I was on the Etsy forums the other day, and came across a thread on social media use. I was super-surprised by the number of people who still aren’t using things like Facebook and Twitter to market their shops. I’ve been so involved in social media for years now – I think sometimes I forget how many people aren’t!
So it got me thinking about what holds a lot of indie biz owners back from launching themselves into the social media world.
Whenever I ask people about what is holding them back from embracing social media, the overwhelming response is ‘time’.
I understand that – I run a number of different businesses, and the fact that I love hanging out on twitter doesn’t do me any favours when I’ve got something that I *have* to get finished.
But the truth is – everyone is busy! Carving out the time to invest in social media will pay off in the long run.
It is easy to get sucked into the twitter/facebook/google + vortex – but if you follow these tips, you’ll escape the whirlpool and still use social media successfully and authentically – and it will only take you 20 minutes a day.
When I don’t have the time to just hang out, but I still want to stay visible on social media, these are the steps I follow.
Split your Time
If you want to stick to 20 minutes, you’ll need to split your time – 10 minutes in the morning, and 10 in the evening.
Do all of the following twice a day:
- Reply to any comments or mentions. This is imperative. Social media is about being social, and that means interacting with and conversing with your fans and followers. Ignore them and they’ll ignore you. This comes first.
- Share at least one link on Facebook/Google +. Because I blog daily, this is easy for me – I’ll share my latest blog post. You might like to ask a question, share someone else’s post, share a new product, a thought… there are so many options!
- Leave Comments, tweet @ people. Have a quick look through your twitter stream/facebook/google + feeds and make some useful comments and observations. Social media is a two-way street – you shouldn’t be spending all your time broadcasting.
- Schedule tweets to go out during the day when you’re not there. How? Read on…
Schedule Tweets
When I know I’m going to have a busy day, I like to schedule tweets to go out throughout the day (and night – we’re in a 24 hour world, people!).
However, I don’t do too much of this, because I don’t want people to see me as a robot. And I ALWAYS reply to anyone who comments on a tweet.
I’ve got a few clever ways to schedule your tweets to your best advantage.
Su.pr
When you tweet out your own blog posts or work, you should use su.pr. This is a part of StumbleUpon, and it means that when you tweet your post using su.pr, and people click on it, it will appear with a Stumble Bar, which will often result in a huge surge of traffic to your site.
You can also use su.pr to submit your link to multiple twitter/facebook accounts at the same time – and it allows you to schedule posts, too.
I used to use su.pr exclusively… that is, until I discovered Bufferapp.
Bufferapp
Bufferapp allows you to simply write up a bunch of tweets, and it will automatically ‘buffer’ them for you – that is, it will send them out over a 24 hour period. You can choose how many tweets to send (up to 10 on the free account) and exact times, too – or you can let it work things out for you.
I’ve been told in the past that I tend to ‘flood’ my followers at certain times. You might find yourself doing this, too – when you’re bored, for example, and looking at pinterest or blogs etc. Using bufferapp is a way to avoid doing that, because you can get the interesting links to post throughout the day!
I’ll tend to get online in the morning, check my google reader and pinterest, and then schedule up tweets to share cool stuff I’ve found.
That way, I don’t flood my followers all at once, and I get to share everything I want to throughout the day! Win/win 🙂
So there you have it – the speedy guide to getting on top of social media – even when you’re ‘too busy’!
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Image by Bilberry Wood.
Thanks for these great tips Jess, I haven’t tried either of these but they’re on my list to try out tomorrow!
Boy! Thank you so much Jess! I had no idea you could re-schedule tweets! That is an awesome bit of info! Shall be re-tweeting this post!
You can also find programs that act as a central hub for your social media outlets- I use hootsuite. I can schedule posts for that will feed on twitter and on my facebook account as well- and you can set it up for multiple pages/accounts!! Talk about a time saver!! Great post too- I really hope it encourages biz owners to take that jump- too many wonderful connections and opportunities are out there!
Janelle – yes! I use tweetdeck, and you can do the same with that, too 🙂
I didn’t know about bufferap! I’ll definitely be checking it out. Thanks for the always helpful tips Jess!
I agree, it is not something that take sa huge amount of time. I have been slack on facebook with my business but twitter and my blog have helped hugely. So much about facebook makes me cringe but I have to get involved more.
Thank you so much for sharing… I’m definitely going to use these programs!
Great tips Jess! I love buffer just for its ease of use and analytic abilities too. Although I tend to use Buffer, Tweetdeck and Hoot Suite depending on what I want to actually do!
I almost always learn something reading your blog Jess! You make a newbie like me feel like it is all achievable!
Really helpful stuff thank you!!
I stopped using Tweedeck because it hogs the bandwidth. I now use Timely and Hootsuite to schedule posts. I use SocialOomph to send an automated message to new followers, and TrueTwit to get rid of the bots. To publish my blog posts, I use a plugin called Network Publisher in WordPress.
Unfortunately, I still have to do it all manually for Google +. They’ve released an API, but I can’t use it yet.
I use way too much time on Social Media, but that’s where I get my leads. I’m now trying to limit myself to a total of one hour a day, but it’s easy to get caught up in it.
When I get a bit wiser about how and what to automate, I can probably cut it down further.
It can definitely suck up all your time – it’s happened to me many times 🙂
thanks for yet another great post. oh yes! it is so easy to get sucked into the SM vortex and lose an hour or two each time… I’ve really got to strap a kitchen timer to my forehead. I always feel a bit dubious about automating, and losing that immediate response.
I think people understand that you have to sleep, do other work, etc – as long as I reply within 12-24 hours at most, I think that’s cool.
Of course, there are times when I hang out on twitter and just chat to people – and no doubt that is my favourite part of it! But we don’t always have time to do that, so these tips fill in the gaps 🙂
This is the best SM post I have read. I may actually get it this time. Thanks!!!
Wow, big praise Gwyn, thank you!!
GREAT post Jess! Â I am a social media fan (in case you hadn’t guessed! Ha!) – thanks for the intro to bufferapp, sounds super useful (especially now that I’ve finally be lured in to Pinterest’s arms…)
thanks Jess, a great informative post – I will definitely try out those social media extensions
oh and as a follower of yours i dont think you bombard us, I always enjoy your thoughts, links etc that you share; its like having a friend on the other end of twitter X
Thanks D!! xx
thanks Jess, a great informative post – I will definitely try out those social media extensions
oh and as a follower of yours i dont think you bombard us, I always enjoy your thoughts, links etc that you share; its like having a friend on the other end of twitter X
I know I am flooding my fan page on facebook like crazy and was wondering how stop it. I think after reading this I know what I should do!
Thank you for this! Its a big R e v e l a t i o n!
You’re so welcome!! 🙂
I just buffered a link to this article… So I guess you could say I agree wholeheartedly with what you’re saying!
I’m just dipping my toes in the water when it comes to what’s possible with social media, so I always love reading advice from people I see who are doing it so successfully. Thank you!