In life, some people like to wing it. Others like to create a definite plan and stick to it, no matter what. Sometimes we get asked which of those is the best strategy for posting on social media. Our answer is always the same – plan ahead but have flexibility.
By planning, you can shape a narrative and build a campaign. It’s an opportunity to have a consistent message over time and to prepare for sales, seasons, and holidays. It also helps keep you on schedule so that your posting remains regular.
As much as the world of social media can seem chaotic, a good marketing campaign takes organization. Getting the right message out at the appropriate time
Of course, things happen. A good plan should be solid, but not rigid. Circumstances can change in the blink of an eye. That requires adjustments, so you may have to adjust your plans. Of course, that means you’re making changes to your whole business plan, though – it’s not just your social media.
Here are some suggestions for how to prepare your social media posts.
Set Aside Time To Work On Your Social Media
Don’t let your online marketing be done just when you have a few spare minutes. Set aside time for it – the same way you set aside time for handling inventory, doing your accounting, or any other activity. Remember that you’re creating a public image of your company – so set aside an appropriate amount of time to do it right.
Create An Editorial Calendar
It can take a while to find the right days and times to publish. However, it’s still important to have a calendar to guide what you share and when.
The calendar will help guide your progression. It allows you to pace a story of your brand, and storytelling is a key concept in contemporary marketing.
It also helps you remember to incorporate important events in your posts. This can include holidays, seasonal changes, local events, and more. Be sure not to neglect celebrations or commemorations that are important to your community – or to your business.
As far as possible, we like to have a plan that goes for 2-3 months at a time for most clients. With larger businesses, a longer plan is important, even if it’s just a framework.
Research
Planning also involves taking a dive into what’s going on – in the world, in your community, online, and in your business. Take the time to investigate. Learn what’s trending – and what to avoid.
This will help you jump on the coattails of trends, where appropriate. You don’t want to look like you’re taking advantage of something else, but you do want to be part of the conversation. You also need to avoid topics that have become “dangerous” because of current events.
Reflect
Doing things on the spur of the moment often means we haven’t really thought them through. When you sit down to plan things out, though, it gives us a chance to see how everything fits together. We get to see if it makes sense – both in the overall context of what we’re doing and as an individual post.
Planning lets us think over what we want to express before we put it out for public consumption. And as we see regularly with “mistakes” made on social media, that reflection ahead of time is something we all need to do more of.
Prepare For Exigencies
Something always comes up. We’ve all had that experience where we can’t get to what we’d like. But if we plan our social posting ahead of time, we can help avoid disruptions because of illness or other emergencies.
Of course, there are also tools for scheduling the posts. That means you don’t only know what you will say and when, but you can automate its publication.
Adapt
Of course, any plan has to allow for adjustments. You always have to be prepared to make changes as they become necessary.
Yes, you do need to think ahead – for business in general and marketing in particular. But you also need to remember that you don’t have perfect control of everything. There could be supply chain issues, recalls, extended power outages, or even pandemics that force changes to your plans. You need to be ready to let them happen. That could mean completing changing your plans, shuffling some posts, or simply making some additions. Each situation needs individual thought.
Social media posting isn’t something that should be done haphazardly. Careful planning will help you deliver a consistent message and make more sense to your audience. Of course, it’s always important to be able to adapt to the circumstances. But you should always have an overview and calendar that will help make a mark on your clients.