Writing on social is unpredictable.

Amount of times I’ve written up what I think is a freaking legendary post, then it bombs or doesn’t blow up like I thought it would?

100s of times.

Easy to get disheartened.

Especially when you’re just getting started and every post feels like you’re putting yourself on a billboard for everyone to see.

The mistake most online writers make though?

They don’t learn from “bad” posts.

But after writing 10,000+ social posts, I’m numb to the feeling of “bad” posts.

I’ve learned to turn those “bad” posts into data and learn from them.

Here’s the 3 steps I take to turn “bad” posts, learn from them and become a better social writer:

Step 1. I analyse why it didn’t work

There’s always a reason the post didn’t hit.

So I check:

• Was the hook good enough?
• Do people actually care about the topic?
• Did I write concisely enough?
• Did it create a specific emotional reaction?

9 times out of 10 the hook could’ve been better.

But a mental checkover like this puts improvements top of mind for the next post.

Step 2. I challenge myself to keep experimenting

You’ll never see me not testing and trying new things.

If a post sucks, so what?

I don’t need to panic and protect my ego. In my eyes if you’re not testing or trying new things every now and then, then you’re not moving forward.

Yes, repurpose winning content. Yes, double down on hits.

But keep 10-20% back for experimenting.

Push your creativity, find new ways to connect with your audience.

Step 3. I remind myself that it doesn’t matter

I wrote about this recently that 0.07% of my all time LinkedIn posts have generated over 14% of my all time views.

Wild init?

Makes you realise that consistent posting is more important than anything and letting the social media gods decide your fate is the way to go.

The more you write, the more chance something will hit.

And even if it doesn’t hit, who ACTUALLY cares?

If your whole business is entirely reliant on if today’s social post goes viral or not, then you should probably figure out a new business strategy.

That ain’t sustainable.

TL;DR:

1. I analyze what didn’t resonate
2. I challenge myself to keep experimenting
3. I remind myself that it doesn’t matter

I hope this opens your eyes.

Because I see even the most talented social writers freaking out over “bad” posts.

Every bad post is a chance to get better.

Keep writing, adjusting and showing up.

Cheers,

Matt Barker

P.S. did you miss The 5 Minute Daily Writing System Training this week? If you did, then you can grab the replay + training doc for free here.

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