It’s already 10 in the morning and you have oodles of projects that you should be working on right now. But there you are, trying desperately to find something, anything to post on your business social media accounts.
Social media management doesn’t have to be this hard. As someone who used to manage the social for several national businesses, let me tell you that with just a few adjustments to your approach, it can be a whole lot easier. Here are the quick and dirty tips I use for keeping the social media blues at bay.
1) Limit your platforms
You don’t need to be on Pinterest, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, and Periscope. No matter what all the social media marketing gurus are telling you, it’s okay! Social media management is 10x easier when you’re truly focused on your audience. Where are they spending their time? Which platforms are you using that already get the most comments and likes? Hone in on the one or two platforms where you’re seeing the highest return. You can always add more as you grow.
2) Bookmark your business page
Okay, be honest: How often do you go to update your Facebook business page, only to get sidetracked by your feed? This happens on Twitter and LinkedIn too, and it’s a huge time suck. Instead of even opening the door to that distraction, bookmark your business page. That way you can bypass the adorable puppy photos and endless Buzzfeed articles and get straight to work.
3) Download the Facebook Pages app
I know, like you need another app on your phone. But hear me out. I recently downloaded it to keep tabs on my Facebook page, and I’m loving how easy it is. Even if I’m out and about, I can answer customer questions on the fly and catch spammy visitors before they do any damage. Plus, I’m never tempted to wander onto my Facebook feed because the app is only for managing your page. Totally handy.
4) Skip Photoshop and make your images in Canva or PicMonkey
Unless you’re actually a graphic designer, it’s way easier to create beautiful images quickly when you don’t have fifty million doo-dads getting in the way. That gorgeous title photo at the top of this post? Canva. In about 5 minutes. I’m telling you, this is going to be a huge time saver. And if you haven’t been using many images in your posts at all, you’ll likely see a nice little boost in engagement as well.
5) Set up a Feed.ly account for fresh articles
This is my favorite tip because it literally means INSTANT SHAREABLE CONTENT. Creating a Feed.ly account is free and takes two seconds—just log in with Facebook. Then, follow blogs and websites that publish information your audience would be interested in. This will give you a feed of fresh articles that you can share with your audience on social. Write up a bit of info on why you think the article is worth their time (don’t be afraid to get specific!), and BAM. You have a post. Just make sure that when you’re grabbing the URL, you click to the original blog post.
6) Take 30 minutes each Friday to map out the next week’s topics
Any sales or events coming up? A product you’re about to launch, or one that hasn’t been promoted in a while? A blog article that’s still relevant but currently ignored? Get it on a calendar. I like to use Google Sheets. Try formatting it like this:
Easy-peasy.
7) Schedule in batches
You can schedule all of your week’s social posts on one day, as long as you remember to keep an eye out for questions and comments throughout the week. After all, it’s social media. Facebook lets you schedule your post as you write it (just click the mini clock icon underneath the text box), and Hootsuite will help you schedule almost everything else.