Why You Shouldn't Outsource Social Media Management
Updated: Feb 2, 2022
Running a business of any sort can be complex, especially with social media.
Success requires that you wear multiple hats, and, eventually, you may find yourself looking to outsource some of your regular tasks and responsibilities.
There are some areas of business where outsourcing makes sense.
For example, payroll and accounting may be best handled by someone who understands the tax code and can help you maximize your profits and pay your staff a great wage.
When it comes to marketing, the outsourcing landscape becomes a little more complicated.
Many elements of your marketing strategy can be outsourced, like email campaigns, SEO work, website building, and content creation.
You will oversee all of these areas, but someone else can execute the job. In terms of managing your social media profiles, however, that’s best kept in-house.
Here’s a look at why you’re the best person for the job and where a possible exception to this recommendation may lie.
Why You Shouldn’t Outsource Social Media Management
There are three main reasons why you shouldn’t outsource your social media management:
1. No One Knows Your Business Like You
Your business is your livelihood, and as such, it would be nearly impossible to find someone as invested and passionate about it as you.
You know better than anyone the ins and outs of your product or service, and relaying that knowledge and understanding to an outside party is challenging. Something almost always gets lost in translation.
What’s more, no one quite understands your customer base as you do.
You know why they would turn to your business and what they may be interested in learning about your product or industry.
While an outside party can learn these details on paper, they will never quite replicate the connection to it.
2. Keeps You In Close Contact with Your Customers
Maintaining connection and contact with your target audience or customer base is one of the primary reasons you should manage your social media accounts.
For starters, it is the best way for you to showcase your personality.
There may be many other businesses in your niche, but one of the things that set you apart is, well, you.
Social media allows you to engage with your audience just as you would if they entered your business’ physical location and sometimes even more intimately than that!
Outside social media managers can learn product and industry knowledge, but they cannot mimic your unique personality and quirks.
Only you can post or respond to comments with the proper charm and wit.
What’re more, social media profiles give you a direct pipeline of how customers think and feel.
People often visit social media profiles to ask questions.
Even with the proper insights, there is no way that an outside individual or team can adequately respond to these customer service-related comments.
Today’s savvy customers want authenticity. If you have an agency or marketing firm delivering canned responses, it will show.
The audience has visited your business profile because they want to engage with YOU.
Engaging with comments will not only provide your followers with the information and connection they seek, but it will also help you understand your customer’s pain points or needs.
If you are repeatedly seeing the same concerns pop up amongst your followers, you know that needs to be addressed in your production or processes.
If you outsource social media management, you may miss these concerns and miss an opportunity to improve your offering and generate more satisfied customers.
3. Keeps You Engaged with Your Industry Landscape
Like staying engaged with your audience, social media allows you to stay connected and engaged with your industry.
By spending time online and interacting with followers as your business profile, you can see what the competition is up to, see how their customers are feeling, and track any significant developments in your field.
Following industry-related pages as your business profile can do a lot to increase your credibility. If you want to be a leader in your community, it is vital to engage with other leaders.
If news breaks or a trend starts create a post about it yourself or share/retweet someone else’s.
If you are engaging with the latest news consistently, you not only appear to be fully informed, but your audience may start visiting your page to learn industry news, increasing impressions and engagements and ultimately growing your reach.
When You MIGHT Need to Outsource Social Media Management
We’ve taken all this time to tell you that you shouldn’t outsource social media management. But as with many things in life, there are a few exceptions to this “rule.”
If you are an e-commerce business with a heavy social media presence, especially one that sells through Facebook and Instagram, it might benefit you to outsource social media management.
Running a store or e-commerce site requires a particular sales language and high-quality product photos, and a lot of them.
Let's not even get into hashtagging, algorithms, time of day posting, direct messaging, etc.
Selling products online necessitates professional images, proper placement of these product shots, close management of sales platforms, and any marketing or paid advertising.
Suppose you are a small business or do not have the resources to create the quality images and sales copy necessary to make online sales.
In that case, it is a good idea to outsource your social media marketing management.
Craft A Social Media Marketing Strategy
We get it. You’re busy.
And when you’re busy, you may want to outsource some of your tasks to relieve the pressure and allow you to focus on the most critical elements of your business.
But, here’s the thing, social media management is an essential part of your business and one that won’t be genuine when outsourced.
It's all the best way to educate your prospects on your expertise in your market.
It also gives customers specific actionable steps to improve their current situations (by calling you of course!).
It is important to remember that you do not need to be active on every social media platform. Only the ones your customers frequent the most.
Choose the ones that are most closely related to the lifestyle of your business and your audience.
If you have a product that can benefit from beautiful images and your audience skews young, Instagram will be your primary focus instead of LinkedIn.
Take some time to think carefully about your business, explore your audience, and meet them where they ‘live.’ If your audience is on Twitter and not Instagram, why would you even waste your time on Instagram?
Social media management does take time and effort, but identifying your audience and choosing the right platforms will make your efforts more efficient and effective.
Not Sure What to Post?
Many say to us, "I have no idea what to post on social media," or they don't know where to start.
The trick to social media content topics is simple: post what you're already doing every single day! But also educate on your process and explain why you're doing what you're doing and how it benefits the customer.
Here are a few quick ideas of things that you could be posting on social:
FAQs
Sales Objections You Typically Get and Why Customers Shouldn't Worry
Your Inspection Process
Your Estimation Process
How You Solve A Specific or Common Problem
Things Your Customers Should Be Aware of That They Most Likely Aren't
How to Hire the Right Company (or Buy the Right Product) For Their Problem
Overcoming Money Objections by Educating About Your Financing Options
Funny Events During Your Day to Day
Your Favorite or Least Favorite Things to Deal With On the Job and Why
Something Your Customers Find Unbelievable That's True
Debunking Common Myths Surrounding Your Niche
Summary:
Social media can play an integral role in your overall marketing strategy.
Instead of outsourcing the work, consider speaking with a marketing agency, like Kyber Digital, to determine how your unique voice and perspective can best be utilized within your larger digital strategy.
Take Away: Don’t turn social media into a guessing game. Connect and share with your audience like only you can!
Kyber Digital
343 Harbor View
Forked River, NJ
08731
(215) 305-8769
