Blacksheep Mind Get the book, $12

A Blacksheep Mind web book · Writing for social media

You know exactly what you mean. The post never quite says it.

One page to fill in before every post, so it says one thing to one person, shows proof and asks for one next step. For shops, salons, studios, trades and makers who post their own work, or hand it to someone who does.

From Brief to Post: How to Turn Content Ideas Into Social Media That Works. One page before every post, so it says what you meant.

The cover of From Brief to Post: How to Turn Content Ideas Into Social Media That Works.
Read it online, or download the PDF to keep or print. Nothing is posted to you.
Chapters
9
Tools
3
Reading
54 min
Price
$12
Get the book, $12

Read it tonight on your phone or laptop. One price, no upsells. No refunds: you get the whole book straight away.

The moment

Twenty-three likes. Nobody booked.

  • 9:40pm, a caption typed and deleted three times.
  • “Come see us” under a nice photo, because it was late.
  • Next morning, 23 likes, two of them from family, and the slots still empty.
  • The lunch post someone made for you, with a salad you don’t serve. You said thanks.

It isn’t that you need to post more, or that you’re not a words person. The post was never planned: it wasn’t for anyone in particular, it said three things at once, and it asked for nothing. One page before you post fixes that, whether you make the post or someone else does.

What’s inside

Nine steps, from the idea in your head to the post

  1. 01

    Pick One Person and One Job

    Decide who the post is for and the one thing you want them to do: book, visit, message, buy or save it.

  2. 02

    Say One Thing

    One sentence you’d say across the counter, about what they get. Everything else is next week’s post.

  3. 03

    Show the Proof

    Your own photo, a true number, a customer’s words with their okay, a before-and-after, or how you do it.

  4. 04

    Ask for One Next Step

    One ask that matches the job, and exactly how to do it. Then the whole brief on one page.

  5. 05

    Write It the Way You’d Say It

    Tell one customer out loud, write down what you said, then put it in order and cut.

  6. 06

    Choose the Picture That Proves It

    Cover the words. If the picture still shows the one thing, it’s the right one.

  7. 07

    Finish the Caption

    The one thing at the top, the details people need to act, and the ask at the end.

  8. 08

    Check It Before It Goes Up

    A short check for the wrong date, the link that goes nowhere and the face you didn’t ask about.

  9. 09

    Hand It Over and Get Back What You Meant

    Send the page, your own photos and a post that sounds like you. Then say keep, change, because.

Plus a short introduction, and a closing chapter that takes one real post from start to finish this week. About 54 minutes to read in all.

A page from the book

One next step, and how to take it

Step 4 · from the book, word for word

Ask for One Next Step

A case

So much talent this weekend

Katya runs a paint-your-own-pottery studio. Her posts were lovely photos of customers’ painted mugs, captioned “So much talent this weekend.” Her weekends were full anyway. Thursday evenings were empty: six tables set out, brushes in jars, nobody at them. Her first reflex was a discount, half price on Thursdays.

Instead, she filled in the brief. One person: two friends looking for something to do on a weeknight besides dinner. One job: book a Thursday table. She counted the tables she really had and ended the post with one ask: “Thursday tables for two are $38, mugs included, and there are six this week. Message us the word Thursday and we’ll hold one until noon on the day.” In the facts box she wrote the price, the 6:30pm start and the day the fired mugs are ready, and checked each one against her booking calendar.

That week four tables were booked by message, every one with the word Thursday in it, so she knew where they came from. The next month she reused the brief with a new photo. It took her five minutes.

What to say
Instead of

“Link in bio.”

Try

“To book a Tuesday slot, tap the link at the top of our profile. It goes straight to the Tuesday times.”

Instead of

“Like, share and tag a friend.”

Try

“Message us the word Thursday and we’ll hold a table for you.”

The Before it goes up checklist in the web book, on a phone, with three items ticked.
The check before posting, ticked off on your phone
The message to send with your brief, in the web book, on a phone.
The message for your helper, ready to copy

The tools

One page, one check, one message

  • WorksheetYour one-page post briefWho it’s for, the one thing, the proof, the ask, the format and the facts to check. About 10 minutes, saved in your browser.
  • ChecklistBefore it goes upA few minutes with the post on your phone, for the wrong day, the missing ask and anything you’d rather not have shown.
  • Fill-in templateA message to send with your briefFor the daughter, nephew, staff member or freelancer who makes your posts, so the draft comes back closer to what you meant.
The one-page post brief worksheet in the web book, part filled in with an example.
The one-page brief, with a made-up example filled in

Who it’s for

For the person who has the idea, and whoever makes the post

For you if

  • You run a salon, studio, shop, trade, cafe, class or small online store, and you post on Instagram, Facebook or TikTok.
  • Your posts get likes, mostly from regulars and family, and few bookings, visits or messages.
  • Someone else makes your posts, and what comes back isn’t quite what you meant.
  • You have an idea for a post and want it to come out the way it sounds in your head.

Not for you if

  • You need ideas for posts, help with the first line, a plan for the month or help filming video. Other books on this shelf cover those.
  • You want a way to get more followers or more people seeing your posts. Nobody can honestly promise that.
  • You have a marketing team or an agency that already writes a brief for every post.
Get the book, $12

9 steps · 3 tools · read tonight

Your questions

Before you buy

I’m not a writer. Will this help?

Yes. Most of the book happens before any writing: who it’s for, the one thing, the proof and the ask. Once that’s on the page, you say it out loud and write down what you said.

I don’t have time to plan every post.

The book takes about 54 minutes to read. After that, the brief takes about 10 minutes once you’ve filled it in twice, and the check before posting a few more. It takes the place of the typing and deleting.

Someone else does our posts. Is it for me?

Yes. The brief is what you send them. There’s a message you can copy to go with it, and a way to give feedback in three parts: keep, change, because. It helps the next draft come back closer to what you meant.

Does it work on Instagram, Facebook and TikTok?

Yes. The brief is the same on every app, and the book points out the few things that differ, like where links work and how much of a caption shows before “more”.

Will it get me more followers, bookings or sales?

Nobody can honestly promise that. It makes each post clear about who it’s for and what it asks, and shows you how to tell, a week later, whether that one post did its job.

Can I use an AI writing tool with it?

Yes. Give it the brief instead of a blank request, then check every fact it writes. It can’t know what’s true about your business. The brief tells it.

Is it a PDF?

You get both. Read it online on your phone or laptop, where the worksheets save as you type, or download the PDF to keep or print. In the PDF, the worksheets have lines to fill in by pen.

From Brief to Post: How to Turn Content Ideas Into Social Media That Works

Read it tonight. Brief one post tomorrow.

$12one price, no upsells
Get the book, $12

Read it online, or download the PDF to keep or print. Nothing is posted to you. No refunds: you get the whole book straight away.