How To Create An Adoption Profile Using Social Media To Adopt A Baby
How To Create An Adoption Profile
Using Social Media to Adopt A Baby
Are you trying to self-match your adoption using social media? Or are you considering self-matching adoptions but not sure where to get started? Everyone in this journey struggles with what to post, when to post, what words to use, and what not to use, but self-matching is possible on social media. It is all a matter of what tools you use, which ones to avoid, and what you share online. It’s about being intentional with your words and sharing your vision of your life with this child in a way that the expectant mother can see and feel in her soul what life is like with your family. When her vision matches with yours, that’s when you truly have a match.
The Social Media Don'ts
Let’s review the social media platforms that I don’t recommend using for your self-matching adoption. The first is Tik Tok. Though it is an entertaining platform and is suitable for starting to form a relationship and getting to know someone on a deeper level, it is not where you see expectant parents looking for an adoptive family. It is also not a two-way conversation platform that you would need to begin that relationship you are searching for.
If you decide to use Tik Tok, you will need to move that conversation over to a different platform, whether it be another social media platform, email, or voice calls. You would also need an intentional strategy on how you’re creating and sharing content so that it leads to those next connection points. And because that is not something that is just an innate behavior within Tik Tok, I again don’t recommend it. Tik Tok simply allows you to be one step further removed from having someone contact you because it is so tricky on that platform. And the goal of using social media for self-matching adoptions is to get a conversation started; you can’t do that in Tik Tok.
Avoid This Social Platform When Trying To Self-Match Your Adoption
The second social media platform that I do not recommend you use is Clubhouse. Clubhouse can be a two-way dialogue if you bring someone to the stage and create a room for the conversation. But that idea of getting someone to join a room with you to learn more about your family at a prescribed time is not an authentic way for expectant mothers to talk with you. Instead, it puts pressure on the expectant mothers that they don’t need. The third and final platform that I don’t recommend is Pinterest. Pinterest is intended for those looking for ideas, not people. Pinterest isn’t appropriate for what you are looking to accomplish, which is to start a conversation with an expectant mother.
The Best Platform for Self-Matching Adoptions
I highly recommend leveraging Facebook, especially a Facebook business page, for your self-matching or independently matching adoption. A Facebook business page allows you to look at analytics more than a regular Facebook page. Others may argue that a Facebook business page is not a genuine and authentic view of your family, but you get connections. And once the adoption is finalized, and the adoptive parents wish to stay connected, you can invite them to be a friend on your main page, or you can create a group that is you and your partner sharing updates to the adoptive parents.
It is essential to pay attention to how you set up your Facebook business page. You need to be intentional about representing yourself and clear on how people can get in touch with you. Another essential tip is utilizing Search Engine Optimization in your favor. Using the word, adoption or adopt in your username will make you searchable when someone is looking for that term. It would be best if you also considered the name of the business that you use. Finally, be intentional with the information you share on your page and consider listing yourself as an adoption service or adoption blog.
A Few Things to Consider When Using Social Media To Self-Match Your Adoption
Another thing to consider is using adoption groups on Facebook. You want to post in those groups from your adoption business page. Some groups in this realm allow self-matching or promote self-matching, meaning that they are posting opportunities from expectant parents looking to connect with hopeful adoptive parents. And some of them don't allow business pages in there. If that is the case, attempt to join using your personal account. Next, explain to those groups that you are a hopeful adoptive family and have a business page because you want to potentially add advertising to the mix later through social media and look at the analytics differently. You may not win that battle, but it can’t hurt to reach out and try.
What Does Your Mini Adoption Profile Look Like?
Let’s discuss mini-profiles in Facebook groups. A mini-profile is a post version of your profile in which each word, photo, or video you is chosen for a specific reason. That reason is to tell the overall story of who you are. And most importantly, you need to be posting with intentionality behind the opportunities at hand. Don’t make a post an opportunity with a blanket statement copied and pasted to every group. As an expectant parent, if I see you in multiple groups, or even in the same group, use the same content over and over again, it appears that you are not demonstrating the respect and love that you have for this opportunity. Your content needs to be specific. It needs to reflect what the adoptive parents are looking for, which shows you are uniquely capable of providing your lifestyle and vision for the child’s life.
Broaden Your Reach To Get More Eyes On Your Adoption Profile
Last but not least, let’s discuss Instagram. Instagram is an opportunity for you to broaden your reach. When I say broaden your reach differently, I mean getting your profile in front of more people in a different way. Because you can leverage hashtags and having the right hashtag strategy on Instagram makes or breaks your overall reach. A hashtag is a tag that you see people use on a post, and you can search by hashtags within Instagram. If people search for hashtags related to adoption or considering adoption, then your content is more likely to be shown in their feed. So, on that main page, it's going to take you to content that Instagram thinks you are more likely to be interested in. If you are using a hashtag related to adoption, and an expectant mother has searched for things related to adoption on Instagram, then your content is more likely to be shared with her. Getting the broadest number of eyeballs on your content is a key strategy within your overall self-matching journey.
So What Should You Be Posting To Connect With An Expectant Mother?
Let’s look at what you should be posting and what you should avoid putting out there on the world wide web? Let’s start with what you shouldn’t post. The most important advice I can give you is not to give the adoptive mother your baggage to carry. Do not start your adoption profile with your failed infertility journey or your loss. Sure, that is part of your story but do not burden the adoptive mother with this information right off the bat by making it the focal point of your profile. You are choosing adoption to form your family now, so make your story about that. Your profile is about your vision for that child’s life, not what you have been through that led you to adoption.
What should you be posting? The most important thing you can post online is your authentic story. We each have a different story that is authentic to us that we should be telling. And making that shine through is the first thing you should be focused on when posting on social media. Another thing you should consider when posting is that it does not need to be perfectly polished. It needs to be real life. Lastly, your story needs to be intentional. Everything that you’re sharing in these groups on your social media pages, on your website, and your book, everywhere is your adoption profile. You need to be intentional about the story you’re telling, and it needs to come together like chapters in a book. When you think about your profile, you need to be thinking about how all of this information builds on one another?
Adoption & Social Media Support
I’ve shared a lot with you today, and I hope you find this information helpful. We both know that there's no magic wand that I can wave to make your social media accounts for you. But I surely hope that you found something in today's post that will help you just a little bit to get your story out there.
Looking for some extra support with your social media approach? Sign up for my upcoming social media profile training to get the help you deserve!
If you need extra support, make sure to jump into the Facebook group. We are always finding ways to lift each other and support each other, and I want to share them with you. So just keep going, friend. I know it's hard, but I've got your back.
Hi, I Am Amanda
I help women build their families through adoption by giving them the step by step guide to adopt a child and support them on their journey