Now is the perfect time to run a social media audit. Since we’re all in the mood to start with a clean slate, what better way than to take stock of all your social media networks than in the first few months of the year?

A thorough audit of social media is important for a number of reasons:

1. It can revitalise a stale social media presence. A good sign that you need an audit is when you notice that your social media campaigns have plateaued.
2. It can give you a good indicator of what social media strategies are working and which aren’t. When you find that you’re just not raking in the growth in engagement you once enjoyed, it’s time to to adjust your strategy and the first step to that is an audit.
3. It can help you decide which social accounts to keep and which ones to unsubscribe from. Not every social media platform works the same way for each type of business. Some are not even necessary. A social media audit will help you identify which platforms are best not to waste resources on and which ones to keep as part of your social media strategy.

Let’s give your social accounts a spring clean, shall we?

Here are 5 social media audit strategies to improve your web presence:

Prepare your social media evaluation document.

List down all the social media networks you currently have active. Use a spreadsheet as opposed to writing it down or using a word document list. This helps organise your list and makes it easier to track, update, and even share. You can use your initial spreadsheet as a social media audit tool for future audits. Sample social media audit templates can be found with a quick google search to help you get started on this step. Your basic audit document should contain the following:

• Platform URL
• Log-in details
• Number of followers
• Network specific metrics like newsletter sign-ups, sales, reach/impression, engagement rates, top posts, etc.
• Other metrics like how much time is spent creating content for that specific platform, or which one requires the most interaction and upkeep. Add metrics that make sense to your business.

Analyse each social media network’s performance. 

Investigate which ones are performing well and which are not. Each platform behaves differently, so make sure that you are evaluating the platform against the correct metrics. The metrics for YouTube are not the same for Snapchat or LinkedIn. Factor that into your audit  document.

Assign a value to each of your social media networks. This helps you identify where your time and budget can be better allocated and, ultimately, which platforms to keep.

Clean up your social media profiles.

Complete all fields required and refresh all images. Update your bios, and summaries. Add new references, experiences, or resources. Most importantly, make sure your contact details are updated so that your followers will know how to reach you. Make sure that everything is up-to-date

Revisit and recalibrate.

Using the information you have gathered, look at your social media accounts and recalibrate your strategy. Your audit document will give you a good idea of what to target and where you can improve. It can also help you set new business goals.

Set a schedule to perform your social media audit.

It doesn’t matter if you choose to do it, weekly, monthly, or quarterly. The goal is to get in the habit of regularly auditing your accounts. Don’t be scared to try new platforms and remove non-performing ones. Just adjust your spreadsheet accordingly and add the ones you decided to try to your next audit. 

A complete social media audit can help you set new goals based on the stats you’ve collected. It can help you keep your social media strategies fresh and on track. It can also help you grow your social media accounts. 

Is this too overwhelming? Don’t know where to start? Delegate it. A superstar Virtual Assistant, can help you with a comprehensive social media audit and even draft a clear cut social media strategy from that data. Talk to us about how Virtual Assistants can make this task easier for you.