How to Improve Your Social Strategy Using Content Pillars

Put your hand up if you want to accomplish ANY of the following in 2024:

✨ Get more organized as a creator
✨ Be more consistent with your posting
✨ Grow a loyal, like-minded audience
✨ Stop stressing over what to post
✨ Become a top creator in your specific niche

 Hopefully you are over there waving your arms around screaming.. YES!!! 🙌

Here's the good news. Achieving all of these things is absolutely possible. We've seen students of our courses do it time and time again, which means you absolutely can too!

Below I'm going to share ONE foundational exercise that can help get you on the right path to achieving all of the above. And that's...

📣 Defining Your Content Pillars! 📣

(If you have no clue what the heck I'm talking about.. no sweat! This is an easy step to miss as a creator and what's great is, you can pick it up at any stage of your journey. Let me break it down for you!) 👇

"What the heck are 'Content Pillars'?"

Think of your content pillars as three to five themes your audience can consistently expect from you. These topics will create the foundation of your channel and inform the type of content you create (ie. the formats you choose).

So for example, let's say you are a creator in the 'Fitness' niche. Your content pillars could be:

• Simple at-home workouts
• Nutrition on a budget
• Workout Gear Reviews

Once you have determined your content pillars (or categories as some people like to call them), the next step is figuring out what type of specific value you can deliver under each of them. I find it easiest to think of the value in the form of hooks to help spark video ideas. Here's an example of what this could look like:

Pillar 1: Simple at-home workouts

Value Ideas:
- Tricep Workouts (Hook Example: "3 of the best tricep workouts, using only a kitchen chair")
- Stretching (Hook Ex: "A 2 minute stretch every runner should do the MOMENT they wake up")
- Recovery (Hook Ex: "I made a HUGE mistake lifting weights, but once I fixed it, I can now lift 30lbs more..)"
- Bodyweight Leg Workouts (Hook Ex. "Lunge competition with my partner. Loser does laundry for the MONTH")

My suggestion would be to brainstorm as many hooks as you can under each pillar value and then creating the ones you are most excited about.

But how do I determine what my specific content pillars should be?

First off, choosing your pillars shouldn't be a quick 10 second brainstorm session. Some real thought should be put into this process as the outcome is going to dictate the type of content you create from here on out (no pressure lol)! Here's a few things to consider:

1. Your Goals & Audience Needs

Your content pillars should always be aligned with your business or creator goals. Ask yourself the following:

What am I trying to achieve on social media?
What special value can I add to my audience's day?
Am I aiming to be educational, entertaining, (or a combination of the two)?
From these answers, you can make a point-form list of subjects you may want to touch on (your content pillars) and then narrow it down from there.

2. Determine Your Niches Keywords

If you are realllly feeling stumped, another great practice is to research what people are actively searching for in your specific niche. That way you can understand both the audiences' pain points and the subjects they are interested in. Head over to Instagram or TikTok and search some of your niche keywords under 'Tags' (see below). Take note of any keywords that standout to you and that you think you could base your content around!

  
Once you have a list going, choose the ones that speak to you and add them to your list of potential content pillars.

So, why are content pillars important?

1. Keeps you focused (& your audience happy): Instead of burning yourself out trying to post about everything under the sun, you can focus your energy into creating high-quality relevant content for your target audience. This is going to help establish you as an expert in your niche and a go-to source for the value you provide.

2. Helps you plan ahead: Nobody likes the feeling of scrambling for something to post. Your content pillars can be used as a guide to plan your content out weeks ahead of time. Brainstorm a bunch of ideas under each pillar and then schedule them into a weekly or monthly calendar.

I've gone ahead and put together a quick example of what your weekly content pillar planner could look like ⤵️ 

Hopefully this got the wheels turning and will be a helpful tool if you are feeling a little stuck on the content planning side of things! 

I'll catch up with you soon!

- Meg

PS. If the 'Hooks' section of this article made your palms go a little sweaty, I'd suggest checking out my brand new Art of Hooks Creator Course (if you haven't already). I'll even toss in a sweet discount code for ya 😉 Use the code PILLAR to score 40% off when you sign up at the link here. Hope to see ya in there!