This guest post is from Brittney Lynn who is a social media strategist who helps entrepreneurs and small business owners grow their audience, build engagement and get raving fans on social media. You can check out her blog, sign up for her free email course, or follow her on Twitter, Instagram or Pinterest.
There is a way to do social media in one hour a day as a small business, but there is some work you need to do upfront. I won’t lie, this system takes some time to set up, but it is a must do if you want to streamline your social media. Before we get into how to set up your system, I first want to cover why you should do this.
I believe, to truly succeed on social media as a small business, you need to have a plan. If you don’t have a plan, it’s guaranteed that you will end up feeling overwhelmed and social media will not be fun for you. Having a plan doesn’t mean you can’t be spontaneous and post a random picture every now and then, but it does mean you are paving a path to get you where you want to go in your business. If you’re on social media just because you were told to be, take a minute to evaluate why your business is on social media. What is your ultimate goal for each platform (and remember, be reasonable) and how are you going to get there.
Once these questions are answered, all of the scheduling and content creation will be much easier because you know your why. Whether your goal goal is to interact more with customers, or to drive more people to your website, everything you do on social media should be in line with your ultimate why.
To start, let’s go over the systems you need in place to streamline your social media tasks.
Step 1: Set up your systems
- Photo templates for each social platform: Create template image to use for each social platform (you can find an always up-to-date size list here). Use tools such as Canva, RelayThat or Photoshop to create a template image.
- Response templates: You probably receive the same 5-10 types of comments/questions on your platforms. Create a canned response that you can copy and paste from whenever these questions are asked on your social media accounts.
- Pre-written tweets for your blog posts: I have a spreadsheet that contains five tweets per blog post that I can copy and paste from when I schedule my social media for the week. This has saved me HOURS of time. Here is what mine looks like:
- Set up a news/blog aggregator: Use a blog reader such as Feedly or BlogLovin’ to aggregate great content that is relevant to your audience. Read these articles only in the time you have set aside to schedule content.
- Tools: You will need to use some tools to be able to streamline your scheduling while getting the most out of each platform. Some tools have free versions, others are paid. You need to decide what you are willing to spend money on as well as what program you like to use the best.
Now that we’ve covered everything you need to have in place before you can actually schedule social media in one hour a day, we’re ready to move forward.
Step 2: Social media in 1 hour a day
Once your systems are set in place, you will be able to maintain your social media accounts in 1 hour a day! Below I break down what to do each day and how long it should take you.
Grab the social media in 1 hour a day checklist!
Sunday
- Content creation for 1 week (your content + 3rd party articles) / scheduling (Facebook & Twitter posts): 50 min (using the photo templates, pre-written tweets, and blog reader)
- Respond to any comments: 10 min (using the canned responses)
Monday
- Interaction (Facebook groups, reach out on Twitter, comment on other people’s Instagram): 50 min (This is when you give value to people for nothing in return. Be helpful and kind!).
- Respond to any comments: 10 min (using the canned responses)
Tuesday
- Schedule 1 week’s worth of Instagram posts: 50 min (using photo templates and Later or Hootsuite to schedule)
- Respond to any comments: 10 min (using the canned responses)
Wednesday
- Participate in a Twitter chat: 50 min (search for niche specific Twitter chats here)
- Respond to any comments: 10 min (using the canned responses)
Thursday
- Periscope: 50 min (spend 20 min making an outline of what you want to talk about, 30 min scoping)
- Respond to any comments: 10 min (using the canned responses)
Friday
- Interaction (Facebook groups, reach out on Twitter, comment on other people’s Instagram): 50 min
- Respond to any comments: 10 min (using the canned responses)
Saturday
- Measurement: 20 min (see what articles you shared are getting the most clicks, retweets, etc and write the topic of the article down – write more of the same type of content in the future)
- Fill up your BoardBooster with pins: 30 min
- Respond to any comments: 10 min (using the canned responses)
Grab the social media in 1 hour a day checklist!
Bio: This guest post is from Brittney Lynn who is a social media strategist who helps small businesses and entrepreneurs grow their audience, build engagement and get raving fans on social media. You can check out her blog, sign up for her free email course, or follow her on Twitter, Instagram or Pinterest.
DON’T FORGET IT : PIN IT!
(feminine stock photography provided by Haute Chocolate)
This checklist came just in time! Scheduling social media is a constant battle for me. Well, unless we’re talking Pinterest. It’s my favorite platform, so I have no problem scheduling for Pinterest. Anyhow, thank you for sharing this checklist. I know it’s going to come in handy!
Tiffany recently posted…5 Facebook Groups For Promoting Your Blog (+ Sharing Schedules)
Tiffany!!
Girl, I feel you…Pinterest is my jam! I’m glad that you downloaded the checklist, it is super handy. Have a great weekend lady!
xo,
Amy
Yay! Glad it came just in time for you, Tiffany. Hopefully this checklist will help you manage your social media more effectively!
Brittney recently posted…Save Time and Be More Consistent on Social Media
Ah,, thats nice post and learned a lot about new tools which I can use for my social media *hassle*. Thanks Brittney.
Regards,
rohan malhotra recently posted…Abstract Dark Background Wallpaper
Social Media for sure is increasing the world exposure day by day and we can put it to a lot of good instead of negative experiences faced by people.
Thanks for this great post, Amy.
Keep up the good work.
Thank you!!! For posting about having your ducks in a row before tackling a scheduled social media strategy! ????. How many photo templates and what type would you suggest for each platform (namely insta & FB)
This step-by-step calendar for social media activity is just brilliant! Love all of your tips.
Thanks for stopping by!
This schedule is awesome! Sometimes I always feel like I’m just drowning in social media and how much time I feel like it takes out of my day to get it done. I’ll be sure to implement these tips right away, thanks for sharing!
This schedule is fantastic! Sometimes I feel like I’m just drowning in social media from all the time that I think that it takes to get it done so I’ll be sure to implement these tips right away. Thanks for sharing!