What’s the easiest way for a small business to manage social media?

This question recently came across my desk.

Brent asked, “What about somebody that’s not very good on social media’s? I have a hard time just managing my Facebook account! LOL is there an easier more productive way? How affordable is it to have somebody do it for me?” when looking for social media advice from marketing experts.”

My response was this.

Before jumping on any social media platform, it’s important to consider these things:

  1. What is a business goal social media can help you to reach?
  2. Who is your target market – be very specific here, including age, geographic area, interests, hobbies, annual income, etc.
  3. Identify the best social media platform for your customers, not you. You can find a ton of research online that can help you to answer this one.
  4. Define your content strategy.
    1. How often do you want/need to post?
    2. What time of day and day(s) of the week should you be posting (back to the research)?
    3. What should you post?
    4. Am I willing to use images from my business to help promote it?
    5. What hashtags should I include to help draw me toward my audience?
    6. Should I need to include advertising in my social media strategy?
    7. What media am I going to use to engage followers, i.e., video, text, photos, podcasts, tip sheets, etc.
    8. How will I measure it’s success?
  5. Determine if you should hire a consultant to help you, or can you do it yourself?

The one thing you must keep in mind about social media is it’s not a sprint. It’s a marathon. Getting a ton of leads, generating sales, and increasing followers doesn’t happen overnight. If a social media person tells you that, run for the hills.

It’s a personal strategy that has to resonate with your audience. Without that, it won’t be successful.

Here are some additional resources to help you formulate a plan.

If you need help, give me a call. We help small business owners and CPAs to form, implement, and measure their social media efforts.

Scroll to Top