You used to post to your social accounts EVERY.DAY… and then it became a few times a week, and then once or twice… and now you’re scratching your head wondering if that post you intended on writing ever made it live last week. 

I get it.

Keeping on top of  “all the things” as a business owner in HARD. Between invoicing, admin, client management, inquiries, and every other thing that somehow needs our immediate attention, social media often falls in the “not enough time” basket and the urge to outsource it becomes REAL.

But before you start googling “cheap social media management services”…

I want to tell you something: There’s a difference between social media MANAGEMENT and social media “MAINTENANCE” (not actually sure that’s a thing… but roll with me here).

MANAGING social media involves strategy.

Managing social media involves strategy. It requires taking the time to get to know a client’s target market and audience, understanding their product/service intimately, keeping on top of new trends, influencers and competitors in key demographics, creating and generating content for you, working on paid advertising, and crafting a tailored and strategic media plan to help your business GROW.

MAINTENANCE is more about keeping things afloat.

Maintenance is more about keeping things afloat. It’s making sure you maintain an online presence through regular posts, engage with your followers and interact with other key accounts to make you appear “active” online. They might also suggest some content ideas for you to develop.

Both of these services are VALUABLE! A lot of people know what they want from their socials but just don’t have the time to physically do the posting and the interacting. And for them, the more “maintenance” approach is great!

Beware of cheap, no-value services

But if you’re feeling completely in the dark about social media and are looking for someone to really get things moving for you… do not… I repeat… DO. NOT be sucked into a cheap, no-value service offering you “social media management from $150/month”.

Can I be honest? (Ha! As if I’m ever filtered!)

You might find helpful social media “maintenance” services from $250/month, but really good social media “management” services should cost you upwards of $1000/month because it’s truly worth that. #truth

Moral of the story? Don’t throw your money—and your BRAND—away to a virtual assistant offering cheap social media management! Do your research first and know what you’re getting in return for parting with your hard-earned dollars. You want the ROI to be worth it.

Note: This is not an ad.

And in case you were thinking this was going to end with me pitching my own management services (Ha!) I should mention that I do not offer social media management as a service. But if you’re drowning, I do offer 1-on-1 Strategy Sessions to demystify social media land and help you develop your own strategy that you’ll feel confident implementing (until you can afford to hire outside help if that’s your end goal).