In an ideal world, every marketing department has an unlimited budget and endless time to spend on social media but that’s not really a reality for most businesses. Outsourcing sometimes gets a bad rap but it’s often the best strategy for businesses who want the most bang for their limited marketing buck. We’ll get to what to look for in an outsourcing arrangement in a minute, but first let’s talk about what outsourcing is not. If you want to use someone outside the company to manage your social media, make sure you don’t: • Put your accounts in the hands of someone in a drastically different time zone than your target demographic. You want to rapid responses to questions or comments from your fans and followers; an hour or two at most during standard business hours. That’s unlikely to happen if your social media managers are snoozing in Australia as you start your workday in Seattle.

1. Do's & Don'ts for Outsourcing
your Social Media

2. In an ideal world, every marketing department has an unlimited budget and endless
time to spend on social media but that’s not really a reality for most businesses.
Outsourcing sometimes gets a bad rap but it’s often the best strategy for businesses
who want the most bang for their limited marketing buck. We’ll get to what to look for
in an outsourcing arrangement in a minute, but first let’s talk about what outsourcing
is not.
If you want to use someone outside the company to manage your social media, make
sure you don’t:
• Put your accounts in the hands of someone in a drastically different time zone than
your target demographic. You want to rapid responses to questions or comments from
your fans and followers; an hour or two at most during standard business hours. That’s
unlikely to happen if your social media managers are snoozing in Australia as you start
your workday in Seattle.
• Overlook cultural nuances that are important to your customer. Celeb Boutique
posted this unfortunate tweet during thehorrific massacre in Aurora, COsimply
because the #Aurora hashtag was trending

3. What to look for when outsourcing your social
media?
• Responsive
• Aware
• Effective
• Reliable

4. Responsive
Is the team available during the hours your target audience is most likely to
be online? As we already noted, it's critical to respond to social media
messages in a timely manner so customers feel they're being listened to. Be
sure the team has permission to answer basic questions on your behalf to
avoid wasting time getting every response vetted by 14 middle managers
and a board member.

5. Aware
Is the team up to speed on internet culture? Do they understand the
subtleties of your industry enough to interact with your audience? Can they
walk the line between professional and engaging without being too dry or
too cheeky? For most companies, family-friendly updates are the ideal while
risque or polarizing political messages should be avoided.

6. Effective
Does the team have a demonstrable history of providing the results you're
looking for? Whether you're looking to grow your followers on Facebook or
encourage people to join your LinkedIn group, the most effective social
media managers are able to show they've been down that road before and
know what it takes to help you reach your goal.

7. Reliable
The best Twitter updates in the world won't mean a thing if the people
behind the curtain are sporadic in their content placement or erratically
available to monitor your accounts. Effective social media management
means constant vigilance and a willingness to pivot quickly when an
opportunity to promote your business presents itself. Oreo absolutely nailed
this concept during the famous Super Bowl blackout of 2013.

8. Despite what you may have heard, social media isn’t a “set it and forget it”
affair. For real results, you need a team that can handle the heavy lifting of
consistent and dynamic messaging across several channels. Outsourcing
your social marketing frees you up to focus on the parts of your business
that need you while knowing your customers are still getting the attention
they deserve.
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