So, we understand better than many agencies just how hard it is to keep focused on strategy when you’ve got a million marketing fires to put out each week.
Whether you’ve got excess stock that requires a quick push to get it moving, a need for pricing adjustments due to exchange rate fluctuations, or a last-minute deal on some sweet advertising rates which means fresh creative is called for pronto - a busy marketer’s job is never done… And that means, sometimes big picture marketing activity can fall by the wayside – particularly when it comes to social media channels, where (for example) it’s tempting to prioritise today’s product push over your grand plans to build your social brand. No judgement from us – we’ve all been there!
Thinking about what we’ve experienced as marketing managers, and what we know as a specialist social agency, we’ve pulled together some ideas to help you stay on course from a strategic perspective and also deal with the day-to-day.
An annual social planning calendar that’s broken down into months is an invaluable asset for busy marketing managers. It’s relatively quick to put together (get in touch if you want a simple template) and allows you to layer strategic messaging and day-to-day marketing.
Your social media marketing calendar should include:
Brand content pillars – the strategic
If you don’t have time to create a full 12-month calendar, then set the template up (or ask us for ours!), pop your key brand content pillars and display ad layer in, then do your campaign planning quarterly. This approach can actually work in your favour when markets are changing, so don’t be afraid to be a little bit agile 😊
Display ads, carousel ads, dark ads… whatever you want to call them – social media advertising is a busy marketer’s best friend. They give you an ongoing, high-intent presence on your social media channels of choice, without you having to create lots of different posts through the month for your page.
To maximise your time, ask your agency to develop a suite of sexy brand and campaign ad creative at the start of the year, so that all you need to do is schedule it in each month.
If you’re receiving multiple requests each week from around the business for ‘just a quick post about…’ then it can be hard to say no – trust us, this is a challenge that many of our clients face!
While social media channels are a fantastic resource for getting communications out quickly, it’s important to make sure they don’t become cluttered with content that dilutes your strategic intent.
For anyone finding their social feeds are becoming cluttered with unplanned posts, don’t be afraid to implement an assessment process that unplanned posts need to go through before being approved. It’s also worth managing expectations around how much notice you need to assess, prepare and post – that way you can avoid last-minute posts that ‘really need to go out today’ landing on your desk at 3pm.
Of course, we would say that 😉 But it’s true – agencies exist for a reason, and those that specialise in social can help you work out which channels to use and how to use them to maximum effect. As an external voice, they’re not influenced by day-to-day demands from the business and can keep you focused on ensuring you stay true to your strategic intent.
And don’t be afraid to run a hybrid agency/in-house model. As social media becomes a vital marketing channel for businesses, we’re seeing lots of clients create internal teams to look after day-to-day posting and using us to assist with strategic, advertising and campaign work. In our experience, this is an approach that works really well and generates strong bang for marketing buck.
With a bit of upfront training, posting, targeting and scheduling approved social content, and responding to comments, is a fantastic task for up-and-coming marketers within your team. Delegating this part of the process will free you up to focus on your social messaging and how it’s being delivered.
Many of our clients are also partnering with their sales and customer service departments to manage new business and existing account enquiries that come in via DMs on their social channels. Again, this can be a huge time-saver – and will also likely get your prospects and customers to the information they’re after faster. Win-win.
So, there you have it – if you’re finding yourself pulled in every direction, with little time to think about your social strategy, try a couple of these ideas and let us know what you think. Hit us up on hello@matteragency.co.nz if you need a simple social planning calendar template to get started with – we’re more than happy to share!