Social Media
Is Paying for Social Media Management Actually Worth It?
For some small businesses, paying someone to run their socials is the best money they spend. For others it is a bonfire. Here is a straight answer on how to tell which one you are.
When does social media management pay off?
It tends to pay off when your customers are on social media, they choose partly on how you look, and you are too busy to be consistent. Cafés, gyms, salons, florists, real-estate agents and hospitality venues often fit, because people browse them visually.
It also helps when you have good material and no time. If you already take photos of finished work, events or products and they sit in your phone, a person who turns them into a regular schedule is adding something real.
In these cases the cost buys back your time and keeps the page alive, which is what the customer sees when they check you out before ringing.
When is it probably a waste?
Be honest about businesses where nobody is looking for you on social media. A drain-unblocking service or a specialist engineering contractor usually wins work through search, referrals and a good website, not through posts. Money here is often better spent on a page for each service and a tidy Google profile.
It is also a poor buy if nothing happens behind the posts. If enquiries arrive by DM and nobody answers them for three days, better posts will not help.
And it fails when the person posting knows nothing about your work. Generic stock images and borrowed captions look like every other page.
What should you be getting for the money?
Before you sign anything, ask for a clear list of what happens each month. Vague promises of 'engagement' are not a list.
- A content calendar you can see in advance, so nothing goes out as a surprise.
- Creative made for your business, using your photos where possible.
- Scheduling, so posts go out when planned.
- Replies to comments, handled in your voice, with anything tricky passed to you.
- A monthly report you can read without a dictionary.
What do you still have to do yourself?
Outsourcing does not remove you from the process. Someone has to supply the raw material: photos from jobs, news about new services, a heads-up about a busy week, a short note on what you are proud of.
Answer questions quickly when your social media manager asks them. A post about a project you did cannot be written without knowing the details, and getting it wrong is worse than skipping it.
Plan on a short, regular check-in. Ten minutes a week of sending photos and approving the calendar is the difference between a page that sounds like you and one that sounds like nobody.
How do you decide, in practice?
Try this test. Ask your last five customers how they found you and whether they looked at your socials before calling. If most say referral or Google, put your money into your website and search first.
If they say they saw your page, followed you or messaged you there, the channel matters and outsourcing is worth a trial. Start with a short commitment you can walk away from. Avoid contracts that lock you in for a year before you have seen anything.
Judge it by business outcomes you can name: more enquiries, more bookings, more walk-ins, more people mentioning a post. Likes alone are not an outcome.
What does HoneyPot offer?
Our social media management starts from $498 per month. It includes a content calendar and creative, scheduling and comment replies, and a monthly plain-English report. It can be cancelled with 30 days' notice.
Questions people ask
Can I just do it myself?
Yes, if you have the time to be consistent. Outsourcing is for when you know it matters but cannot keep up with it.
Does every business need social media?
No. If your customers find you through search and referrals, a strong website and Google profile may serve you better.
Get a clear quote
Tell us what the business does and where. We reply with what is included and what it costs. You own the site.