“In the future, everyone will be social media marketers for 15 minutes” Andy Warhol
Ok – he might not exactly have said that – but there is a belief amongst some business owners than anyone can handle the social media for a business regardless of skill, experience or talent
It can often be seen as something throwaway that is given to the youngest person in the office
Or given to someone to post something when they have the spare time
Or given to a virtual PA or Admin Assistant with the misguided belief that it’s an admin function and not a marketing function
They’re all bad calls to make and here are 5 People That Are Unsuitable To Manage Your Social Media
1. The Untrained
If you work for someone else you can’t even pick up a box without attending a full days health and safety course to lift up a box
And yet marketing – one of the most important functions of your business – is handed over to someone with zero training
We live in a world where 93% of purchasing decisions are influenced by social media and therefore social media can be make or break for your business
So therefore, treat social media with the upmost importance and at the very least put your staff on a half days social media course
If you want to be the very best in your industry at social media, implement a social media training program where everyone in the organisation is brought up to date every 6 months
2. The Unpassionate
The unpassionate about social media will suck every ounce of energy out of social media until it becomes less exciting than a GDPR seminar for accountants (joke)
In all seriousness though – get someone who loves social media marketing for business
The person who has a strong vision for the brand on social media and understand that it’s more than just “posting the odd thing here and there”
You really have to love social media and all that comes with it. After all, if it’s your role in the business you’re going to be spending a lot of time fixed to your screen
It’s easy to tell at a 7 second glance the businesses that get excited about social media and the ones that see it as a chore
3. Those who don’t understand marketing
To understand social media – you first have to understand marketing
Social Media is a marketing function, rather than an admin function
This isn’t to say that all marketers understand social media, as is shown by the many web designers / PR / SEO who are experts in their field, but not experts in social media
But if you understand marketing principles such as Customer Avatars, Marketing Messages, SWOT Analysis, Competitive Analysis, Marketing Analytics and measuring ROI of marketing you’ll understand social media lot more than someone who simply spends a lot of time on Facebook
You’ll also understand how social media fits with the other marketing channels the business is using
4. Those who don’t understand the business objectives
What are you using social media for?
How is social media fulfilling the business objectives of the business?
If you can’t answer these questions then how can you truly manage the social media for a business
It might not be the fault of the person managing the social media in this case as the business owner might just state something vague such as “we want to increase sales”, but there should be a strategy for why you’re using social media that fulfils the business objectives
5. The Hot Headed and the Reckless
We all know a person who is a little hot headed
The sort of person who is the 1st to snap at someone on a Friday night
The sort of person who rants on their personal Facebook / Twitter profiles
Keep these people who can’t stay calm away from your social media or you could just have a PR disaster on your hands
We’ve all heard the stories where social media managers have called customers chavs or another C word which is a lot worse
It was an accident waiting to happen and your business could be next
And your business may just not recover from the Social PR disaster
Do any of these types of people manage your social media?
If so – you need to chat to us at Altrincham HQ
NEED HELP WITH YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA?
Chat to us about Social Media Marketing for YOUR organisation , so we can better understand YOU and what will grow your organisation
We can only find out what is unique to your business by chatting with you
Look at our Social Media Training and Social Media Management services
Or
Please call Alex on 07806774279 or email alex@altrinchamhq.co.uk
