5 Reasons Not to Outsource Your Social Media

By Jamie Fairbairn

Running your own business and keeping your website up-to-date can be very time consuming. When you add social media into the mix you may be tempted to outsource it as you simply don’t have the time to tweet or update your Facebook page.

However, before you sign your brand away to a consultant, consider these five reasons why you shouldn’t outsource your social media activity.

The clue is in the name
Social media is all about interaction. If you outsource this then you’re not communicating with customers and suppliers genuinely. Many businesses choose to outsource their social media activities but wouldn’t dream of sending an ‘outsider’ to represent them at a networking meeting or business conference; why should your online relationships be any different?

Lack of cohesion
How does your social media strategy tie in with your overall marketing strategy? Do you have the time to brief the person you’re outsourcing to about your offline and online marketing efforts?
If your social media and other marketing plans are not consistent, you get end up doing more harm than good by outsourcing your social media.

Experience
The likelihood is you set up your own business because you’re passionate about it and have the relevant experience. By putting someone else in charge of your social media are you still confident these qualities will come across?

Continuity
The relationship between you and a social media expert or agency may start well but what happens if you’re not happy further down the line or the person leaves and goes to another firm?
It will be hard to find someone else to take on your Twitter and Facebook activities and keep exactly the same tone of voice.
If you train a couple of staff in-house to do your social media even if one of them leaves, you will still have someone else who can take the reins without your online image changing.

Cost
Does your business really need to have a strong social media presence? Some companies feel they have to engage on sites like Twitter because everyone else is doing it. What’s right for one type of business may not be right for yours.
Before you invest in outsourcing your social media, it’s wise to think about the cost and the return on investment you’re likely to achieve.