Thinking about outsourcing your social media to a digital marketing agency or independent contractor? Of course you are! Social media management is a lot of work. And, especially if you’re a small business, running a handful of social media accounts is a full-time job on top of everything else you have to do.
Here are just some of the benefits of outsourcing your social media management to a company like Media À La Carte:
Sounds too good to be true, right?
BUT WAIT!
Are you ready to outsource your social media management? Like really ready?
Before you hire a person or team to take the reins of your social media, you’ll want to ensure you have your ducks in a row. Without a thoughtful foundation and strategy, your well-intended efforts won’t get the results you want. Ask yourself these five questions before you jump to outsource your social media management:
5 Questions to Ask Before Outsource Your Social Media Management
1. Is social media management overwhelming (or overlooked) by your staff’s current workload?
Survey your team to get a sense of how social media management is working right now. Who’s running what platforms? How many hours per week are dedicated to social media management? How often do you post and where? Does your current way of working allow for strategic planning of content and campaigns? Are you able to interact with comments, direct messages, etc.? Answering all of these questions will help you get a better sense of whether your brand should outsource or simply adjust your social media management strategy.
2. Does your brand have a mission statement, branding, and plenty of photos/videos?
Any freelancer or agency you work with will want to know what you’re all about. Sure, they can take on the tone and look of your brand identity, but it’s YOUR job to define what those are. Check back on our blog all about how to create a mission statement. This is a great place to get to started building a solid brand foundation. Some agencies (like Media À La Carte) can help you refine your ideas, design, and strategy, but you never want to come to the table with a blank sheet of paper!
Your social media management team is there to manage your media on social - not take photos and videos for your brand (although most of us DO offer that service a la carte.) Your SMM team also isn't your branding team. If you don't have your fonts and colors nailed down, you have work to do before outsourcing your social media management.
3. What do you know (or not know) about social media?
Just because you choose to outsource your social media management doesn’t mean that you don’t need to understand how it all works. You’ll have to collaborate with your SMM team to help meet your brand’s goals. It’ll also be important for you to be able to make sense of social media analytics (the hard data) to see how your strategy is working. An agency can certainly help with their expertise, but going in blind is like signing an agreement for a TBD surgery! It’s crucial that business owners know the basics of social media, even if they’re not the ones making the TikToks! For example, 1) check out our blog on which social media platforms your business needs, and 2) here’s our list of social media No-No’s.
It's also important to realize what you DON'T know and be willing to let your social media management team make the calls when it comes to your social strategy. If you aren't ready to let the experts take the lead, you aren't ready to outsource.
4. Do you have social media marketing goals?
Take the time with your team to suss out your social media marketing goals. Are you a brand new company looking to boost brand awareness? Maybe you’re hoping to engage with your customer community online. Or perhaps you want more leads and sales. In any case, you need to know what you want. Defining your goals will help you set a budget for social media marketing and decide whether and how you might collaborate with an external agency. Here’s our take on how to build a soundproof social media strategy.
5. What do you know about the person or agency you’re looking to work with?
Be wary of hiring the first management team that pops up on your Google search. Social media marketing is an integral part of any business, and you want to work with someone you trust and who you feel comfortable collaborating with. Do your research about who you choose to bring on. Ask fellow business owners, seek out online reviews, and take advantage of free discovery calls (like ours!) to find the person or team who best fits with your business and brand.
So, have you passed the test? Are you ready to outsource (or collaborate with) an external team to take your social media strategy to the next level? Set up a discovery call with Media À La Carte. We can’t wait to work with you!
