? I’ve found making posts with information about your yearbook and reposting it at least twice a week is vitally important.

Many students wait until the last minute to purchase, and it’s important to remind students and parents weekly that they need to purchase it as soon as possible to get the best deals.

HAVE FUN WITH WHAT YOU POST

Above all, remember who you’re posting for: high schoolers. They don’t want a serious post; they want a casual post, so you don’t need to go all out with a crazy elaborate caption. Chances are they won’t read it.

You need a quick, clever, straight-to-the-point caption. Even adding a song students may know or an artist they may know so they feel more intrigued by what you’re showing them and what you have to say.

When you apply these secrets, you’ll see your social media following and your sales grow.