As social media marketing rock stars, things can get crazy with our busy calendars. This piece delivers tips for establishing good social media habits. As your tasks start to pile up, it’s important to remember that we must set aside time to engage on the various social networks. After all, our dedicated use of social networks was our primary activity when we were hit with the spark to start our online marketing ventures… right? I have also struggled with keeping my social activity at a stable rate. Below is a list of tips for nurturing healthy social media habits (I’ll be sure to practice what I preach):
Schedule time for social media
Morning, afternoon and evening… being social online is an all day affair. The problem is that we don’t have all day to tweet and update various status messages. You need to make sure that you schedule various times throughout the week to make sure you get in your time. Schedule morning sessions on some days and afternoon and evening sessions on other days. You’ll hit all your times of the day, making sure you catch all your contacts on their shifts of online presence. Tweet scheduling via Hootsuite (affiliate link) is also a great way to set a ticker to your tweets/updates for posting at times when you’re not available to do it live.
Focus on one platform at a time
Whether you’re using Hootsuite (affiliate link) or working directly on Twitter.com or Facebook.com, don’t try to do it all at once. Multi-tasking is always dangerous and this type of multi-tasking is no different. Say you’re on Twitter and you’re heavily engaged in an intern recruiting session, but you figure you’d hop over to Facebook to see what’s going on. Boom… before you know it, you’re on Facebook looking at pictures of your nieces and nephews for thirty minutes. You’ve gotten off track and will be in danger of dropping the ball on completing your recruiting task along with the other tasks you planned to complete before the end of the business day.
Engage with a clear and fueled mind
This seems like a no-brainer but we are all guilty at times. Avoid tweeting when you’re tired. Lazy engagement is easy to spot. Keep your mind and body fueled by EATING. Yes, many of us skip meals during our busy work days and I wouldn’t suggest participating in social network activity while your brain is fuel deprived.
Keep up with the times
Research, research, research. If you don’t continue to expand your knowledge on new tactics and social platforms, you will be quickly left in the dust. One of my favorite marketing minds, Chris Brogan, recently blogged a piece on the buzzing Google Plus. This guy is doing his homework, as we all should. If you’re not on Google+, leave a comment below and I’ll make sure you get invited.
Sub tip: share a Google document with your team where you all list cool online resources for each other to check out.
Have fun
If it feels like work, engaging in social activities won’t be fun for long. If you’re able to mix in some light-hearted chit chat with your friends, go for it. This is where I have to give props to Google+ and their circles. You can share what you want to whom you want without having people outside of your circle read it… so crack some jokes (just make sure you send it to the right people). Another benefit to this (especially on Twitter) is showing everyone paying attention to your public timeline that you’re an actual human being who can relate to people outside of a business setting. Having a well-timed sense of humor can go a long way for you. In fact, I just put up this silly video on YouTube this morning:
Want more tips? Join our In the Nao Email Newsletter Club where we’ll be discussing ways entrepreneurs and small businesses can use the web and social media to grow their brands.
