Social Media Time Management – How to Do It? | socialexcerpts.com

Social media is fun! Isn’t it? But when you have to do it for your business, it doesn’t seem equally entertaining. The moment you think of social media for your brand, it becomes a serious affair all of a sudden.

When you are representing your business or brand to a global audience, it requires you to be more responsible. This is where the entire dilemma arises. We cannot decide much time is enough for social media marketing? Does it require regular activity? Should you be present on all the networks? How to balance it with other tasks? In short, you need a social media time management regime.

So, let’s get started!

You don’t need all of them: Not all social networking channels will be a must for your business. Identify the niche and see where your target audiences are.

For example, if you run a fashion boutique, Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram would be perfect for you. No need to sign up on LinkedIn or Twitter. However, if you can manage some time for Twitter, the network can prove pretty useful for you, in terms of networking.

Decide your goals for each channel: Determine what you want to achieve from different social networking sites that you are starting with. Always go with a long term goal. Remember, social media is not magic! So, think practically.

Let’s assume you are opting for Facebook and Twitter initially for your businesses. Decide the goals to achieve from these two networks. For example, Facebook is excellent for promotion and creating strong brand awareness. Twitter is good for networking and conversation tracking.

Divide your social media goals among your selected networks and work accordingly. You will save a lot of time.

Determine how much time you can devote with ease: Don’t try too hard. It might hurt your overall business projection. Determine how much time is feasible for you to spend on each of the channel. Don’t go beyond it.

It often depends on what networks you select. Facebook marketing does not need much time, but Twitter may require you to stay online for long. If you think that you cannot devote that time, social media automation tools may help you.

Figure out the best time to post: You never know when your potential target group would come online and notice your content. The best way out is, sign up for the tools, which let you know when your audience comes online on different time slots.

This is indeed a time-saving option. You don’t need to sit in front of your laptop or refresh your page repeatedly to monitor if someone is trying to talk with you. Just log in at the right time to post, engage and interact. Or tools like HootSuite, Social Sprout or Buffer may help you post at the right time, even if you are offline.

Utilize the day-offs: Whenever you have time, try to network for your business on social media. Weekends and holiday seasons are the ideal time for networking, when people generally don’t come online for work.

Start blogging, no matter what your niche is. A blog is your business mouth-piece and a touchstone to establish you as an influencer. As you are networking on social media, your blogs will be enriched in their shareable-quotient as well.

Remember, you will never get time, if you cannot make time. Plan it today and start tomorrow.