The modern business owner is a creative being. She knows how to change casual website/blog visitors into avid fans. She knows how to promote her products and when to do so.
This business owner knows the role social media presence has on her business. She is therefore willing to do anything in her power to have it all.
That is why you are in danger.
Yes, you are. Competing with her is definitely not going to be an easy task. They say the social media has leveled the “playing field” I say the social media has raised the bar. This happens every day. Every moment you don’t scoop your share of social media fans. Every moment you waste on social media pretending to be working hard.
Are you utilizing the social media?
Are you wasting your time on social media?
You need to use it appropriately.
It is good to look at both sides. Meaning, use social media to the fullest but still do not take all your time on social media. Because the actual location of your business is not social media. If you have a manufacturing company you know the premises is not on Facebook. If you have a bar you sure understand that your followers don’t bring in money. But your customers do. Even if you want to sell an eBook under the title “How to make billions online” you know you have to write it first and polish it well. So you can’t be spending all your time on Twitter and assume “everything’s going to be alright”.
Here is how to ensure that the time you spend on social media is of actual benefit to your business and keep up with the competition:
Have a timetable
It helps to have a working schedule. The surface advantage of that is that you know what to do and when to do it. That way you accomplish everything set for the day, week or whatever duration. The deeper advantage that you get to see in the long run is that you have a 25-hour day. Not literally of course. It means that you have time to do everything that needs to be done. You don’t waste any time on unnecessary tasks. You realize that you even have enough time to rest, exercise and live a healthy life. You don’t have to work for a whole day, pull all-nighters and sleep for three and a half hours.
When you have a set timetable you know what time you should be on social media and when you need to go feed the birds. This is the only way to ensure you don’t check your email every 30 minutes and reply every message as soon as it “pops”. I mean, you don’t have to wait for the messages. Have a set time of the day when you reply all those messages and still listen to what your Facebook followers are saying.
Limit yourself
This is about scheduling.
You might be tempted to set aside 5 hours of “social media time”. This is not healthy. Do not assign time basing on how easy or fun the task is but on relevance. It might be fun to sit on the grass all day watching the cattle feed but it is more important to tether them and go write that book you feel you don’t have “enough inspiration” to start on.
The Social Media is a fun avenue but do not spend too much time on it. First things first. Just spend the necessary amount of time and call it a day.
Focus on things that matter
What things matter and what things don’t?
You will need to answer that question if you want to ensure maximum return from the time you invest. As you try to increase your presence you might feel like you need to be everywhere. You might feel like you need to like as many photos on your timeline as possible. Because you think this will make people notice you. But addressing the issues that directly affect you and logging out is more important.
Focusing on things that matter most is about addressing a complaint rather than thanking someone for a compliment. The compliment is a push force but the complaint is a pull force. The push forces market you but the pull forces do just that: pull you back. You hate the pull forces more than you love the push forces. Thus, with limited time on social media, you will need to get rid of the pull first.
Outsource
Sometimes you do not have the time to be on social media every day. You might even not remember your passwords because it’s been so long since you logged in. This does not have to affect your business as well. Hire someone who has the time to represent your company every day. Someone who has the time. That way you can focus on other tasks that require your presence more than social media.
Many benefits come with outsourcing. One of them is having a 25-hour day. But make sure you know when you need to outsource.
As important as social media might be, it could also lead to a lot of your time wasted. All along you will think you are genuinely busy but the truth is you are not. You are wasting your time. Your time is an investment. A ratio of the time spent on a task to the return will give you the ROI. If it’s not favorable then you know what to do-invest less next time.
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