How To Conduct A Social Media Audit
As an entrepreneur, sometimes we have a lot of fires to put out.
And other times, we’re on top of everything.
Inbox is empty. Calls are all returned. Deadlines are met.
Things are quiet.
Too quiet.
It’s during these quiet times, when everything seems fine, that you especially want to take a step back and evaluate where things could be running better.
Your company’s social media performance is no exception.
While it’s tempting, it’s never a good idea to let your social media strategy coast for too long.
Especially since the world of Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, and Instagram changes so dramatically every day.
Today, you’re coasting.
Soon, you’re stagnating.
And then, before you know it, you’re sinking.
That’s why it’s important to conduct a social media audit – as often as possible, but at least once or twice a year – to make sure you stay on top of your social media game.
Don’t worry – a social media audit isn’t as horrific as a tax audit.
(Not even close.)
It just sounds scary.
Basically, a social media audit is where you periodically pause and take a hard, objective look at your social media profiles and how they are performing, and decide where you want to make changes to improve their performance.
They don’t necessarily have to be big changes – sometimes, even the smallest adjustments to your social media strategy and execution will rear big results.
So, even if things are going alright for your brand on social media, it is worthwhile to take a step back and evaluate where you could be doing better.
You might surprise yourself. A few tweaks here and there could win you better engagement, which would help you get more visibility and a larger audience, which could then lead to more business down the line.
A social media audit can help you reach your goals, and reach them faster.
So – brace yourselves – because it’s time to get real.
Here are a few ways to audit your social media strategy…
1. Are your social media profiles still relevant?
Your first step is to go through all your social media profile pages with a fine toothed comb.
Are the written descriptions still relevant and on-brand?
If it has been a while since you last wrote or edited your social media profiles, biographies, and company descriptions, you may be horrified to find out that they no longer accurately represent you or your business the way you want them to.
Our business brands are constantly evolving and shifting.
Furthermore, our branding on social media tends to adjust as we get more feedback from our engaged audience.
So, it should come as no surprise that your profile text might need an update.
Perhaps your headshot doesn’t reflect your personal brand anymore.
(Hey, if businesses can change, people can change too, right?)
Also, make sure your banner art or any graphic design elements are also still on brand and scaled properly, so that they look presentable on social media.
Graphic design specs often change throughout the years, so you want to make sure none of your images are weirdly cropped or distorted.
It may seem like a small thing, but having a poor quality image implies carelessness and reflects poorly on your branding.
You also want to make sure that your images are responsive and look appropriate on phones and other devices.
Finally, make sure your profiles are completely filled out.
New sections and features often become available as time passes, so make sure you take advantage of them.
For instance, if it’s been a while since you updated your profiles, you may be surprised to discover that many of them allow you to upload videos now. Video is an excellent way to engage with your audience, so make sure you take advantage of these features if you aren’t already.
2. Which of your posts perform the best? How about the worst?
The next thing you want to do is to closely examine your posts.
Which of your posts perform well, and which ones don’t?
Do you see any patterns?
Are there certain content themes that seem to resonate best with your audience? Do you think you should cover those topics in more depth in the future?
In addition to content, evaluate what types of content perform well on each of your social media platforms.
Is it written content? Long? Short?
Or, maybe your audience prefers pictures?
What type of content gets the most likes? The most shares? The most comments?
The algorithms that effect visibility and ranking on Facebook, Instagram, and similar platforms are constantly changing up the game.
Therefore, just because your picture posts were performing better than your link posts on Facebook at one time, doesn’t necessarily mean that’s still true. Investigate to find out the hard truth.
Many social media algorithms favor video content over written content. Is this reflective on your platforms? Do you need to be making more videos?
Don’t be afraid to ask yourself the hard question.
3. Re-evaluate your posting times and post frequency.
Sometimes the issue isn’t what you’re posting as much as it is when you’re posting.
Or, how often.
If you search on Google for the best times to post on various social media platforms, you will find a lot of articles on this subject, many of them giving conflicting advice.
It can be very confusing.
Luckily for you, none of these statistics really matter, anyway.
All that matters is when YOUR audience is online and engaging on social media – not what the broad research and data says.
And, they give you this vital information for FREE.
These are the best times for you to be posting content on social media.
This data can change over time, as your audience and their behaviors change.
Therefore, you need to keep tabs on the best times for you to be posting.
4. Do your social media platforms work together?
Every social media platform is different.
Facebook is different from Twitter. Instagram is different from YouTube. LinkedIn is its own beast.
Nevertheless, every platform needs to feel like it’s coming from YOU.
Your branding must be prevalent.
Your call-to-action needs to be clear and consistent.
It’s important that all your social media platforms work together, strategically, to achieve a common goal.
5. If everything is running smoothly, it’s time to level up!
If you run the audit on your social media, and you find that everything is performing well, then CONGRATULATIONS.
Now, it’s time to level up.
Consider introducing a new social media platform to your online marketing plan.
At the very least, strive to have a strong presence on each of the Big 5 social media platforms, which are: Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, and YouTube.
Experiment with more content and different types of content.
Whatever you do, don’t allow your social media strategy to stagnate.
Never take your social media management for granted. Carefully conduct a social media audit at least a couple of times a year and evaluate where you could be making adjustments to get better return on your investment. Make sure your social media profile pages are current, relevant, and complete. Investigate what types of content and posts perform well, and don’t perform well. Evaluate your post frequency and post times. Make sure each of your social media platforms works well on its own, but also as part of your overall strategy. If everything seems to running well, don’t use this as an excuse to get complacent – now, it’s time to level up!
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