Spring is a season of a renewal and because of that, it’s an excellent time for you to bring fresh ideas and energy to your marketing campaigns. With social media use growing all the time — the number of worldwide social media users is expected to hit 2.77 billion in 2019 — it’s particularly important to make sure you’re devoting time to creating exciting and engaging posts for your Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts. You’ll likely be using social media to spread the word about your spring promotions, but you can liven up your feed and bring the light, vibrant spirit of the season to your posts with these six social content ideas.

Celebrate hashtag holidays

From #NationalPotatoChipDay (March 14) to #NoDirtyDishesDay (May 18) — there’s a hashtag holiday for everyone. In recent years, these micro holidays have been used by businesses to boost social media engagement, build brand awareness and, of course, have a little fun. Spring boasts several notable days that you can use to fill out your social content calendar, including #HonestyDay (April 3), #StarWarsDay (May 4) and #NationalReceptionistsDay (May 10). If you want followers to schedule a consultation or appointment, #NationalTelephoneDay (May 9) could be an opportunity to post your business’s phone number, while #NationalPuppyDay (March 23) is a good excuse for everyone in your company to share adorable pictures of their dogs.

Join the March Madness

You don’t have to sell sporting goods to get in on March Madness. The NCAA’s annual tournament attracts the attention of die-hard college basketball fans and casual viewers, making it the perfect event for any business to build a marketing campaign around.

If any local universities are in the tournament, joining the fun on social media could be as simple as giving the team a shoutout. Or take your posts to the next level by adding some NCAA-themed flair. Share pictures of your employees wearing jerseys or hats of the teams they’re supporting, post a “starting lineup” product display photo that features some of your bestselling items or talk about your business’s “slam dunk” services, menu, etc.

One thing to keep in mind: the NCAA is vigilant about enforcing their trademarks. This means you’ll need to find creative ways to connect your business to the excitement of the tournament without infringing on any trademarks.

Give your customers a behind-the-scenes look at your business

It may be too late for Employee Appreciation Day (March 1), but you can always post a group photo of your employees along with a caption commending their work. Show your employees in action so your followers can get a glimpse of what it takes to produce the products or deliver the services you provide. If you’re OK with doing something off the cuff, use Instagram Stories, Facebook Live or Snapchat to give a behind-the-scenes video tour. Talk to your team on camera and ask them to share a little bit about themselves. Videos like these are not only fun to make and watch, but they can also go a long way toward humanizing your brand and establishing an authentic connection with your audience.

Hold a springtime photo contest

Your customers trust user-generated content. In fact, 76 percent of consumers believe that content posted by other consumers is more honest than the content posted by the business itself. One way to encourage people to submit UGC is by holding a contest.

Ask customers to share a picture of how they’re using or planning to use your products or services this spring and to tag your business in the post. During the submission period, share the best posts on your social accounts and get your audience’s opinions on them. Judge the photos on criteria like creativity and how well each entrant was able to incorporate the season into the image. Give the winner a gift card or prize pack.

Show your support on Tax Day

This April 15, give your followers some relief from the stress of Tax Day with a special one-day offer. Along with the inevitable funny GIF or message you’ll share, consider giving your social audience a tax-themed discount in which you only charge them $10.40 — a nod to the IRS 1040 form. Promoting deals like this exclusively on social media creates an incentive for customers to start following you.

Send fans on a scavenger hunt

Launch an Easter egg hunt or scavenger hunt — in honor of #NationalScavengerHunt Day (May 24) — for your followers. Hide prize-filled envelopes or gift cards around town and give clues on your social media accounts about where to find them.

Don’t want to hit the streets? You can go the digital route, hiding items in a Facebook or Instagram photo. Think Highlights Magazine’s hidden picture puzzles or the Where’s Waldo? series. The first person to comment with the correct location of all of the items wins.

It’s important that you have fun when you’re creating your seasonal content. But remember, your spring campaigns will have the best results if you first sit down and figure out what you hope to achieve with these posts. Are you trying to increase engagement? Drive people to your website? Attract more followers? Establishing goals will help you decide which ideas and social platforms to use, and how you’ll use them.

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Editor’s note: This article was originally published in March 2019 and has been updated for accuracy and relevance.

© 2018 – 2019, Amber Humphrey. All rights reserved.