Social Media: Hire a Firm or Hire a Staff Person?
A common question we get asked is, “Should I hire an internal person to handle my social media, or should I outsource it?” The answer really depends on your goals. Social media success is driven by content. Content must be relatable, well-written and it must provide value. So the real question is, “Who can I hire that knows how to present the message we want to send to clients and prospects?” Let’s expand on that a little more:
Writing is Key
Whether it’s 280 characters on Twitter or a full blog post, does the person writing your content know enough to effectively write about it? You have a target market and specialties - can they convey your expertise and value with their writing? If they’re new to your business, this may be a long process.
Consistency Builds to Success
I’ve seen plenty of businesses that start out strong on social and then fail to give it the attention it deserves. If you go weeks without posting, algorithms will begin to reduce the reach when you do post. You need a plan and you need a content calendar to follow. Then you must execute that plan with consistency in order to build reach.
The Platform Matters
Posting the same thing on every account is not exactly a winning approach, nor is it as easy as it sounds. LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, etc. are frequently changing how they weigh content. Stories, videos, external links and carousels carry different “weight” on different platforms. You must be able to reformat what you post if you are crossposting it to other platforms. In addition, consider your audience. The demographics are different on these platforms, so your tone and wording must be as well.
An Extension of Your Brand
Your social media, your website, your brand, your culture - these things are all part of your business’s reputation. You need to be consistent in how it is presented so that clients and prospects that research you will receive a consistent story. Build a strategy with your marketing professional(s) that can be expanded across any format. If you’re a fun-loving group, portray that. If you’re all business, portray that. This isn’t just an extension of your business, it is how your business will be perceived.
At Market Retrievers, we can help with these strategies and their implementation. Need help training a social media person on your staff? We can assist with that. Want a firm that can provide you a complete marketing program? We can do that as well.
Contact Daniel Smith at dsmith@marketretrievers.com / 423.503.0388 or Abby Wheeler at awheeler@marketretrievers.com / 615.587.7266 and we’ll set up a free consultation to help determine what the right strategy is for you.