V8.18: Performing Social Media Audits For Success

Let’s talk social media. You know it’s one of our favorite topics and we feel it is a vital piece of any marketing effort. So, what happens when your social media performance takes a dip? With Marie Kondo sweeping the nation and cleaning up our closets and our hearts, it’s time we take that lesson and apply it to social media.

Social Media Today author, Dhariana Lozan, writes 6 ways to perform a social media audit.

1. “List All of the Social Media Networks You’re Active on” Okay, first and foremost, you need to list out all of the networks you are currently active on. Maybe you write it out on paper or keep tabs in an Excel sheet. 
2. “Analyze” This next step might be a little tedious, but it is imperative. As marketers, you know how important collecting data is as it builds a foundation to craft valuable insights. We recommend going through each platform and taking stock of where each one is at. First, figure out the metrics for your main KPIs. Mark down where the site traffic is coming from, any sales that can be attributed for particular platforms, newsletter sign ups, and the engagement each one brings. Second, you should mark down the volume of social actions– followers, reach and impressions, likes, comments, shares, etc. Third, you should figure out what your top and bottom performing posts. What stands out from each one? What time of day were they posted? What was the topic? What kind of image or copy was used? All of this information will help you determine a better way to move forward. While you’re doing this, take a baseline for benchmarking purposes. Knowing where the bar is will help you gauge lasting success. 
3. “Assign a Value to The Social Media Networks You’re on” Now that you’ve collected your data, you need to prioritize the various platforms you use. Assign a value to each one and you will know where you should be spending more of your time and budget. This will also help you better understand your customer journey. 
4. “Decide Which Networks to Keep” Now that you’ve studied, analyzed, and valued, your social media platforms, it’s time to figure out how you want to move forward. There are a lot of platforms out there and, quite frankly, you don’t need to be on ALL of them. You should focus your energies on the ones that best fit your brand and target audience. 
5. “Clean Up Profiles” Okay, you’ve decided to move away from certain platforms, now you need to Marie Kondo the rest. A spring cleaning if you will. Are all of your bios, links, and profile images up to date? Are you telling the message you want to be articulating? Make sure that everything is up to date, high quality, and on brand. 
6. “Revisit Your Analytics to Adjust Your Strategy” Now that you’ve done all that, you should take a step back. Take some time to review all the data you collected, the benchmarks you figured out, and the insights garnered. What does it all mean? Where can you make better choices and learn from past tests? Think about what each platform needs and address those issues. Maybe your Instagram content is driving a lot of engagements, but none of them click through to the website. Or maybe your Facebook has a lot of followers but no one is engaging. What can you do about that? Listen to the data and make active choices to see better performance.

So, there you have it! Go out, dust the cobwebs off your social platforms, get the fresh flowers, and get ready for some spring cleaning!