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Is social media worth advertising on? Every small business owner I talk to struggles with finding solid answers to this question. With the numbers and attention of people on social media, most of us in business understand that being present on social media is a necessary evil at best, but it can be a time suck at worst if you don’t know what your doing. With Facebook sitting at 2.2 billion monthly active users, it’s hard to ignore the impact that social media can have for your business. After all, when it comes to marketing your product or service, obscurity is your worst enemy. If no one knows you even exist, how can they pay you? That’s why it’s important to be present and active on social media. Here are some helpful tips to manage your social media pages without it having to be a complete time suck:

1. Use Scheduling Tools
Social software like Hootsuite and Buffer can allow you to schedule all of your social media posts for up to 5 free accounts rather simply. This requires a little bit of upfront work, but these platforms will allow you to schedule out posts so you can essentially set it and go do more important things. Don’t stop posting real time though. Social media is about NOW, and people like to see what you’re up to in the moment. You can set it, but make sure you don’t forget it. 

2. Focus On One or Two Social Platforms
Many businesses make the mistake of trying to do too much with social media. There are a dozen or so social platforms you could be engaged on, but you don’t necessarily need to be everywhere. If you’re a B2B company, LinkedIN and Twitter might be a good place for you to hang out and spend most of your time. If you sell baked goods or products to the consumer market, maybe you only focus on Facebook and Instagram. Most small businesses only have time for a couple, so don’t try and do too much. Find your home where you feel comfortable on social and go after the engagement there. 

3. Get Your Employees To Help
If you have staff part of the younger generation, why not solicit their help? They probably know more than you do anyway since they were probably born using social media to connect with friends. Younger people typically have more time and creativity at their disposal to create the type of momentum you could use on social media. Many old school businesses shy away from Facebook use and social media use in the office or work, but why not capitalize on that and assign it as a responsibility for your younger employees. Make sure you monitor it, but you’ll find they have lots of creative ideas that will help you promote. Keep in mind, if you’d rather not pass this on to your employees, you could always outsource this to an agency like Severity Design. We can take these things and others off your plate. 

4. Curate Content From Other Sources
No time to write a blog? No problem. Make your page, profile or social network a place where people can discover news and updates that are industry related from other blogs, magazines and online sources. Let someone else write the blogs, all you have to do is share them. When you do share them, make sure to put your own spin on it and direct them to your website or create a clear call to action. 

5. Schedule Time for Engagement 
We can’t spend all day on social media. We need to attend to the other important aspects of our business too! Schedule time for you to browse your timeline feeds and engage with people. Maybe this might be during the morning commute on the train or during your lunch hour away from your desk. Go on a quick walk around the block and like and comment on a few others posts your enjoy. Maybe you can set aside 30 mins in the evening to engage when your customers are most likely to be looking. If you schedule it, it will get done but you’ll be able to limit your time suck. 

So what do you do to manage your social media and save time? Hopefully our suggestions are helpful, but we’d love to hear from you your best tips and practices to make sure you stay relevant yet don’t waste too much time. Share your comments below or reach out by email to give us your tips. Social media does work, when you have a game plan and objective. You can get your message out to lots of people if you just know how to do it in the right way.