Time to Review Your Social Media

The last month or so has been rocky for social media sites. Facebook laid off a lot of people, and then Twitter was sold and subsequently decimated. What does this mean for small business’s approach to social marketing? First, it’s a reminder that we should review our social media pages and marketing. Second, it’s also a reminder not to pull all our eggs in one basket. Social media sites aren’t permanent, and how they work changes over time.

As far as Facebook, I don’t think there will be major changes. The layoffs were mostly due to overspending on Meta and virtual reality. That’s temporary.

Twitter on the other hand will be a very different place if it survives the turmoil.

Let’s assume it does survive first, what will Twitter look like?

• Hate speech has already been on the rise
• Copyrighted material is taking much longer to remove
• If Twitter Blue returns, and people buy it, that’ means less reach for your ads
• Likewise, chances are organic reach will be much less unless you sign up for Twitter Blue
• Possibly a very different demographic of users over time
• With ads now being placed among replies to tweets, your ad could be next in a comment of a thread that does not reflect your company’s views.

Does all of this mean you should drop Twitter like a hot rock? Not necessarily, at least not yet. (things are changing day by day though). Some major brands, and major marketing groups have put their advertising on pause on Twitter. Pause is generally a better plan than cancelling entirely unless there is something that is completely off-putting (such as Eli Lilly).

Instead, this is a reminder to do what we all should do at least once a year. Review our marketing efforts. What is working? What isn’t working.  If you’re a retail business, end of year can be hectic, but it doesn’t have to at the end of the calendar year, just do it the same time each year so you can compare the same period.

Which metrics should you look at?

This depends on your goals and your company of course. And you may have different goals for different social networks. But some of the more common metrics include:

• Clicks to website
• Phone calls
• Purchases
• Videos watched
• Engagement (Likes, Shares, Retweets, Favorites, Comments etc.)

If you have Analytics set up on your website, reviewing the referral vs conversion rates for each platform is very useful. (You DO have analytics set up right…?)

Social media is useful for raising and maintaining brand awareness. That can be harder to track, but there are low tech ways such as offer codes, or just asking customers how they found you.

Another aspect many don’t consider is how much time are you spending managing your social media accounts compared to the revenue they bring in? Part of why Social Media “works” is because it sucks you in. Notifications are designed to create a reward for activity and impossible to ignore. If you use many social sites, a manager such as Buffer or similar can help keep you on track while scheduling posts in advance.

What else should you look at?

About sections!

Most of our businesses evolve over time. Reviewing the information on our Social (including sites like Yelp) annually ensures customers can find the right information. No one wants to explain that a product was discontinued two years ago.

• Make sure information is up to date
  • Contact info, product offerings, etc.
  • Areas served
  • Hours open
  • Scheduling links
  • Images
  • Employees

It’s always a good time to review your security.

• Passwords – Are you using a strong password? Are you using the same password for multiple accounts? Weak passwords and using them on multiple sites can leave you and your business vulnerable. I recently switched to 1Password and really love it. It syncs between desktop and mobile, allows you to categorize websites, and has several plans to fit any business or personal use.

SUMMARY:

• Review your Social media accounts annually – how effective are they for the time and money spent?
• Identify what goals are important to your business & see which network(s) are the most effective
• Use both social’s native analytics and Google analytics on your website to compare numbers & conversions
• Review the amount of time you spend managing social vs payoff
• Review & Update your About sections
• Review Security