Making a Contingency Plan for your Social Media
As COVD-19 has shown us, there has been a shake up of all business, big and small. Some have folded, some have stay the same, and some have pivoted. While businesses may have a financial and business plan to get them through tough times, a social media contingency plan is missed a lot of the time.
This blog is about why you need one and what it needs to contain.
Here are a few scenarios on why and when you need a contingency plan for your social media.
You or your social media person is unwell or unable to perform the task
COVID or some kind of disaster has happened
You are overloaded with work or personal issues and need to set aside that part of your business for the moment
Set up your Content Plan
First thing you need to do is set up a yearly content plan. I have a free template for you at the end of this blog post.
Map out major holidays, business anniversaries or special days, peak sales and times of year, etc.
Then start filling in your calendar. You can do this two weeks ahead, two months, but keep filling it out with content ideas and this gives you flexibility to move around subjects if things happen or something might not be relevant anymore.
Batch, Batch, Batch
Batch your posts! Sit down for a certain time each week or month and write a bunch of posts and hashtags. It’s easier to be creative in one sitting than it is to do it in dribs and drabs. Plus you’ll think of even more ideas while you are writing too! I know you’ll find it rewarding and super satisfying.
Schedule those posts
Use a platform like Later to schedule your posts. You will need to play around with times that your followers are online, but these are all available on your insights so start with them and go from there. Be consistent - so I tend to post on a Monday, Wednesday and a Friday at 1pm. This gets good results for me and Instagram recognises that I’m consistent and pushes my posts better. Pick the best days and times and start from there.
Write posts for emergencies
If something happens, have a post you can post and go. It can be very simple, just saying that there is an issue and more updates will come when you can update more. You can also draft up an email to send to your email list too if need. Your followers will appreciate your honesty and will look out for your next post on the update.
These are some of the ideas that will help you in your social media contingency plan. Add more ideas but make sure you have a guide for yourself so you know what to do!
Free Content Calendar Template HERE