October supplies creators with a goldmine of subjects and conversation starters that they can shape their social strategies around to create entertaining, meaningful and relevant content.

Not quite sure where to start? Well, don't sweat it because media update's Lara Smit is showing you the ropes on how to create a spectacular social strategy for October right here.

Let's create some content:

Important dates this October

First things first: There are a few important themes and causes that the month of October is dedicated to that content creators should take note of, like:
  • SA Transport Month
  • SA Marine Month
  • SA Social Development Month
  • Mental Health Awareness Month, and
  • Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

However, if you would like to add some more variety to your content there are also a few important dates that you should take note of this month:
  • Monday, 3 October to Sunday, 9 October: Dyslexia Awareness Week
  • Friday, 7 October: World Smile Day
  • Sunday, 9 October to Saturday, 15 October: OCD Awareness Week
  • Sunday, 9 October: Partnership against HIV / AIDS Anniversary
  • Monday, 10 October: World Mental Health Day
  • Tuesday, 11 October: International Day of the Girl Child
  • Wednesday, 12 October: World Arthritis Day
  • Friday, 14 October: World Sight Day
  • Friday, 14 October to Wednesday, 19 October: Chocolate Week
  • Saturday, 15 October to Saturday, 19 November: Rugby League World Cup
  • Saturday, 15 October: International Day of Rural Women
  • Saturday, 15 October: Global Handwashing Day
  • Saturday, 15 October: World Student's Day
  • Sunday, 16 October: Restart a Heart Day
  • Sunday, 16 October: World Spine Day
  • Monday, 17 October: World Trauma Day
  • Monday, 17 October: International Day for the Eradication of Poverty
  • Thursday, 20 October: World Osteoporosis Day
  • Friday, 21 October: Apple Day
  • Friday, 21 October: Wear it Pink
  • Monday, 24 October: United Nations Day
  • Tuesday, 25 October: World Pasta Day
  • Thursday, 27 October: World Day for Audiovisual Heritage
  • Friday, 28 October to Thursday, 3 November: World Stroke Awareness Week
  • Monday, 31 October: World Cities Day
  • Monday, 31 October: World Thrift Day, and
  • Monday, 31 October: Halloween.

Popular themes

With so many topics to choose from, it can be quite difficult to know where to start. So, here are some ideas on how you can incorporate a few popular overarching October themes in your content strategies:

Create eerie-sistible Halloween posts
To some, October is all about the fun, spooktacular Halloween-themed content! So content creators creep into the spooky season by setting yourself a ghoul to thrill your followers with a fa-boo!-lous Halloween theme.

Set some focus on the hocus pocus with chilling graphics that incorporate Halloween hues, webs, ghosts and BOO's!

And, of course, no content is complete without some killer copy!

So, get into the Halloween spirit by treating your audiences to captions employing howl-arious holiday humour and petrifyingly funny puns that will send them to their graves! Or bewitch users with some beastly banter in the comment sections to make them feel engaged and involved in all the fang-tastic fun!

Don't forget to decorate all your copy with a frightful amount of Halloween emojis to make your content come to life (or, in this case, death).

Lots of hashtags also spell some good searchability and reach for your content and ensure that your posts leave a haunting impression on many!

Spring into some seasonal content
Yes South Africans, despite the sweltering summer-like heat, it's still spring!

And to make your content as hot as the temperature outside you need to catch some spring fever!

How do you do that?

Well, start by seasoning your content with a spring theme using:
  • floral graphics
  • lush copy, and
  • plant-themed emojis.

Colour your content crazy by using vibrant yellows, greens, pinks … (you name it) in your images and videos to give your pages those radiant spring feels.

Then consider using your social platforms to promote some sales and specials to keep that spring fever contagious!

Your string of spring content will allow you to brighten up the social feeds of your followers with eye-catching content. What's more, is that your followers will pick up on the positive vibes of your spring posts and associate their fresh and lively feel with your page and brand.

Motivate mental health
When it comes to mental health, there is a wealth of content that you can create.

So, because October is Mental Health Awareness Month, you can shift your focus to creating content that:
  • spotlights mental conditions to improve understanding and awareness of them
  • decreases stigmas surrounding mental health
  • promotes the acceptance of people who are experiencing mental health challenges
  • highlights how others can support people experiencing mental health challenges
  • advises people on how to deal with and overcome mental health obstacles
  • encourages people to seek support when experiencing a problem with their mental health, and
  • nurtures patterns of behaviour that help maintain a good mental health state.

This might all seem quite challenging, but there are simple and effective ways that you can implement this type of content in your strategies. For example, you can start dedicating your Monday content to mental health by implementing '#MindfulnessMondays'.

On '#MindfulnessMondays', you can share images and texts that provide individuals with:
tips
  • affirmations
  • motivational quotes
  • positive thoughts, and
  • encouraging stories.

These types of posts will help improve the moods and enhance the mental states of your followers.

What's more is that you can ask individuals to share their experiences and thoughts through polls, reactions and comments. This will not only help foster conversations about mental health, but it will allow individuals who suffer from mental health troubles to no longer feel alienated — but instead feel included, accepted and part of a community of individuals.

Therefore, creating this type of content will make your posts more humanised, authentic and relatable to your followers. Additionally, it allows you to use your content to do something meaningful and positive this month.

What else do you think an October social media strategy needs? Let us know in the comments section below.

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Want to know which hashtags you should use to 'boo!-st' your social media searchability this October? Then be sure not to miss our piece, 10 Trending Halloween hashtags on Instagram.
*Image courtesy of Canva