How do you promote your startup across social media if you are just starting?
I recently started building a tool for content creators and startup founders who want to stay consistent on Threads. I’ve realized how hard it is to promote something when you’re just starting and don't have an audience yet. If you don’t have a big following or a budget, what worked for you?
Did you focus on one platform at a time?
Did you document your process?
Did you post daily even if no one was watching?
Curious to hear how others approached early stage promotion. Right now I’m experimenting with scheduling, batching, and smart tagging to stay organized while posting on Threads consistently but I want to learn what’s working for others too. 🙌
Replies
Hi Lucia!
I used to build in public on X a few years ago but I feel that platform's changed a lot so I kinda dropped it? I'm super active on LinkedIn now though. I recommend you stick to one channel, depending on where your audience hangs out.
So, why not start with Threads? Twitter might be a good idea as well.
You can build in public, document your process, as well as share tips and tricks on how to use Threads. No need to post daily, but rather focus on quality and connect with others - e.g. instead of posting 7 times a week, maybe post 3 times and focus all other time on commenting on others' posts and connecting.
I get the impression that the 'audience' driven growth probably happens at 10,000+ followers. Growing to get there as a solo seems to be about building in public.
But until then, the way I've gotten users from social has been basically networking ON the platforms. My following on twitter, for e.g. is just 600 people but a lot of them have become friends and allies because I chat with them, comment on their stuff, etc. This got me my first 5 beta testers for a product in the past, and the first 6 buyers for something I'm building now.
So for my next product launch, that's how I'm going to do it again and maybe one day I'll hit the 10k follower mark... somehow :-P.
minimalist phone: creating folders
In my opinion, it is better to identify the key platform where is your target audience and build a presence there.
When you are settled and quite well-known on the platform (strong positioning), you can expand.
Document your processes and also downsides, learnings and successes, collaborations etc.
From the beginning, engage more + and post daily. :)
Wish you good luck!
Have you already chosen your platform? Feel free to share your handle and connect on LI: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nika-kotlarikova/
Milestone Content Studio
No doubt, its tough when you're going in solo. My guys didn't document anything. In retrospect, I should have. We focussed on all social channels thinking it would bring awareness. It did. But not a lot. We kept on posting with 0 views and 1 like in a week. Consistently. That consistency paid off when one random item went viral.
Focusing on one platform from the get-go is fine,
but it might be even better to mirror content across two and figure out which one works best before going all in.
Also, documenting everything is super helpful — you’ll thank yourself later.
Just remember: while posting regularly is key, taking time to actually talk with your users is just as important!
Try to balance both sides as best as you can.
Here are my 2 cents:
Starting with one platform is a good approach (although you can create a brand page on other socials and cross-post the same content over time, but it’s not necessary to focus on that in the beginning).
In the beginning, it's more about experimenting, so I wouldn't recommend documenting everything just yet.
Posting daily shouldn't be the goal, at least in the beginning. Instead, focus on having real conversations with people (bonus points if you're interacting with your peers, community, or target audience).
Shamelessly plug your product if it adds value to the user.