Go “Viral Locally” in Your Community using the 5E’s of Keeping Social Media Social

The 5 E’s of Social Media™ are not always easy to implement effectively. But like other social media strategies and tactics, this methodology can generate amazing results when you get them right.

John Lazas, a McLernon & Co. social media intensive strategy client and health insurance expert based in Boulder, CO, recently took to his personal Facebook page to empathize, educate, and encourage his community…and went viral locally! (“Viral locally” is a new term we made up to celebrate attaining a wide reach within your local community. Going statewide viral or nationally viral are the next levels up, and then going globally viral is the biggest virality.)

When Lazas ordered takeout from Boulder restaurant Curry ‘n Kebob, and noticed the exorbitant fees his favorite local restaurants were paying on delivery platforms like Grubhub and Doordash, he realized that sometimes online delivery orders could do more harm than good to support local restaurants.

In our strategy sessions with John we were really focusing on how he could authentically show up as himself on social media, in a way that was not overly sales-y, as many insurance and finance advisors choose to do. When we were working through his content ideas our founder, Amanda, asked him “What do you really care about right now in your community?” And John brought up this love of local Boulder restaurants – especially Mr. Khan’s restaurant.

Amanda encouraged him to make a post that shared his love of another business on his social profiles and to consistently put more emphasis on his community and giving back to others than himself on his social media.

Taking ideas to action, John wrote a heartfelt and empathetic post on his Facebook page encouraging members of his community to order takeout directly from the restaurant, rather than through third-party online platforms. He then shared that post across multiple Facebook Groups with the primary intention of supporting Mr. Khan’s business and raising awareness for other local business challenges (the delivery fee) in his community.

John wrote:

“Mr. Khan and his family at Curry n Kebob, Boulder, CO have been serving me consistently stellar Indian food for years,” Lazas wrote in his post, pictured below. “While visiting him last night for yet another great dinner, I learned that a large percentage of his restaurant’s business is currently being done via various delivery services.  To my surprise, he told me that such services charge him up to 30% of the order total per delivery, plus they usually charge the end customer 15% of the total.  Can you imagine how this might eat into the profits of a small business like his?  Please support your local restaurants by ordering food for pickup yourself, or dine in as you feel comfortable to do so.”

The post was widely shared, and generated more than 700 reactions and 100 comments on the original post. It was shared across 60 different Facebook Groups where it got even more likes, comments and encouragement. The original post and the overall story was also picked up by Denver 9 News, and featured in a news story about the effects of takeout food and online ordering for Boulder restaurants.

So, why was this post so successful? Let’s break down the social media strategy! Lazas’s post:

• Empathizes: as a business owner himself, Lazas illustrates his understanding of the challenges this local restaurant faces when forced to pay a significant portion of their revenue to third-party ordering platforms. He illustrates that he cares for his local community, economy, and neighbors.

• Educates: in an era when many are forgoing indoor dining for delivery and takeout, many people are turning to platforms like Grubhub and Doordash to order food from their favorite local restaurants, and may be unaware of the detrimental effects those actions can have on the businesses they are trying to support. By using his platform to amplify the experience of a business in his community, and including facts like the fees third-party platforms charge, he is educating others in his network how to better support the restaurants and businesses they know and love.

• Encourages: we’ve said it before, and we’ll say it again – if you have even a single genuine follower on social media, you are an “influencer”. By using his platform to share his stance and spread some facts about online ordering, he is encouraging others in his community to follow his lead and do better by the restaurants that are key to their local economies and cultures.

Lazas used the McLernon & Co. 5 Es of Social Media ™️ methodology in his post, and as a result, his message was able to reach a wider audience than he’d imagined.

“I am a small business owner and have been working with Amanda over the past few weeks to help me become more effective on social media,” Lazas says. “Amanda is a consummate expert in this space, and that shines through in her confidence, track record and testimonials. I love the enthusiasm and passion she brings to her work, plus her sense of humor, fun and even a bit of irreverence make her fun to work with. If you want to move your business forward in the social media space, I highly encourage you to get Amanda on your team!”

Learn more about Lazas and work with US Health Group at https://www.ushagent.com/johnlazas

Learn more about Mr. Khan and Curry n Kabab at: https://new.currynkebob.com

Take your social media strategy and messaging up a level with an intensive strategy session with Amanda. Email amanda@mclernonandco.com to get started.