Social Media Pain Points; Got Any?
What social media manager does not have any pain points?
Raise your virtual hand in the air!
For all of us, including myself, there are parts of our job as social media manager that are ‘challenging' for lack of a better word. Whether they are social media pain points, or just growing pains as you learn, I am sure you will be able to relate as we discuss several pain points in this article.
As you hone your skills, learn more about this exciting industry and work with more clients in diverse industries, you will run into some, or all, of the below-mentioned pain points.
Wouldn't it be great if we had the answer to everything we needed at our fingertips?
Oh wait, we have Google, don't we?
You can Google just about any question and get an answer, but isn't it better to get an answer from someone who has lived these issues, gone through these pain points and has real-life experience dealing with them?
I think so!
Read on.
Social Media Pain Points According to Social Media Managers
Here at Social Media Pro we don't just teach social media to social media professionals and business owners, we also have an active Social Media Managers Facebook group with 23,000+ members!
Boy, do I as the community manager know about social media pain points!
I hear about them, read about them, live them with my clients and then rehash them in that group, for lack of better words.
Knowing that these social media pain points are there, and just about every social media manager on the planet has gone through or is going through these pain points, I set out to list them and offer real-life solutions to each one.
Below, find six social media pain points which have turned into FAQs in the Facebook group, and ways to handle and work through them.
1) Measuring and Showing ROI of Social Media
This has to be one of the top 3 ‘FAQs' in our group.
“How can I measure and show ROI of social media to my client?”
This is a loaded question and has been answered so many times and in so many different ways.
Today, I am going to keep it fairly simple and refer you to a few links.
Let's agree that in order to measure something (ROI), you have to know what you will be measuring (KPI) and what the current status or starting point is (Social Media Audit).
Next, once you have these three things figured out for each client, you need to make sure tracking is in place to start measuring the changes before you get started.
Lastly, once you've tracked and measured, then you have to create a report (and report to your client), whether is weekly, monthly or quarterly.
That is how you show ROI of social media.
2) Time Management and Resource Management
“How do you do it all?”
“How many accounts can one social media manager handle?”
Yes, we actually answered that second question in blog article all on its own!
Time management is all about creating duplicatable systems; in order to manage your time, you need to know how long each task takes, and in order to outsource repetitive tasks, you also need to be able to define each task.
Seasoned social media managers know to-the-minute how long it takes to tweet, create content, blog, post on Facebook, and create a social media strategy.
Once you have your own data, you will be able to manage your time better!
As far as resources go; network, network, network.
As a social media manager, you need to know and be familiar with people who are digital marketers, copywriters, agencies owners, speakers, event planners, web designers etc.
In essence, build a team you can trust and outsource to!
3) Consistently Creating Content
“How do you come up with ideas for content?”
“How do you get content from your clients?”
The trick to consistently create content is to communicate with your client, often.
You as a social media manager need to know what is going on in the business in order to do social media management for the business. Seems simple enough, right?
It's not.
It is comparable to herding cats if you ask me.
Not only do you need to communicate, you need to be able to ask the right questions to get ideas about content.
Questions like ‘What charity are you involved with?' and ‘Are you attending any networking events this month?' and ‘What products sold well last Christmas?' need to be constantly asked. Poke and prod until you get answers from your client so you can weave storytelling into your content.
Sometimes, you have to dig very deep to get stories to share on social media.
Next, I advocate you create a ‘swipe file' for content ideas
The way this works for me personally is that I take screenshots and/or save ads, posts, and articles that move me. Anything that really catches my eye on social media (and makes me want to connect, click or read more about) because of format, language or image gets put into my swipe file.
When I need content inspiration for a client, I simply go there to get content ideas and to find that inspiration.
4) Fighting Online Distractions
There's an app for that!
Seriously, there are tons of apps out that will help you fight online distractions and be more productive.
You could also simply block time on your calendar to create content, going offline to write.
Figure out when you are most productive and creative, and when you are not, and schedule your day accordingly.
Also, let me say this: GET OFF FACEBOOK!
Ha, don't I sound just like your spouse, your mom, your teacher, your colleague?
If you use a to-do list, just go down the list and complete one task after another. Reward yourself with 3-5 minutes of Twitter, Instagram or Facebook and move on to the next task.
That's how I do it. That's how many of us do it.
Just because we work on social media doesn't mean we play on it all day!
If you aren't just looking to get rid of distractions, but you need a break from everything social media, here is how we do that!
5) Creating Real Engagement
This is a real problem for some social media managers.
The answer is so simple, yet so elusive.
In order to create real engagement, you have to really engage!
Work it!
Shocker, right?
That also means you have to create content that people can and want to engage with. Another shocker to some.
Ask questions, play games, highlight a charity, get involved with a local event; this type of content will have your audience respond!
Do I sound disillusioned?
I am not.
What I am is mildly disappointed!
I am disappointed with the number of social media managers who ask for and are looking for automation for commenting on Instagram, Facebook, blogs and more.
In my book, that's a big no.
You can not replace real engagement with a bot.
Things are sure to go wrong.
The best recommendation I have is to set time aside each day to have meaningful conversations. Build that time into your day and into your social media proposals; that is how you build up a following.
6) Creating Videos
Whether you are a remote social media manager or work in-house, getting video footage from a client or business owner isn't an easy feat.
This is last of six pain points to discuss today and I saved the best for last, didn't I?
Before asking for video footage and creating storylines, scripts and before gathering up your gear, you have to sell the idea of video marketing to your client.
The best way I've found to convince someone that video marketing is essential to social media success is to show off what (and how) their competitors are doing with video.
Once that part is done, you as the social media manager should weigh options on how to get started and what strategy to employ.
You could decide on
- product reviews
- tutorials
- animations
- testimonials
- presentations
- vlogs
- boomerang-style videos
- online courses
- live broadcasts
- event highlights
- webinars
- interviews
- video powerpoints
just to name a few ideas!
Once you know what type of video your clients wants and needs, you need to take budget, location and resources into consideration to create your video strategy.
Once the strategy is set, you will need
- location/set
- script
- images + logo
- equipment (tripod, camera, lenses, microphone etc.)
- host and guest, if applicable
- editing software
to be successful.
You can also outsource all of this to a videographer – that makes everything about this so much easier.
If you have no budget, minimal or no cooperation from your client and no resources to speak of, you can create videos out of still images by using tools like Canva and Adobe Spark.
Did These Social Media Pain Points Hit Home?
I can't imagine you haven't struggled with some or all of these!
What did I miss? I would love to write a follow up to this post.
Hit me up with your social media pain point in a comment below and I'll make sure to add it to the next article.
I am a Certified Social Media Manager, Strategist, International Keynote Speaker, Organic Specialist and Agile marketer! Blogging is my creative outlet. Running, hiking and skiing are how I recharge. You'll recognize me on stage and online by my always present orange glasses, a nod to my Dutch heritage.
