Setting Up a Realistic Social Media Workflow

For a lot of small business owners or social media marketing managers starting out, it can feel overwhelming trying to find time to:

• Research 2-3 hours per week

• Plan another 2-3 hours per week

• Create 4-5 hours per week

• And, share 2-3 hours per week

Then after doing ALL of that (on top of running your business) you have to spend another 4-5 hours on engagement. That's roughly 14 - 19 hours a week... another part-time job! 😪

Now that I've gotten you all worked up... Throw out all the "I should be doing this...", "I need to be doing this...", "I have to keep up on this..., etc., and start asking yourself, "what do I love doing?" and "who am I doing this for?". When we remind ourselves that social media is an avenue in which we can share our passions directly with people whose lives will be better because of it, we uncover a new appreciation and motivation to show up and create valuable content.

Start with a Strategy

Now, before you start planning out your social media workflow get started with a strategy. Putting in the time, while it might seem like a lot of work in the beginning, to thoughtfully put together a social media marketing strategy WILL save you a whole lot of time in the long run, help you avoid burnout, and remind you WHO you're doing this for.

When putting together any strategy it's important to set REALISTIC goals for yourself. Don't tell yourself "I should be doing this..." instead focus on what you KNOW you can comfortably commit yourself to. If you can commit to posting 2 days a week, GREAT! That's better than pushing yourself to post 5-7 times per week until you inevitably reach burnout and stop posting completely.

Check out my strategy templates to help you get started: TEMPLATES

Breakdown Your Current Workflow

Before rolling in social media, grab a pen and notebook and break down your current workflow and what your current day-to-day looks like. Get super micro, including blocks of time for work activities and personal. We don't want social media cutting into your family time or self-care rituals! Our goal here is to first see what other priorities you have in your business such as fulfilling orders, packaging, bookkeeping, appointments, etc., and in your personal life such as your morning fitness routine, enjoying device-free dinners with your family, etc. You can even go one step further and schedule everything out on your calendar.

After you've detailed your day-to-day, let's find where we can "habit stack" (p.s. I highly recommend the book Atomic Habit by James Clear) or fit in social media. What days do you find you have a bit more free time? Where can you naturally fold into social media? For example, on Monday you may carve out time to plan out your work week. This would be a good time to also plan out your social media content for the week! Also, try thinking of some tasks you're already doing that you may also be able to turn into content. For example, when you're creating your product, performing a service, packaging, etc... You may be able to simultaneously create content out of those tasks. I'll sometimes even set up a timelapse while I'm on my laptop working and use that video to create a simple Reel! The goal here is to work smarter, not harder!

More examples of habit stacking your social media management:

• Spend 45 minutes answering emails, then 15 minutes engaging with your audience on social media

• Spend 1 hour writing a blog, then 30 minutes creating and scheduling out 2-3 posts using information from that blog

• Finish up a 1-hour session with a client, then 30 minutes editing the photos/videos you took during that session and share or schedule a post

In summary, find ways in which you can roll social media management into your current lifestyle or workflow. It doesn't need to be overly complicated. I only encourage you to ALWAYS keep your audience top of mind and focus on ways in which you can serve them. When you change your mindset, you may find that you enjoy spending time creating content and connecting with your community!