The Social Playbook - January edition: Getting started with content creation

The Social Playbook - January edition: Getting started with content creation



Social media isn’t just about posting some random content. It’s about why certain content works, how brands stand out, and what makes people pause mid-scroll.

The Social Playbook is a monthly community series where we break all of that down. Through real brand examples, creator stories, and practical insights, we’ll decode how engaging content is built, how smart marketing strategies are used, and how you can apply the same thinking to your own social media journey. Stick around — there’s a lot to unpack.

To kick things off, we’re starting with the basics: Getting started with content creation

If you’re a newbie creator, someone planning to take content creation seriously, or if “grow my social media in 2026”  is already on your vision board, this one’s for you. By the end of this post, you’ll walk away with a clear understanding of the foundational steps of content creation and how to actually get started.

Why do you want to start content creation?

Before thinking about reels, aesthetics, or algorithms, pause and ask yourself one simple question:

Why am I doing this?

Maybe you want to improve your communication skills. Or maybe you want to educate people about something you love, document your lifestyle, build a brand through social media, or open doors to new opportunities. There’s no “right” reason—what matters is clarity.

When your why is clear, your content feels more authentic. Your ideas flow better. And staying consistent feels less forced, even when growth takes time.

Who are you creating for? (Finding your niche)

One of the most important decisions in your content creation journey is to define your target audience. Your niche defines your direction, and choosing the wrong one can slow down your growth.

Start by putting yourself in your audience’s shoes and asking yourself what kind of content you would actually stop and watch.

Niche down as much as possible. Trying to appeal to everyone often means connecting with no one. When you understand your niche deeply, you naturally start positioning yourself as someone worth listening to.

Let’s look at an example.

For example, say that your passion is fitness. Instead of creating generic lifestyle content, you want to focus on this specific subject. So you share your workout routines, daily habits, and beginner-friendly guides. You know there are many young people searching for the right fitness guidance, and your content speaks directly to them.

That’s your niche: young audiences interested in fitness and healthy living. That clarity will help you create content that actually connects.

The best niches always strike a balance between what you love and what has real growth potential. When you find that balance, the right audience starts finding you.

Research your content

Once you know why you’re creating content and who you’re creating it for, this is where the real work begins, research.

Whether you’re posting a reel, writing a thread, or sharing a carousel, research helps you understand what’s already out there and, more importantly, how you can add value instead of repeating the same thing.

Research includes:
  1. Studying your niche
  2. Observing what performs well
  3. Spotting gaps
  4. Understanding what your audience actually cares about
It’s how you move from just posting to posting with intention. When you research well, your content feels thoughtful, confident, and trustworthy. 

Pro tip: Don’t get stuck in research mode forever. Watching endless “how to create content” videos won’t make you a creator—creating content will. Learn, take notes, hit record, post, repeat. Knowledge without action is just noise.

Set your own style

While researching, it’s natural to get inspired by creators you admire, and that’s a good thing. Inspiration fuels creativity. But there’s a fine line between being inspired and copying.

Instead of recreating someone else’s content frame by frame, focus on building your own style. This could be a consistent color palette, a font you always use, a familiar intro or outro, or even the way you speak on camera.
These small elements add up to a personal brand.

When your style stays consistent, people start recognizing your content without even seeing your name. Take inspiration, remix it with your personality, and make it yours.

How you say something matters more than what you say

On social media, everyone is creating content, but only a few make people stop scrolling.

Here’s the reality:
  1. On mobile, people decide whether to watch your content in under 2 seconds.
  2. If your first 3 seconds don’t grab attention, your content is already lost to the scroll.
That’s why a hook is non-negotiable. A good hook creates curiosity, delivers instant value, or makes the viewer think, “Wait… what?” Your goal isn’t to explain everything upfront, it’s to make people stay.

So if you're a fitness creator in an overcrowded feed, your hook is the difference between “just another reel” and “okay, I need to watch this.”

Relatable/beginner hooks
  1. “I started my fitness journey with zero motivation — this is what actually helped.”
  2. “If you’re new to fitness, stop making this mistake.”
  3. “I wish someone had told me this before I started working out.”
Problem–solution hooks
  1. “No gym? No problem. Here’s how I started.”
  2. “Can’t stay consistent with workouts? Try this.”
  3. “This is why your fitness routine isn’t working.”
Curiosity hooks
  1. “This small habit changed my entire fitness journey.”
  2. “I didn’t change my diet — I changed this.”
  3. “You don’t need 2 hours in the gym. Here’s proof.”

Stay consistent. Stay curious.

This might sound obvious, but it’s the most important part. Consistency is what separates creators who try from creators who grow.

Social media changes fast with new trends, new features, new tools, and so on. The creators who win are the ones who keep learning, experimenting, and adapting without losing their niche or voice.

Consistency builds trust. Staying updated keeps you relevant. Do both, and growth will follow.

Content creation isn’t about going viral overnight. It’s about showing up, learning, and evolving. Stay consistent, stay curious, and let your growth compound over time.

Let’s learn, build, and grow together.

Stay tuned for an exciting February edition of The Social Playbook.





        • Recent Topics

        • Marketing Tip #18: Make your online store mobile-friendly to improve traffic

          Most online shoppers browse on their phones first. If your store is hard to read, slow to load, or tricky to navigate on mobile, they’ll bounce fast. A mobile-friendly store doesn’t just look nice; it improves engagement, reduces drop-offs, and helps

        • [Need help] Form closed. Please contact your form administrator for further assistance.

          https://forms.zohopublic.com/cceinfoifly1/form/CCE2025CCEFocusGroupRegistrationForm2025Fall/formperma/s_8XcLETTbFxZ_TAS4r_W6W5UBl8o5oxEnIX35IBKg4 I checked we didn't exceed the usage limit and form availability is enabled, Please help us enable this form

        • Zoho People. Updating TabularData

          I am trying to update tabular data in the record. I always have the same response. I have checked many times. Section ID is correct. May be something wrong with request structure itself. Can someone help me. Body content type: form urlencoded query params

        • Automatically CC an address using Zoho CRM Email Templates

          Hi all - have searched but can't see a definitive answer. We have built multiple email templates in CRM. Every time we send this we want it to CC a particular address (the same address for every email sent) so that it populates the reply back into our

        • Unable to Send Different Email Templates for Different Documents in Zoho Sign

          Hello Zoho Community, I am facing a limitation with Zoho Sign regarding email notifications sent to customers when a document is sent for signing. Currently, whenever I send any template/document for signing, the email notification that goes to the customer

        • Reminder needs 0 minute choice

          I most use 0 minute reminders.  Every other calender service has this choice.  If I create an event in my Android calendar with 0 minute reminder it will change to 5 minute.  Please ad 0 as a reminder choice, this should be a 5 minute fix.  Thanks.

        • Customer ticket creation via Microsoft Teams

          Hi all, I'm looking to see if someone could point me in the right direction. I'd love to make it so my customers/ end users can make tickets, see responses and respond within microsoft teams. As Admin and an Agent i've installed the zoho assist app within

        • Is there a way to update all the start and end dates of tasks of a project after a calendar change?

          Hi! Here's my situation. I've built a complete project planning. All its tasks have start dates and due dates. After completing the planning, I've realized that the project calendar was not the right one. So I changed the project calendar. I now have

        • How to update task start date when project start date changes?

          Hi there, When the start date of a project changes, it's important to update the start dates of the tasks associated with that project to reflect the new timeline. Is there a way to shift the start date of all project tasks when the start date of a project

        • Issue with Picklist Dropdown Not Opening on Mobile

          Hello I am experiencing an issue with picklist values on mobile. While the arrow is visible, the dropdown to scroll through the available values often does not open. This issue occurs sporadically, it has worked occasionally, but it is very rare and quite

        • using the client script based on the look up filed i wnat to fetch the record details like service number , service rate

          based on selected service look up field iwant to fetch the service serial number in the serice form how i achive using client script also how i get the current date in the date field in the on load of the form

        • Zoho Books/Square integration, using 2 Square 'locations' with new Books 'locations'?

          Hello! I saw some old threads about this but wasn't sure if there were any updates. Is there a way to integrate the Square locations feature with the Books locations feature? As in, transactions from separate Books locations go to separate Square locations

        • Zoho Commerce - How To Change Blog Published Date and Author

          Hi Commerce Team, I'm discussing a project with a client who wants to move from Woo Commerce / Wordpress to Zoho Commerce. They have around 620 blog posts which will need to be migrated. I am now aware of the blog import feature and I have run some tests.

        • Does zoho inventory need Enterprise or Premium subsrciption to make Widgets.

          We have Zoho One Enterprise and yet we can't create widgets on inventory.

        • ZMA shows as already connected to Zoho CRM, but integration not working

          When I try to connect ZMA with Zoho CRM, it shows as already connected, but the integration doesn’t seem to be working. I’ve attached the screen recording for reference.

        • Automatic Email Alerts for Errors in Zoho Creator Logs

          Hello, We would like to request a feature enhancement in Zoho Creator regarding error notifications. Currently, Zoho Creator allows users to view logs and errors for each application by navigating to Zoho Creator > Operations > Logs. However, there is

        • Workflow Rule - Field Updates: Ability to use Placeholders

          It will be great if you can use placeholder tags to update fields. For example if we want to update a custom field with the client name we can use ${CONTACT.CONTACT_FIRSTNAME}${CONTACT.CONTACT_LASTNAME}, etc

        • Password Assessment Reports for all users

          I'm the super admin and looking at the reporting available for Zoho Vault. I can see that there is a Password Assessment report available showing the passwords/weak and security score by user. However I'm confused at the 'report generated on' value. Monitor

        • Can't change form's original name in URL

          Hi all, I have been duplicating + editing forms for jobs regarding the same department to maintain formatting + styling. The issue I've not run into is because I've duplicated it from an existing form, the URL doesn't seem to want to update with the new

        • Setting certian items to be pickup only

          How do we have some items that are pickup only? I have several items in my item's list that I do not ship. But they need to be on the website to be sold, and picked up in store. Need to be able to do this as one of these products is a major seller for

        • Using gift vouchers

          We would like to be able to offer a limited number of gift vouchers, of varying values, to our customers, and are looking for the best way to do this. We have looked at Coupons and Gift Certificates, but neither seem to fit the bill perfectly. Coupons:

        • Automatically updating field(s) of lookup module

          I have a lookup field, which also pulls through the Status field from the linked record. When the lookup is first done, the Status is pulled through - this works perfectly. If that Status is later updated, the lookup field does not update as well. As

        • Zoho Commerce and Third-party shipping (MachShip) API integration

          We are implementing a third-party shipping (MachShip) API integration for our Zoho Commerce store and have made significant progress. However, we need guidance on a specific technical challenge. Current Challenge: We need to get the customer input to

        • Adding custom "lookup" fields in Zoho Customization

          How can I add a second “lookup” field in Zoho? I’m trying to create another lookup that pulls from my Contacts, but the option doesn’t appear in the module customization sidebar. In many cases, a single work order involves multiple contacts. Ideally,

        • Can you import projects into Zoho Projects yet?

          I see some very old posts asking about importing project records into Zoho Projects. But I can't find anything up to date about the topic. Has this functionality been added? Importing tasks is helpful. But we do have a project where importing projects

        • Zoho Inventory. Preventing Negative Stock in Sales Orders – Best Practices?

          Dear Zoho Inventory Community, We’re a small business using Zoho Inventory with a team of sales managers. Unfortunately, some employees occasionally overlook stock levels during order processing, leading to negative inventory issues. Is there a way to

        • Automation #10 - Auto Assign Ticket based on Keywords

          This is a monthly series designed to help you get the best out of Desk. We take our cue from what's being discussed or asked about the most in our community. Then we find the right use cases that specifically highlight solutions, ideas and tips on optimizing

        • Automate attendance tracking with Zoho Cliq Developer Platform

          I wish remote work were permanently mandated so we could join work calls from a movie theatre or even while skydiving! But wait, it's time to wake up! The alarm has snoozed twice, and your team has already logged on for the day. Keeping tabs on attendance

        • Reusable Custom Functions Across Department Workflows

          Dear Zoho Desk Team, We appreciate the powerful workflow automation capabilities in Zoho Desk, particularly the ability to create and use custom functions within workflows. However, we have encountered a limitation that impacts efficiency and maintainability.

        • Don't Allow Customer to Edit Values After Submitting Ticket

          After a customer submits a ticket through the customer portal, they can go into the ticket and see some of the values from the questions they answered in the sidebar. Currently, a customer can edit these values even after they submitted them. This makes no sense. We ask very specific questions that we don't want customers to later change! Please disable the ability for customers to edit the values to their submission questions in the portal. Screenshot attached.

        • Analytics <-> Invoice Connection DELETED by Zoho

          Hi All, I am reaching out today because of a big issue we have at the moment with Zoho Analytics and Zoho Invoice. Our organization relies on Zoho Analytics for most of our reporting (operationnal teams). A few days ago we observed a sync issue with the

        • text length in list report mobile/tablet

          Is there a way to make the full text of a text field appear in the list report on mobile and tablet? With custom layouts, the text is always truncated after a certain number of characters.

        • Automation #4 - Auto Delete Tickets based on Rules

          This is a monthly series in which we pick some common use cases that have been either discussed or most asked about in our community and explain how they can be achieved using one of the automation capabilities in Zoho Desk. Unwanted tickets spamming

        • Zoho Community Digest — Enero 2026

          ¡Hola, comunidad! 🌟 Aquí os traemos las novedades más interesantes de Zoho durante este mes de enero, incluyendo actualizaciones de productos, integraciones y un recordatorio sobre los workshops certificados que vuelven a España. 🎓 Eventos y Comunidad

        • Automation #3 - Auto-sync email attachments to tickets

          This is a monthly series where we pick some common use cases that have been either discussed or most asked about in our community and explain how they can be achieved using one of the automation capabilities in Zoho Desk. Most of our customers use email

        • Automation #11 - Auto Update Custom Fields with Values from Emails

          This is a monthly series designed to help you get the best out of Desk. We take our cue from what's being discussed or asked about the most in our community. Then we find the right use cases that specifically highlight solutions, ideas and tips to optimize

        • Automation #13 - Auto assign tickets based on agent shift time

          This is a monthly series designed to help you get the best out of Desk. We take our cue from what's being discussed or asked about the most in our community. Then we find the right use cases that specifically highlight solutions, ideas and tips to optimize

        • Automation #14: Capture Jira Issue Key/ID in a Ticket Custom Field

          Hello Everyone! This month's edition brings you a custom function to consolidate your records associated with Jira integration. Jira integration enables support engineers and R&D units to collaborate seamlessly on feature development, product improvement,

        • Automation #16: Automate Ticket Reopening on Scheduled Timestamp

          Hello Everyone! This edition uncovers the option to schedule reopening a ticket automatically. Zylker Finance tracks insurance policyholder activities through Zoho Desk. For policyholders who pay monthly premiums, tickets are closed upon payment completion.

        • Automation#19:Auto-Close Tickets Upon Task Completion

          Hello Everyone! We’re excited to bring you another custom function this week. In this edition, we’ll show you how to automatically close tickets when all associated tasks are marked as completed. Let’s see how ZylkaPure, a leading water filter company,

        • Next Page