Save Time (and Your Sanity) by Scheduling Social Media

According to a March 2016 poll by Manta, the majority of small business owners say social media is the most time-consuming aspect of online marketing. Can you relate?

Before you decide social media is more trouble than it’s worth, consider this: a few posts a week will do far more for your business than NO posts.

This doesn’t mean you have to drop the 12 things you’re already juggling to go and post on social media several times a day. If you get in the habit of SCHEDULING your social media posts, setting aside a couple of hours once a week, you can save your time (and your sanity) for other aspects of running your business!

When it comes to scheduling on Facebook Pages, I recommend using Facebook’s built-in tool and here’s why: Facebook likes Facebook. This is evidenced by the fact that native Facebook video outperforms links to YouTube or Vimeo video pretty much every single time. I have personally observed (and some of my clients have observed as well) that, in general, greater reach (and thereby, higher engagement) can be achieved using Facebook’s own scheduling tool versus third-party tools. There’s a variety of tools to choose from to handle posting to other platforms, including Hootsuite, Buffer, Edgar, CinchShare and more.  Pricepoint and personal preference will dictate which tool is best for you. Personally, Buffer is my favorite. I love the content inbox option and the streamlined function of it. You can use Buffer for Facebook profiles & pages (although as I mentioned, I recommend using Facebook’s tool for Pages), and Facebook Groups that you admin, Twitter, LinkedIn profiles & pages, Google+ Pages, Pinterest AND Instagram. I also love CinchShare specifically for Facebook events, although it also works for FB groups that you admin and for Pinterest.

As I said before, you can set aside a couple of hours a week and schedule out to your social media channels for the week ahead. Personally, I do it on Saturdays. I call it Social Media Saturday on my weekly agenda! Now, don’t think this means I subscribe to a “set it and forget it” method of social networking! You still need to check in a couple of times a day to see what’s going on…engage with your audience, see if anyone’s asking questions and so forth. But the hard part – posting quality content – is already done. Answering questions, engaging with your audience…when you love what you do, that’s the easy part!

So here’s what I’d love to have happen for these broadcasts moving forward: I want you to boss me around a little! Tell me what you’d like me to broadcast about!! Comment below with your ideas or drop me a line at wishlist@yourwebchick.biz.

This content originally appeared as a Facebook Live broadcast and is now available via YouTube video for your replay enjoyment.

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Go ahead, boss me around a little! 

What do YOU want to see me talk about on Coffee Break with Your Web Chick LIVE?

I’d love to get your ideas and make these broadcasts as valuable as possible for my audience!

 


teach-to-fish-give-a-fish_blogAward-winning web professional Bonny Clayton, aka Your Web Chick, offers web design, support and maintenance for small business, with a specialty in WordPress.

A Tech Geek with a Creative Streak℠, she helps small business owners and entrepreneurs everywhere establish and maintain their online presence. She is committed to serving them according to their needs, whether that means “giving them a fish” or “teaching them to fish”.

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