It happens to the best of us: we mean to start out our posts in an eye-catching way, but we get stuck in a rut.

The wording of every other post seems the same, and while people following your page might not notice as much as you do, they are still unconsciously aware. Using the same verbiage post after post doesn’t drive the active engagement you are looking to promote.

So we are here to help! Here are our top ten tips (with examples) for how to grab your fans’ attention and get you out of your #PostingRut!

1. Ask a question
   An easy way to switch up the tone of a post is by starting out with a rhetorical question. Try to keep things general and light-hearted; maybe you aren’t even looking for a specific answer to the question. Nevertheless, it makes someone reading it feel like part of your community:
• Who’s ready to see some #LCatPride slam dunks tomorrow night?
• Aren’t you excited to see how our #FallRiverPirates’ Math 24 competition went?



2. Spark engagement
   In the same vein as tip #1, you can ask a creative question or make a statement that really makes your audience want to comment. Congratulation posts work well for this, but you can also experiment with asking specific, pointed questions about your fans’ favorite memories and so on. Once you know your audience well, you will know what kind of statements and questions get them to engage right from the start of a post.
• What was your favorite imaginative activity as a child? Mrs. Zietlow’s creative #LCatPride class is busy setting up a doctor’s office and trying their hand in the medical field!
• Help us in congratulating these amazing #FallRiverPirates on their hard work and determination!
3. Use a colon
   One underrated way to connect two ideas is the colon. You can start out with a witty phrase, and then stick a colon in to introduce the main topic of your post:
• We have something to illuminate your Saturday: #NewAuburn blanket fort, pajama, and flashlight fun!
• What an amazing #LCatPride achievement: Lake Mills School District Exceeds Expectations!
• Cracking the #LCatPride code: students in Mr. Herman and Mr. Carroll’s Pre-Calculus classes apply their knowledge of matrices and use cryptography to crack the code of an evil criminal mastermind.
4. Find a fitting play on words or pun
   Who doesn’t love a great play on words, especially for funny or light-hearted posts? Don’t try too hard for this one, but if you mull over the topic for a second and a good pun pops into your head, go for it!
• “Our #FallRiverPirates are flipping amazing! They were treated to a pancake breakfast by our awesome volunteers this past Friday.”!
• “#ReedsburgPride artists are focused on the “bigger picture,” especially when they collaborate to create a mural in the halls of Webb Middle School.”



5. District hashtag or another experimental hashtag
   Putting your district’s hashtag at the very start of a post is not only great for auto-posting to Twitter, but it can also be an effective way to pop out in people’s feeds. Use it as an adjective, noun, or other part of speech! Bonus points if you can make it alliterate with the word(s) that follow it. You can also make up a fun new hashtag just for the post and lead in with it, too.
• #LCatPride learners are up to something secret…
• #FallRiverPirates in Mrs. Doolittle’s class have been working on a special project!
6. Address a certain target group
   If you want to direct a certain post at a group of people, such as elementary school parents or alumni, why not call them out at the beginning of a post? That way, they know right off the bat that the message is directed at them.
• Hey, #LCatPride alumni! We need YOUR input on a special event we have coming up….
• Calling all #FallRiverPirates middle school parents: it’s time to sign your child up for…
7. Inspirational quote
   Sometimes famous orators just put things in better worlds! Why not use their eloquence to your school’s advantage? Pick a fitting quote, give credit where credit is due, and prepare for it to get great engagement.
• “Good, better, best. Never let it rest.’Till your good is better and your better is best” -St. Jerome Our hardworking students in Algebra II truly embody this quote.



8. Ellipsis (…)
   Looking for a way to build suspense or lead up to big news? Ellipsis (dot, dot, dot) are your new best friend. They can jazz up a post and pair well with an exclamation point:
• The winners of this month’s Good Character Award are… John Smith and Mary Warren!
• The location for the brand-new elementary school is… Hudson St!
9. Alliteration
   It’s so pleasing to the key (and our inner voices, reading aloud) to see words in a row starting with the same letter. This will force you to think of creative, uncommon words and add a little polish to any basic post.
• #LCatPride Skating Saturday: Mrs. Zietlow spent time with a student and her friend who won her LMES PTO auction.
• Monday March madness ensued in Mr. Brown’s gym class!
10. Introduce features consistently (using the same phrase)
    It’s important to realize that creativity and originality are great in posts, but using key phrases and words to signal certain types of posts is important, too! Phrases like “STAFF FEATURE FRIDAY” or “HIGH SCHOOL ATHLETE OF THE MONTH” right at the beginning of your post draw your fans to something familiar. This is crucial to creating a brand for your school, so it’s okay use the same short phrase every time for recurring features.
• STAFF FEATURE FRIDAY is back this week with another #LCatPride educator…
• It’s time for the best day of the week: STAFF FEATURE FRIDAY!

Hopefully this gives you a little push to vary the way you start posts! The first step is being conscious of the way you word things; once you start paying close attention, you will become a pro at creative opening phrases.

A guest post from Hannah Feller, our youngest account manager! She is currently completing the BA program in English Literature and Linguistics at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands. She is thrilled to be able to apply the theory she works with at university to social media for schools.