Social media management best practices

Social media is always evolving, and that can get pretty overwhelming, especially for a small business trying to keep up with it all. But some best practices are here to stay. Best practices are generally accepted techniques that help produce successful overall results. Here are some of our 2024 social media management best practices to take your social media strategy to the next level before year’s end.

12 social media management best practices to take your social media strategy

1. Be responsive

76% of customers value how quickly a brand can respond to their needs. Audit your response time and use tools like customer service chatbots to improve your process. Don’t forget to engage with positive comments, not just questions or complaints. Encourage follower interaction and user-generated content.

2. Leverage AI

The question has shifted from ‘Will AI take my job?’ to ‘Will AI damage customer trust?’ It’s great to use AI to help ideate and create content—but be sure to add your own personal flair. Streamline your daily repetitive tasks with the help of AI, and always edit for brand voice and humanize your copy.

3. Use video (and more!)

Video is as popular as ever on social media. In fact, 66% of consumers say short-form video is the most engaging. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t mix up your feed with static content like photos, carousels, and graphic-based posts, too.

4. Show your product in action

Don’t just show your product…Show your product in action. How does it empower the customer? What pain points does it address? How does it help your customer to overcome certain challenges? Social media is your chance to really show off your product (or service). Take advantage!

5. Feature real people

Featuring customers and user-generated content builds social proof and trust in your brand. Partner with creators and influencers to add clout and extend your reach to new audiences. 

6. Hop on trends that serve you

There are a lot of trends out there and you certainly don’t need to implement every single one of them. Instead, strategize which trends make sense for your brand and intersperse trendy videos and memes with your original content.

7. Stand up, when it feels right

Consumers can spot inauthenticity a mile away. That’s why it’s important to stand up for causes that directly align with your brand’s mission and values. False statements and promises can often do more harm than good.

8. Optimize platform strategy

We’re big believers that it’s best to post 1-2 times per day on weekdays between the hours of 10am and 2pm (to hit that lunch hour scroll). Though, this may differ depending on your target demographic, platform preference, and other key factors. Make use of your social media analytics to discover how much and when to post your content.

9. Schedule content in advance

Social media management tools like Hootsuite Planner and Planoly do as they say—they enable you to plan  your content campaigns in advance. This will allow you to create high quality, strategic content so you can focus on other things like engaging with your followers and reviewing analytics. 

10. Streamline the approval process

Even if your team only has one social media person, it’s important to have at least one other set of eyes scan over content before it goes live. Streamline your approval process so you can get the OK from your brand’s higher-ups and avoid any potential PR crises. 

11. Implement social listening

Stay aware of online conversations about your brand and the greater industry. Explore trending topics and discussions. Social listening doesn’t require direct engagement, but it will help inform your social media strategy moving forward.

12. Optimize for social commerce

Social shopping is set to reach a whopping $1.2 trillion dollars by 2025. That means it’s a great time to start up on social commerce. Whether you set up shop directly on a social media platform or provide a link to your brand’s own website, remember that you want to reduce friction and make the purchasing process as seamless as possible. 

Looking for help when it comes to exactly what to post? Sign up for Media À La Carte’s Content Calendar Club for two weeks of content delivered straight to your inbox every other week. And register for our custom plan to have our experts personalize a plan just for you. Not sure where to start? Schedule a discovery call with us today!