With the ventures I’ve been working on, much of my time and effort have been spent figuring out the nuances of social media.  I think these issues are pertinent to many people, particularly business owners, so I’ve decided to put together some of the lessons I’ve learned and tips for how to improve your experience and avoid pitfalls.  These will be filed under the “social media lessons” category, so you can filter by category to sort by relevant posts.  Hopefully you’ll find these things useful in optimizing your own social media strategy!

Icons courtesy Brandi Girl

Today I’ll cover how to link your social media accounts to offer consistency across social media platforms.  It can be quite time-consuming to post content across platforms, so why not link them and get more bang for your buck?  Most sites will allow you to connect with Facebook and/or Twitter to post your activity and updates; just check the settings and look for something like “Sharing Settings” or “Connect Accounts.”

First, you can interlink your Facebook Page and Twitter accounts.  That way, any post on Facebook gets updated to Twitter, and any update on Twitter gets updated to Facebook (except @replies and direct messages).

Link Twitter to your Facebook Page

• You will be prompted to use Facebook as yourself (instead of as your Facebook Page) if you aren’t already.
• Your personal Facebook account and any Facebook Pages that you are an admin of will be listed.
• On the right side, click “Link to Twitter” for the account you want to link.
• On the next page, make sure you’re logged in to the correct Twitter account and click “Authorize app.”
• You will be returned to the previous page, where you can choose what to share (Status Updates, Photos, Video, Links, Notes, & Events). By default, they will all be checked so all updates will be shared on Twitter as well.

 
Link Facebook Page to your Twitter account

• Scroll down to the Facebook section and click “Sign in to Facebook and connect your accounts.”
• There will be a pop-up prompting you to allow Twitter access to your personal Facebook account. Allow it.
• Now your account is connected to Facebook and you can choose to allow Twitter to post to your personal profile page, or one of the Facebook Pages that you are an admin of.

For all the rest, make sure you are signed in to the correct Facebook and Twitter accounts first.

Link Facebook* & Twitter to your Pinterest account

• Scroll down to the Facebook section and click “Login with Facebook.”
• There will be a pop-up prompting you to allow Pinterest access to your Facebook account.  Allow it.
• Now “Login with Facebook” will be ON and you can choose to also turn “Publish activity to Facebook Timeline” to ON. If you do, another pop-up will prompt you to allow that type of access to your Facebook account.  Allow it if you want Pinterest updates to show up in a box on the right side of your timeline.
• In the Twitter section, click “Login with Twitter” and authorize the app.

 
Link Facebook, Twitter, & more to your Instagram (instructions for iPhone app – Androids may vary)

• Open up the Instagram app on your device and click on the icon that shows you your profile (bottom right).
• Tap on the settings icon in the top right corner.
• Scroll down to “Sharing settings” under the Account header.
• Tap on that and choose the accounts you want to link. You’ll be prompted to log in and allow access.
• For Facebook, your personal profile will be connected by default, but you can change it to a page by clicking on “Facebook,” then “Post to.” This will take you to a page in the FB app. Allow access here to then be able to connect Instagram to one of the Facebook Pages that you are an admin of.

 
Link Facebook* & Twitter to your Etsy account

• Click on “Connect with Facebook” and/or “Connect with Twitter” under the Connected Accounts section
• You will get a pop-up prompting you to allow permission. When you do, your accounts will be linked.
• For Facebook, you have the option of sharing your Favorites from Etsy on Facebook. Check the box if you’d like to, otherwise leave it alone.

*Pinterest and Etsy don’t appear to allow you to link your account to a Facebook page – right now you can only post updates to your personal timeline.

Is there another social media platform you’d like to see here?  Did I miss a step anywhere?  I’d love to hear some feedback.  Let me know if it worked for you (or what happened if it didn’t).