Carly Hayes Social

03/02/2025

Have you got back into the swing of things now Jan is out the way? 🤔

If you want to add excitement to your content this year, why not try my new stop motion workshop on Tues 11th Feb?

Share this with the business owners you know who need a little Instagram inspo this Feb.

27/01/2025

After being a scientist for over 10 years, I approach things differently to most. 🤔

One thing I'm never short of ideas, so if you're struggling to create Reels that slice through the noise, give me a DM and let's chat about how I can help.

I struggle for ideas...

20/01/2025

Has your grid been scuppered by Instagram's latest update? 😔 Don't worry, here's what happened (check out my Stories for more) and a few ways you can fix it! ☝️

The move from 1:1 to 4:5 (or 1080x1080 to 1080x1350, if you want exact dimensions) has been rumoured for a while, but now that it's happened we can all fix our grids and get on with life again.

If you're worried about getting future posts to look good, use:
-The Instagram Portrait Canva template to crop your posts
-Check out my profile for my Reels Safe Zone Canva template (yellow dotted box shows how the first image of your Reel will be cropped to the grid).

24/06/2024

It was fantastic to work with Hannah and experience first-hand the determination and creativity she puts into her business. 💪

I can't wait to see how she puts all the training into practise!

Look her up if you're in East London and would like support with your mental, physical or financial wellbeing 👉 Wellbeing

Thanks so much, Hannah, for the brilliant review. 👏

02/05/2024

Your burning questions for the week answered ☝️Thanks to everyone who sent one in 👏

Send me a DM if you need more of an explanation on any of these.

Don't forget, I'm around between 2-3 every Wednesday to answer your questions FOR FREE!

22/04/2024

🤔 If something's not working for you on Instagram, or you feel like your account could be more consistent, get in touch.

Last month, I worked with Daisy from . She was happy with her tone of voice and had a great logo already, but she wanted a cohesive look to her grid and wanted to know how to fit Reels into her strategy. Swipe across for a before and after.

She now has a branded set of Canva templates for her static posts and the confidence to adapt them herself. She's also showing her lovely, smiley face of Reels more often 👏👏👏

You don't need a Canva Pro account for this, I selected free elements only for Daisy's templates.

Images created in Canva in portrait format.

26/03/2024

It's always great to work with a client who puts your advice straight into practise. 💪

Thanks so much Daisy for this lovely review!

It was so easy to prepare Canva templates for Daisy's Instagram account as she knew her brand colours and had a fantastic logo already. She started using the templates straight away and has also taken on board my suggestions and shown her lovely face in her Reels more.

If you're looking for help with your child's sleep, take a look at her account -

08/03/2024

When my son added an iPhone to his Christmas list last year, we sat down with him and carefully explained that Santa would not be bringing him an iPhone (Santa needs to bring me one first!) and that, if one did appear in his stocking, it would be a fake phone.

I had a very wholesome childhood and, at 7, I was playing outdoors a lot and building dens with my friends, so I've found it particularly hard watching how focussed he has become on having a phone.

So thankfully we've managed to put off the phone issue for a bit longer. I've always thought of him as a very sensible child, but watching him take out his fake phone in the evenings and send messages/swipe images on it has really shaken this theory (you can see how the phone is already).

Children at his primary school seem to be getting phones in year 5 - when they reach the age that they can walk home on their own. At the moment, knowing he is safe and can contact us if he needs to is front and centre in my mind, but working in social media, I'm well aware of how nasty that world can be, especially for young minds.

So, whether we block social media apps or monitor his use of them, at the moment we are planning on giving him a mobile phone in the next few years for safety.

He is an avid reader and we have a no electronics upstairs rule, so we're hoping it won't affect his desire to read.

Have you bought your child a mobile or are you completely against it, I'd love to hear your thoughts 👇or via DMs.

Photos taken on my DSLR camera and put together in Filmora. Text created in Canva and all scheduled in Adobe

07/03/2024

Thanks to everyone who sent in a question for my first Digital Drop-in yesterday! 😃

When Instagram behaves, I'll be sharing all the questions and answers to a highlight.

Don't forget, I'll be back answering your questions next Wednesday from 2 to 3pm

14/02/2024

Adam Mosseri shared a great Reel last week making it clear that we don't need to be using all Instagram features, only those that work for our brand 🤔

Here's a quick summary of what this means to you as a small biz owner.

Check out my Stories for a link to his Reel, where he goes into more detail and also talks about Broadcast Channels.

What Instagram feature do you find most frustrating?

06/02/2024

A huge thank you to all the small biz owners who used my January deal and booked a 1-to-1 with me. I really enjoyed helping you all and learning more about your work!

I helped Grace with her content planning and provided a few easy stop motion ideas she could use to show off her colourful baby playsuits. Grace and I also worked together last year to create a fun and engaging stop motion video to promote her Christmas special offer.

Thanks for the fantastic feedback, Grace ! 👏

30/06/2023

Are you investing in yourself? 🤔

Small biz owners, I know your pain!

When you're starting out, it can be difficult to justify the cost of training and attending networking events. But it's sooo important if you want to be known as an expert.

I eat, sleep and breathe social media, but even I struggle to keep up with all the updates.

So, today I attended a brilliant (and totally free) online summit by .social.

I picked up some fantastic updates from , and their guests. Swipe across for the things that stuck out to me.

Send me a DM if you want to know how these updates will affect your business 📨

16/03/2023

Do you ever get Imposter Syndrome? Here's one easy thing you can do to help yourself believe you're an expert... And it really works! ✅

Next time someone sends you good feedback on your work, save it to a folder and take a look in that folder next time you question yourself.

📝 And it doesn't have to just be feedback from clients. I've got loads of notes from my kids taped around my desk to make me smile when things get a little overwhelming.

If one thing you're not confident in is social media, then send me a DM and let's have a chat about how I can help.

20/07/2021

10/02/2021

How often should I post❓
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​Ideally, you should be posting to your Facebook Business page every day and mixing up your content with videos, animations and stories to really grab people's attention.
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​The current climate is far from ideal though, is it?
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​Like many others, I'm juggling my work around home-schooling. I've accepted that, until schools reopen, I'm only going to maintain a presence here so that you don't forget who I am 😉
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Under normal circumstances, I tell my clients that consistency is key. Don't go crazy and post twice a day if you know you aren't going to be able to maintain it. Start out with 3-4 feed posts a week and then have a go at introducing stories and videos into your plan.
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​Good luck!
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26/01/2021

Are you a small to medium business? Have you got a personal profile on Facebook but haven't yet set up a business page?
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​Then this video is for you! It's a very quick how to video on setting up a Facebook Business Page.
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​It's good to have a business presence and post regularly on Facebook, even if you get most of your leads through Instagram. Having a business page is also good if you want to connect your Instagram and Facebook accounts together.
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​Follow me to find out the benefits of connecting your accounts and for more on how to use your Facebook Business Page effectively!
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21/01/2021

Doing well on Instagram and want to spread that love to Facebook? 💙💛💙

Be warned that Facebook is a very different beast!

You can't set up a personal profile for your business
​- you need a Business Page

But before you set up your Facebook Business Page, here are a few things you need to do:

1. Make sure that you have set up a personal profile well in advance of setting up your page
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​2. Make sure that you have filled in as much information on your personal profile as possible
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​ (If Facebook thinks this profile is fake, they may deactivate it before you've had a chance to set up your page).

3. Post to your personal profile and find some friends. Again, it's important for your personal profile to be active.

If you aren't going to be on Facebook regularly, then how are you going to engage with your audience?

4. Think about who will connect with your business on Facebook. You need to have 25 likes in order to be able to assign your page a username, which will make it much easier for potential customers to find you.

You're now ready to set up your Facebook Business Page. Follow me and I'll take you through the process...

If you have any other tips about setting up a page, I'd love to hear them!

18/01/2021

Why am I here? 🤔

Hello everyone! I've been working as a social media marketer, managing the content strategy and organic posting for my clients, for several years.

I'm now excited to announce that I'm launching my own social media channels. You can also find me on Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/carlyhayessocial/).

If you are posting to your business page regularly, but you aren't seeing much engagement or an increase in followers, then I can help.

Keep your eyes peeled 👀 for some tips on how to up your social media game.
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