Tag: social media consultant

Why This Consultant Hired a Social Media Consultant

Posted on by Sue L Canfield

George Troy, Retail Consultant, hire a social media consultantGeorge Troy is a retail consultant who wanted to hire a social media consultant. He supports a company’s direct retail ambitions and this usually involves several stages. The first stage is strategic planning: assessing opportunities and challenges, then setting strategic goals. Next comes executing a practical plan involving real estate selection and negotiation, store design, IT, HR, and financial support.

George is in the process of looking for a literary agent for his book, The Five Laws of Retail. When he first hired me as his social media consultant about 18 months ago (George says, “Doesn’t seem that long.”), he knew he needed help to be active and engaged on social media. His editor helped him get his book proposal ready to send to literary agents and George understood that the social media marketing section needed to be solid.

Two Specific Reasons George Hired a Social Media Consultant

  1. “I really just do not have the bandwidth or the time to be across all channels on a daily and weekly basis.”
  2. “I wanted to partner with someone in order to develop fresh ideas and keep my social media presence active.”

We discussed what type of ROI George expected. (This past year  followers on Twitter increased 1,234%, on Facebook 178%, on Instagram 242%, and on LinkedIn 237%.) George replied, “It’s an investment for the future.” Eventually George expects his published book will lend support to his consultancy business and that he will get speaking engagements, perhaps even TV appearances, and “become instantly rich and famous”. Okay, maybe not instantly.

To ensure George has a solid social media presence that attracts the attention of a literary agent, we set specific monthly and quarterly goals and generally perform well against them. As George says, “It seems to be working.”

If you’re ready to “YES” to the following questions, get started with our Peace of Mind Audit & Consultation.

  • Is your social media presence up to date?
  • Are you using the right images in the right places?
  • Will your intended audience get the message you want to convey?

Social Media Management with Limited Time

Posted on by Sue L Canfield

Sue CanfieldSocial media management is in high demand right now. More and more virtual assistants have taken on management of their client’s social media networks. Your clients come to you for this skill because they have limited time and want to use your expertise instead of taking time away from what they know best to learn a new skill.

But do you spend so much time on your client’s social media management that you own has been neglected? I know this has happened to me. One of my goals this year is to stay on top of my own social media management as well.

With limited time, it’s very useful to have a tool where you can manage all your social media networks from one place. I personally have been using HootSuite for several years. I’ve just started working through HootSuite University to get my certification as a Social Media Consultant. I don’t really care whether or not I am “certified”. I am interested in learning more about how to effectively use HootSuite for myself and my clients.

Now in one place I can manage all of my clients and all of their social networks: Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google+. I can schedule messages across all networks in advance. I can reply to mentions, see who is using specific keywords, see who my client’s new followers are. This is a huge time saver. I only have to log in to one place instead of several different networks for several different clients.

As I learn more about effectively using HootSuite, I plan to share some tidbits. So stay tuned!

Have you used HootSuite? I’d love to hear your thoughts!

How Do I Communicate with a Social Media Consultant?

Posted on by Sue L Canfield

How do I communicate with my social media consultant?You may have concerns about using a social media consultant because you aren’t sure if they will communicate effectively. So how do you communicate with a social media consultant that you may never even meet in person?

With today’s advanced technology, the issue of communication is easily resolved. In addition to using the telephone, most solo professionals communicate using email. In addition, there are online collaboration tools, Skype, Free Conference Call, GoToMeeting and a host of other online tools to keep in touch.

There are some basic tips to keep in mind to ensure effective communication with your social media consultant. First, let your social media consultant know how you best communicate. Is it by phone, email, or some other method? Once this is established, your social media consultant can be sure your primary communications are done by this method. Some of my clients prefer the telephone or text, others email. By communicating the way they prefer, the client feels more at ease.

Another important aspect of communication is to determine how often you want to communicate with your social media consultant. Do you want Friday afternoon updates on a weekly basis by email? Or would you rather talk by phone every Monday morning? It’s important to have enough communication with your social media consultant so you feel your online presence is being addressed and handled in a timely manner. This is especially important if there are deadlines to meet.

Perhaps most important is to be clear in your communications. Clearly explaining what you expect of your social media consultant will make everyone’s job easier. Communication works when both you and your social media consultant are committed to making it work.

We feel communication is our number one priority. Learn what our satisfied clients have to say.