Starting and maintaining a positive presence on various social media channels like Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook, Google+, LinkedIn and your blog can be very time-consuming. If you are small business owner you most likely have your hands full in all the day-to-day tasks regarding the running of your business. Where are you going to find time for your social media marketing campaign?
Even though social media is seen as “free”, building a network of targeted followers takes time and effort, and this usually costs money. If you are already working non stop around the clock to get things done for your business, how are you going to find the time for social media every day? Well, you are not the only one in this boat. Find a few tips below to help you organise your time more effectively for your social media campaign.
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Start the day with a bit of social media
When I wake up the morning, I sit down with my iPad and check my emails, search for any mentions and keywords that I’m targeting and read the latest news related to what I do. News articles are potential content for status updates and tweets. Most online news channels make sharing their content on the social web very easy. To start the day with a cup of social media is ideal because you haven’t gotten tangled in the day’s items that needs to be completed.
Social media tea break
At some point during the morning you will most likely need to take a break. Pausing for a short while in between blocks of work is another great opportunity for getting on to the social web. Take a look at the latest news headlines or other relevant content you are interested in, current trends on Twitter and even Google trends to see what other people are looking for online. Did you find anything interesting that you want to share? If so, type a quick status update that you can share on Twitter or your other social media channels that you are using.
Social media is mobile and this makes the task even easier to check what is going on between breaks. To make it even easier to find relevant and interesting content in my world, I have an account with Feedly , which I check regularly for any new content that will be great to share with my target audience.
Feedly is a news aggregator that compiles news feeds from a variety of online sources. You can basically search for various content or add your own sources. Each time a new content article is published it displays the content on Feedly. This is a huge timesaver because you don’t have to visit each of your favourite news sources individually for new content.
Interesting findings during the day
When you step out of the office to grab a bite to eat, when you see something interesting, unusual, or just funny, take a picture and share it with your network. Smartphones enabled everyone with one to snap a quick picture and share it with their network. Taking a picture and then uploading the photo on Instagram which can share to Facebook and Twitter is extremely easy and convenient.
Create social media reminders
If social media is not in your habit yet, you may need to set yourself a couple of reminders to post updates on the social web. Have a look through your calendar and create reminders for a time when you will be able to post a new update via social media. Be sure to sync the calendar and reminders with all the devices that you are using (smartphone, tablet, computer).
Weekend blogging
Writing new blog posts takes more time than simply posting a status update. Rather than getting discouraged with finding the right amount of time to research and write a new blog post during the week, write a blog post over the weekend. With most blogging platforms, you can schedule your blog post articles to be posted at a later date to ensure you reach the audience you are targeting.
The tips above are just a basic way that you can integrate social media into your busy day schedule. Be sure to avoid jumping back and forth all day between emails, meetings, work projects, and social media updates. This will leave you feeling scattered and you haven’t accomplished anything. A better way is to take a social media update moment every now and again between all the major activities during the day.
