I don't know what to post.
A one-minute answer, a plain-English fix, and one thing you can do today — pick how you'd like to take it in below.
You don't need to be clever. Show what you do, who does it, and who it's for. That's it. If it feels obvious to you — that's often the exact thing your customer wants to see.
Most small businesses go quiet on social because they overthink it. They think every post has to be a marketing masterpiece. It doesn't. People follow you to peek behind the scenes — to feel like they know you before they buy from you. Ordinary is exactly what they came for.
A furniture maker in Nelson messages me: "I've got nothing to post." He then tells me about the fifteen-hour day he spent hand-carving a table leg for a customer flying in from Melbourne to see the piece. That's the post. He didn't think it was interesting because he lives it. To everyone else scrolling Instagram at 9pm — it's magic.
Rotate through four kinds of posts
You never run out of ideas if you have four buckets to draw from. Pick one each week and you'll never wonder what to post again.
1. Show the work
The making, the finished piece, the messy middle. A tradie's van at 6am. A hairdresser mid-colour. A baker pulling loaves out. People love the how, not just the what.
2. Show the person
You, your team, your morning coffee, your dog on-site. People buy from people. The face behind the business is often the most-liked post you'll ever make.
3. Show the customer
Who bought it, how they're using it, their happy face — always with their permission. Real customers do the selling for you.
4. Show what you know
One tip your customer would find useful. "Never store tomatoes in the fridge." "Book your car service before the school holidays." Small, useful, memorable.
Take one photo right now, of anything in your business.
Your work bench. The open kitchen. Your team laughing at something. The half-finished project. Post it with one honest sentence about what's going on. No filters, no plan. That's a post. You just did it.
- What's obvious to you is often interesting to your customer.
- Rotate through four buckets: work, person, customer, tip.
- One post per week beats five posts one week and nothing for a month.
- Real beats polished every time.
Now you know what to post. But who exactly are you posting it for? That's Topic 05.
Topic 05 — I don't know who my customers are.