In preparation for a presentation, the question came to my mind, “If you could give small associations and chambers three pieces of social media advice, what would they be?” Today I share with you the answer to this question and hope you’ll find value in this advice.
Know your audience
This piece of advice is applicable online and offline. The best way to reach your audience is to know how they like to receive messages. You’ll be able to most effectively use social media when you know what social media outlets your audience members use and what time of day they are most active on social media.
Tie social media to your mission
If social media isn’t tied to your mission, it’s probably not worth using. Social media shouldn’t add to your strategic plan but should enhance your strategic plan. In other words, social media shouldn’t be one more bullet on the to-do list, but should be a tool you use to help you check off items on the to-do list.
Schedule your posts in advance
You, as a small association or chamber, spend a lot of time metaphorically putting out fires. Because of limited staff size and resources, energy is spent dealing with challenges as they come. Because of this, social media is likely to always fall on the back burner. Consequently, consider utilizing tools like Hootsuite that allow you to schedule posts in advance. Doing so will enable you to focus on more pressing matters without worrying about when you’ll get around to posting on social media during the day.
