You probably know already that social media is super important for your business. Social networks offer powerful ways to reach and teach your audience of current and potential students. So you are on it. Trying to manage Facebook, updating Twitter, posting on Instagram and Pinterest, creating videos for YouTube… It can feel overwhelming. And exhausting at times…

Which social media networks should you use as a yoga teacher?

One of the best advices I’ve heard on social media is to focus your efforts. Instead of signing up for every social media channel because they are new or the popular kid on the block, determine which is most relevant to your business. Be excellent with one or two channels than mediocre at five or six. The use of social media may be free, but think about the value of your time!

Now you are probably wondering, which social media networks you should use for your business. In order to help you decide which and how many social media channel to be active on, work out the answers to the following simple questions:

1. What social networks does your target audience use?

When you are a yoga teacher, this is really easy to find out! Simply ask your students which social networks they use. If you teach teenagers, Snapchat might get mentioned a lot. If you coach mothers and pregnant women, maybe they are really into Pinterest. Probably everyone is on Facebook as it’s the biggest social network.

2. What content do you have to share?

Visual social networks like Pinterest and Instagram require images and videos and the expectations on quality keep growing. Quality images have a greater chance of becoming “viral” – that is, getting shared to thousands of people. If your business is image heavy – think high quality shots of yoga poses, food or travel – then Instagram and Pinterest can be great tools to increase you audience.

3. How much time can you devote to your social media updates?

Images and photos can take a lot of time to prepare. Social networks like Facebook emphasize quality content. Do you have the time and resources to create great content? Be true with yourself here – how much time do you have each day to update your social networks? Social media takes time and an investment of your time over a sustained period in order to achieve results.

Once you’ve thought through all these questions, you’ll have your answer! 

I recommend to choose one or two networks to begin with and give it a couple months to see how things go. You can always add another social network later. I’ll share some more tips how to manage your social media soon!