Social media content for service businesses

Key takeaways

Social media content for service businesses has to make an invisible product visible. Buyers cannot inspect a service before buying, so they judge by the people, the process and the proof. Six post types cover it, and three a week is enough.

• Services are judged on people, process and proof.
• 6 post types make a service visible.
• 3 posts a week is a sustainable rhythm.
• Show outcomes and deliverables with client details removed.

Why is service content harder than product content?

Service content is harder because there is nothing to photograph on a shelf. The buyer is paying for expertise and effort that happen out of sight, and the result may be a problem that no longer exists. Content has to stand in for the inspection a product buyer would do.

• How to create social media content that attracts the right customers

Which post types sell a service?

Six post types sell a service: the client outcome, the process explained, the question answered, the deliverable shown, the person introduced and the mistake avoided. Between them they answer what a buyer cannot see: what will happen, who will do it and whether it works.

• Outcome: what changed for a client.
• Process: what happens, step by step.
• Question: a real client question answered.
• Deliverable: what the client receives, anonymised.
• Person: who does the work and their experience.
• Mistake: a common error and how you prevent it.

• Turn a case study into social media posts that sell
• Turn customer questions into FAQ posts on social media
• Product and service demos on social media that sell

How do you show work that is confidential?

Show the shape, not the detail. Describe the type of client, the problem and the result without names. Show a template or sample deliverable with dummy data. Share numbers as ranges or percentages. Ask clients whether an anonymised version is acceptable. Most agree when asked properly.

• Describe the client type, not the client.
• Use sample documents with dummy data.
• Give results as ranges or percentages.
• Get agreement even for anonymised stories.

• GDPR and social media marketing in the UK

What weekly routine works?

A workable routine is three posts a week: one outcome or deliverable, one question answered and one process or person post. Collect material in a ten-minute weekly conversation about what was delivered. Prepare a month of posts in one session.

• A weekly social media routine that fits in 3 hours
• Batch a month of social content in half a day

How does it differ by type of service?

The six types apply everywhere and the emphasis shifts. Trades lean on visible results. Professional firms lean on questions and process. Healthcare leans on people and reassurance, within advertising rules. Hospitality leans on experience. Use the sector guides for the detail.

• Social media for trades and construction businesses
• Social media for professional services firms
• Social media for UK healthcare businesses
• Social media for UK hospitality businesses

What should service businesses avoid?

Avoid stock images of handshakes, abstract claims about quality, and feeds made only of tips. Avoid promising results you cannot guarantee. Marketing claims must be truthful and capable of being backed up, and some professions have their own publicity rules.

• Stock images vs original content on social media
• ASA rules for social media advertising in the UK

What does this look like in practice?

A pattern we see with UK service firms: the owner says there is nothing to show, while the team delivers a dozen pieces of client work a week. The content exists. It only needs a habit for capturing it and removing the client's name.

• See client work
• Social Media Marketing for UK businesses
• The right-customer content scorecard for social media

Service content checklist

Review each month.

• At least four outcome or deliverable posts.
• At least four answered questions.
• At least two posts introducing people or process.
• No stock photography.
• Client details removed or agreed.
• Every post has one next step.

Next step

List what your team delivered last week. Choose one item and describe the problem, what was done and the result in four lines.