‘Non-essential’ retail businesses can reopen from this week and some customers have been so dedicated that they’ve been setting up camp outside! All being well, hair and beauty salons, tattoo shops, bars, pubs and restaurants should all be able to open in a few weeks too.

So whether you’ve just reopened or you’re still waiting, we’ve put together a checklist of things that you can do to give your social media channels a quick refresh…

A new look 

Firstly, you need to make sure that all your profile pictures and cover art are the right sizes and that you’re using the best quality images possible. You should also take this opportunity to update your contact info and prices on social and update your opening hours on Facebook.

Whilst we’re on the subject of Facebook – they’ve just updated their Shops feature, making it easier for small businesses to set up a single online store and sell their products. If you’ve got the time, this is a really worthwhile thing to do as it should increase your sales through social!

With your Instagram, it would definitely be worth having a bit of a tidy up and archiving old posts that don’t fit with the theme of your feed. Update your Story Highlights too, so it’s easy for new visitors to quickly find the information they’re looking for.

Safety first

Everyone is a bit tentative about things reopening and that’s understandable. Reassure your customers or visitors and show them how you plan to keep them safe. Why not film a short video showing how to walk around the shop safely or demonstrating how customers will be served? If you’ve put any signs or sanitation systems in place, it’s a good idea to share pictures of these on social too.

This also applies to businesses without a physical shop or premises. Show your customers how you’re keeping the production or packing area safe or mention any safety precautions that your employees are taking.

Remember to pin or highlight the key information so that it stays at the top of your page!

Mention any business changes

You need to make it crystal clear to your customers if anything about your day-to-day operations has changed. This could be reduced opening hours, limited capacity (only one person in the shop at a time) or how they should be booking/ordering/paying for goods.

As postal services may be experiencing delays for some time, be sure to regularly post updates regarding your postage options and expected delivery times, and make sure you have a plan to monitor and respond to any comments or DMs in a timely manner, as you may get more Customer Service queries than normal.

Ask for their co-operation 

It’s really important to keep your social media honest and personal. Asking your audience kindly to co-operate with the new rules – whether in a post or a video – is a great way to do this.

Get the buzz back

Now is not the time to go quiet! If you’re reopening this week, make sure you’re posting every day – whether that’s pictures of stock or staff or some of the ideas we mentioned above.

Even if you’re not open again yet, it’s still really important to be posting regularly in order to get your posts seen and stay in people’s feeds. You don’t have to confirm details yet, but you could say what you’re planning to do or when you’re hoping to be back.

Another good way to generate some buzz is to ask people to register their interest and contact them when you’re open again. You could also create a Facebook event or send out email marketing in the run up to the reopening or offer a small discount to the first customers! If your business sells gift vouchers, now would also be a good time to push these so that people can redeem them in the not-so-distant future…

Plan, plan, plan!

Lastly, we know that you’re probably busier than ever making sure you’ve got everything in place to reopen… so a social media strategy may well be the last thing on your mind! But having a content plan or someone managing your social media can save you precious time and keep your business running smoothly when you need it most.

Whether you’re looking for advice and support or you’re in need of full social media management services, our team of experts are on hand to help.

Email [email protected] to find out more about what we can do for you!