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How Might You Leverage Social Media Design to Advance the UN Sustainable Development Goals?
Whether you are posting for personal accounts or mission-driven organizations, you can harness the power of social media to play your part in advancing the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Not sure where to get started? Luckily, Social Sector Network is here to guide you on the content, process, and tools you can use to effectively leverage social media for sustainable development purposes.
What Should You Post on Social Media?
1. Educational Content
Before people can effectively assist with the SDGs, they must learn about the 17 global goals. Since education is vital, you may want to start your social media campaigning with educational content designed to inform people about the Sustainable Development Goals. Focus on promoting one or two specific goals at a time, and use facts and figures to teach people about the goals’ importance. You can find verified SDG statistics by following the links below:
2. Inspirational Stories
If you discover people or organizations that are helping achieve the SDGs, share their stories! Real-world examples perform miracles when it comes to motivating people to pay attention and get involved with sustainable development. You can use personal connections, online research, and informational interviews to learn about SDG-aligned initiatives. Make sure to get your facts right, and don’t forget to link to your subjects’ social media profiles and websites.
3. Calls to Action
What if you could get people to take tangible action toward the global goals? Try running a challenge or fundraiser to get people involved with the SDGs. If you want to promote cleaner oceans, you could challenge people to post pictures of themselves picking up trash on beaches or encourage them to donate to an ocean cleaning initiative. Once you convince people to make public and voluntary commitments, they will feel a psychological pull to continue supporting the SDGs. Small actions can lead to massive impacts!
How Can You Create Successful Posts?
1. Conduct Background Research
No matter what type of post you’re creating, you must ensure that your facts and figures are correct. Invest some time in researching your subject, as well as your audience, before designing your posts. Regarding your target audience, you will want to know their interests, group memberships, favorite hashtags, etc.
2. Design Enticing Graphics
Unless you create eye-catching graphics, people will dismiss your posts. You need to capture your audience’s attention if you want them to contemplate or interact with your posts. Although graphic design may seem intimidating, helpful tools, such as Adobe Spark and Canva, enable anyone to create appealing images.
3. Write High-Impact Headlines and Captions
While graphics capture your audience’s attention, headlines and captions drive your messages home. Make sure to keep your text concise, use action verbs, and avoid the passive voice. You should also add relevant hashtags to effectively reach your target audience.
4. Share Your Posts in the Right Places
Posts perform most effectively when they resonate with readers. Although this is common sense, many people fail to share posts on the right social media channels or in the relevant groups for their target audiences. Try tailoring your posts to specific platforms or groups so they generate maximum impact.
5. Post on a Consistent Basis
If you want to truly build a fanbase, you must post on a consistent basis. By releasing regular posts, you can build brand recognition and increase audience engagement. Make yourself known for promoting the SDGs!
What Tools Should You Use for Social Media Design?
Adobe Spark
Adobe Spark provides an easy-to-use platform for creating social media graphics and videos. It includes both free and paid versions.
Canva
Canva is similar to Adobe Spark, but Canva offers increased design functionality. While the free version has limited resources, Canva Pro provides a wide range of shapes, images, and formatting options. The paid version also enables team collaboration and offers specialized functions, such as animation.
Grammarly
Grammarly enables you to spell-check your posts in real-time. This browser plugin checks everything you write for both spelling and grammar.
Postfity
Postfity is a simple tool for scheduling and coordinating your social media posts across platforms. It is highly intuitive and easy to use. Postfity offers both free and paid versions.
Start Promoting Sustainable Development!
Now you know about the content, process, and tools you can use to promote sustainable development through social media. Get out there and start creating posts to advance the SDGs!
Also, don’t forget to tag Social Sector Network (find us on Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, Instagram, etc.)… We will like and share our favorite SDG posts that you create!