Some days, managing your social media accounts can feel fun. You have great content, you have lots of energy to write, and you’re seeing lots of engagement. Hooray!
But what about those days when you feel like you have no time, no content, and no creative energy to post? I get it. I’ve been there.
You’ve acknowledged that social media is important for you and/or your business and you’ve made the decision to set it up and tackle it yourself, but it can still feel like a chore. Well I’m here to help!
Here are my three tips to help take the stress out of managing your social media:
- Keep a folder for content. Some of our best content is produced when we have dedicated time to take great photos, write, and schedule posts at optimal times. Some content is great when shared in the moment, for example Instagram stories, but most often it’s best when planned out. Snap a good photo? Receive a great testimonial? Have a new product you want to share? Fantastic! Save this in a content folder, and when it comes time to build and schedule your posts, you’ll save so much time.
- Dedicate time in your calendar once a week to build and schedule content. This may sound like an obvious one, but it can be the hardest thing for people to actually do, as social media is often one of those things that falls by the wayside. By building time into your calendar to get this done, you’re not only acknowledging its importance, you’re helping reduce distractions. This can even be just one hour per week, especially if you have all of that saved content ready to go.
- Dedicate time in your calendar twice a day to check your social media accounts. Use this time for checking messages, responding to messages, and engaging with others. It’s super important you respond to current or prospective customers/clients as soon as you can (within the same day). Being active on your social accounts at least twice daily will also help your overall engagement rates. The higher your engagement rates (likes, comments, shares), the more likely your posts will be seen by more people. Engage with others, and they’ll engage with you!
Aside from the above three tips, using social media management platforms such as Hootsuite can be so helpful when building content, scheduling posts, and managing engagement. I’m a huge proponent of scheduling content directly through each channel, but in a pinch, something like Hootsuite can help.
What social media management tools have you used and find work for you? Share your thoughts with me on social media at @coralie_stern or @livelyco_inc on Instagram or Twitter, or LivelyCo’s Facebook page.
Happy posting!