Show notes

Episode 88 - Things not to say to your social media manager.

Esther 

Good morning. And welcome to the Monday Morning Marketing Podcast. I'm Esther.

Melanie

And I'm Melanie.

Esther 

And today we're talking about things not to say to your social media manager.

Melanie

So this is stuff we've basically heard around the social media managers water cooler over the last couple of years. And believe me, we do actually have these chats normally in social platforms, normally like a messenger or something like that. But this is just more for fun than anything else. Sometimes we may have heard this. Maybe somebody else has heard this and some of them, we're just making up as well. We're going to let you try and work out which ones we're making up

Esther 

and which ones we've actually heard.

Melanie

So who's going to go first? You or me?.

Esther 

I'll go first. I'll go first, getting started. Can we make this go viral?

Melanie

Oh, God. Yeah, that's a good one. It's really hard to make stuff go viral. Everything needs to be absolutely perfect

Esther 

or absolutely non-perfect. And have loads of mistakes and have it that people are sharing it because of the loads of mistakes or, like you say, absolutely perfect and everybody needs it and everybody sharing it because of that.

Melanie

So it's really difficult to have a happy medium and say, we can make this go viral. Man, we can pretty much have an understanding of what does go viral. And sometimes we can make stuff go viral, but we can't absolutely guarantee it.

Esther 

No. Plus, it all depends on world events at that moment.

Melanie

Yes.

Esther 

So it could be the perfect conditions. It could be the perfect topic, the perfect everything. And then something happens in the world that takes over the news and takes over everything else and you're post, publication, whatever it is that you want to go viral, video gets lost in that chatter.

Melanie

So I've got one.

Esther 

Yep.

Melanie

Can I pick your brain about this

Esther 

Free stuff

Melanie

Yeah.

Melanie

So this could happen outside the school gates. This could happen at a networking event? No, no, no, it's fine. Let me buy you a coffee and we'll just have a quick chat.

Melanie

So, yeah, it can be a little...

Esther 

there are times that we can give things and information away for free, you know, but at the end of the day, it's our livelihood. We have to make money. You wouldn't just call a Pinter over to your house and go, can you let me see what the colour would look like on that wall? And maybe on this other wall to, you know, without paying him for it?

Melanie

Say, that does happen a fair bit.

Esther 

Yup. I have one that I have always enjoyed listening to, and it's my teenage nephew thinks that I should be on insert brand new social media platform here. And it will do wonders for my business.

Melanie

You know, your teenager nephew might actually be right, but the chances are you're probably already on the right platforms or you're only on the right platforms anyway. And you might stand a chance of being on the wrong one by taking his advice. So it really depends, doesn't it?

Esther 

It does. But jumping on each every and every new shiny object of a new and shiny social media platform. Because, let's face it, there are so many social media platforms. We all know the major ones, the ones that have been around for years. But even then, you know, they are changing so much. But like you said, you might have been on the proper one when you started, but they've changed so much that you're now not. But because you've always been on it and. Oh, but we've oh, that's another one. We've always done it this way.

Melanie

Oh, yeah, that's a good one. We've always done it this way. There is some truth to that. Actually, your core beliefs don't change. However, it's not necessarily always what you're doing in the past. That's sufficient to see through to the future. I think people understand that, like a long term brand like Nike or McDonalds or something like that. But even they have to shift and change things up occasionally.

Esther 

Yeah. Yeah, definitely. I mean, they have to roll with the changes. And, like, we were just discussing before coming on air, social media changes every what.

Melanie

A couple of months.

Esther 

sometimes every day.

Melanie

I do a social media round up that I sent off on my website every single month. And it's hilarious, because as I'm going through scanning through each week, what's going to go up? I can say one thing. Let's say, for Facebook. And the following week, they've added something else to it as well. I'm thinking, Well, why didn't you just do that last week? So sometimes I've seen it six or seven items go up on under Facebook for that one month.

Esther 

I know, because it changes so quickly and so often. Then you can't always guarantee that what you did that was working last month or even six months ago will even work anymore. So the whole we've always done it this way won't necessarily get you the results that you were getting six months ago.

Melanie

No, I agree. So I've got one now.

Melanie

Yes.

Esther 

You must spend hours doing your social media. You must do. I don't. I really don't. It's a fallacy. You know, it's. I think it took hours when I first started and. But, you know, I've got children. I've got a house to run. I've got chores like everybody else in the family and other interests. I know people don't believe that, but it's true. I do have other interests. And so, you know, it's just practice, but I've heard people say to me, you must spend hours doing your social media, but I really don't. What about you?

Esther 

Yes. I would spend longer doing client social media, like over because we run their social media. It's not like you do the training, but because we run their social media then

Melanie

But it doesn't take you hours.

Esther 

No, it doesn't. But between all of them. Yes, it would take longer. But, yeah, we're not sitting on social media scrolling through it to, like, a lot of people like the consumers of social media would do

Melanie

because people plan ahead a lot, don't we? 

Esther 

Planning, but then rolling with the changes like we mentioned earlier, if there's a world event, you have to know to jump in and avoid any issues. But one that I got was so you get paid to sit on Facebook all day.

Melanie

Oh. Yeah, yeah. That's what I do. Yeah.

Esther 

Yeah. That's all I do. All I do is to sit on Facebook all day. It's not because we have to investigate all the changes.

Melanie

Well, exactly. I mean, we have to stay on top of these changes in order to let our clients know and to train people and to just stay on top of things. If we don't update our own knowledge, why would anybody trust what we have to say or do.

Esther 

Exactly. Exactly.

Melanie

Oh, yeah. You do social media. So could you just knock me up some images, please? Yeah. Just as part of. Yeah. Just knock up a few images and what. Well, I could. if I'm a graphic designer, but I'm not. I'm a social media trainer. Social media manager. Exactly what images products stock. So you want me to come in, take photos, set the scene, sort out the lighting? Yes. Okay. So that's daily rate. I just think people just don't appreciate the work that goes into just knocking up a few pictures, because it will be what kind of writing do you want and what kind of call to action? What font do you use? What brand colours do you use? And you know, in essence, I think that's why I find it much easier to show people how to do it for themselves, because then they understand the work that goes behind.

Esther 

Yeah. Yeah. And it could take hours to do an image. It can take forever because you're looking for the right stuff, especially if you're not a graphic designer. But then if you hire a graphic design, you're already paying for their knowledge at the time of the experience that they already have, hires a graphic designer or come to an agency that has a graphic designer included. There's so many so many that we could mention

Melanie

One more. One more. I sell to everyone. Everyone's my client.

Esther 

Of course they are. Of course they are. Including the baby down the street

Melanie

and old Mother Hubbard. To some extent, some products or services, I don't know, do extend to a broad range of people. And I do get that. But all of them need information to be sent to them in different ways. They perceive it in different ways on the different images, on a different word, in different calls to action, probably different platforms as well, Esther.

Esther 

Yeah. Oh, definitely. And that's another thing that people think they need to be on every single platform. No, you need to be where your audience is. Don't jump on you and shiny until you know if your audience is there and after a few months in, you and shine could disappear or, you know, be taken over by another new and shiny. So, guys, we've just been talking to you today about things that we hear, like Melanie says around the water cooler; things that other social media managers have said. That just reminds us how delicate the social media world is and how much you need to appreciate your social media managers because at the end of the day, we are behind the scenes learning all the new changes about social media so you don't have to.

Melanie

And it really isn't as easy as people think it is. It really isn't, because there's so many places, so many sources that we need to get our information from, and we have to sit down and thoroughly understand it in a format that you guys are going to understand as well. I didn't notice as time has flown, Esther

Esther 

Yes,

Melanie

That's absolutely flown by

Esther 

It flies when you're having fun.

Melanie

But, yeah, this is only meant to be lighthearted. It's only meant to be just stuff that we picked up over the last few years. And I hope you've learnt something that you can take away and hopefully never mentioned to your social media manager.

Esther 

Or If you are a social media manager and of anything to add, we'd love to hear what you hear as well from your clients because we know there are loads more. That's it for today. Guys. Thank you for joining us and have an excellent week, and we'll see you next week for more Monday Morning Marketing. Bye bye!

Melanie

Bye.