Last week I talked about the advantages and disadvantages of
using social media in marketing for small business. After much research I found
that social media is a great component to a diversified marketing plan but should
not be a small business’ main source for advertising as it can get very
expensive. One of the articles I researched last week referenced not only financial expense but the
drain on time for a small business owner in having to create content, respond
to messages and comments, and maintain consistency across several platforms. Time
is a great resource when you are trying to run your own business and having to
spend copious amounts of it managing social media is just not a good option.
So what
is a business owner to do? Not surprising there is an app for that, or software
in some cases. I was unaware of the tools available for social media management
out there. They range from hiring a private firm and paying sizable fees to
free apps that do little but can be a good starting point. I chose to dig a
little deeper into the management tool called Hootsuite. I would never have a
need for this kind of tool for personal platforms but I do run a small business
that I can see would benefit from this tool. One of the reasons my partner and
I have been so hesitant to start multiple social media pages for our business
is because neither of us has the time to dedicate to be consistent so instead
we have a rarely updated Facebook page. If we were to purchase a paid business
plan on Hootsuite we could open a business page
on Instagram, Twitter, Google Plus, Linked In, or any other social platforms up
to 50 that we could manage with Hootsuite. I don’t even know if I could name 50
social platforms so it is impressive that they have built an infrastructure that
allows business’ to manage all their social media from one place.
I think
the best thing about social media management is that it gives time back to
those that are running small businesses, which can be a huge thing. In my case
where I also work a full-time job it has just never been a priority to utilize
social media but with a social media management tool I can see how it would be
not only easier but could really help the business.
I agree that social media can give back time that some peole might not have!
ReplyDeleteI like how you incorporated your own experience of owning a business and the benefits you could see with having something to manage your platforms since time is important to you. Great work!
ReplyDeleteThere is an app for that! It made me laugh when you said that because I, too, am constantly amazed at how many apps are available for us to use.
ReplyDeleteI also liked that you incorporated how using something like Hootsuite would impact your own business. I didn't think about how much time it would save a company!
Loved your post! You had some cool insights
ReplyDelete