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Why Another Social Media Consultant?

Because small business owners are being taken advantage of. Social media marketers are the modern financial planners. There are good and bad, and the bad are really, really bad for you and your assets. And, you may never know until it is too late.


What's the difference between an amateur and a pro?

  • Analysis
  • Marketing mind
  • Calendaring
  • Open hands

Analysis

Who are you online? Do you know? More importantly, does your social media manager know? Your social media manager should report to you at least once a month with your current position in relation to your competitors and your month-over-month progress. 
  • What were the most successful posts last month? Why were they most successful? How can they be repeated?
  • Where is your audience going on your website? How can you make that page better? Where else do you need them to go? 
  • How is social contributing to your bottom line? How many people are going from social to your website? Are you being found on Google more?

Marketing Mind

If you're seeing posts that don't fit with your brand, that don't promote your brand, that don't speak to your market and that don't (occasionally) talk about who you are and what you're doing, you're probably working with an amateur. 

Posts on topic for the audience are great and can serve to get reposts. But, are those post interspersed with brand-specific commentary? Do they carry your logo, color theme, brand style, or are they just free stock pics with hashtags? The ratio is 60:40; 60 percent listening and reposting and commenting and 40 percent commenting and discussion about your brand. That 40 percent has to be there or else you're simply sending your time into the ether. 


Calendaring

How far out does your marketing calendar go? A day, a week, a month? The reality is, for social media, you can with have a set calendar (which should go out at least a month), or you can have both a set calendar and an in-the-moment posting strategy. For B2C or industries that work well with photos, both are necessary. 

The pressure should not be on you, the business owner, to produce great content every day. The social media marketer should have a plan in place to release dynamic content for your brand and comment on the marketplace regularly, and you, the business owner, should be free to add great content that catches you in the moment. You should also have the tools to make that content look as great as all the posts from your social media marketer, which brings us to our last point...

Open Hands

This, by far, is the most important part. I dealt with this in a previous post, Are You an Expert? Open Your Hands. You, as the business owner, should have access to every tool the social media marketer is using, and he or she should set up brand specific accounts for you to use. A pro knows how to deliver value, and he or she should make your life easier. However, if you choose to take over the social media, you should know how and have access to every single thing your business uses. 

Do not hire a social media marketer who won't take you behind the scenes. You're likely dealing with the Great Oz--all smoke and mirrors and no substance. 

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