What are the benefits of scheduling social media content?
When you outsource social media content to Get Ahead, your new social media manager will often use a scheduling platform. Scheduling platforms like Hootsuite and Buffer help us keep up a consistent presence on social media channels and definitely make life easier. However, there are some pitfalls to avoid too – our social media managers know them all and they thought they’d be useful to share!
In this blog, we look at the benefits of scheduling social media content, and note the pitfalls to avoid.
Benefits of scheduling social media content
There are lots of reasons why scheduled social media has really caught on.
Scheduled social media is certainly time-efficient. Either you or your social media manager will decide on the posts for the next month, load them into the scheduling tool and watch them appear on a regular basis.
It usually takes less time to create, say, thirty posts at once rather than thirty individually. If one post gives you an idea for another, you can create it then and there, knowing it will be shared online at the allotted time.
Scheduling also makes it easier to create themes and campaigns. If you’ve decided to promote a product of the month, for example, it’s easier to break down the topic into descriptions, advantages, testimonials, photos, videos, blogs etc. This approach will give you five or six posts at once, and scheduling gives you the means to create them.
Scheduling can also give you your head space back! Knowing it’s done and you don’t have to think about it for another month is very liberating. It can help you focus more on your other tasks and give your core business the energy it deserves.
Pitfalls of scheduling social media content
On the other hand, it’s important to remember that scheduling your social media is not the perfect solution. There are problems that you should be aware of so your social media continues to be social.
Forgetting to visit your social media platforms in person can mean comments go ignored. Good or bad, a comment from a customer or client deserves a reply. Social media is a great way to interact with your community – remember to check in once a week to nurture those relationships.
Equally, interactions on your page increase its visibility. For example, your post will appear on the Facebook homepages of people who have liked your page. It will reappear there when someone leaves a comment. And it will appear again when you reply to that comment.
Another problem is that you can forget what you’ve scheduled. We’re sure you’ve chosen on-brand content that shouldn’t upset anyone, but as the incredible events of the last few years have shown, problems can still occur. For example, when the UK went into lockdown, all the boundaries changed. We remember a particular post (not one of ours!) about visiting a local museum rolling out as scheduled content – a major faux pas in March 2020.
Outsource social media content
When you outsource social media content to Get Ahead, scheduling works. Your social media manager will work with you to create on-brand posts. Scheduling these posts will mean you have a consistent presence, and because it’s time-efficient for your social media manager, it’s cost-efficient for you.
Our social media managers all recheck scheduled content if there’s a nationally important event. For example, when the Queen died, our social media managers immediately checked upcoming content to make sure it reflected the nation’s mood.
Get Ahead social media managers will, if you need them to, check in on your social media platforms and make sure that comments, replies and interactions are up to date. They’ll help you grow your online community without eating into your own valuable time.
To find out more, read our case study about how Get Ahead’s social media managers supported a baby music class franchise.
