How to conduct a speedy social media audit
Reading time 8 minutes
Published on September 22, 2020
Table of Contents
It's no secret that businesses today should have some sort of social media strategy.
But all too often we see companies improvising with little or no plan.
And hey, we totally understand why it happens.
Perhaps you inherited your social presence from someone who was "winging it." Maybe you haven't had the time to sit down and really dig into what's working and what's not.
Either way, conducting a quick audit can let you know whether or not your social strategy aligns with your business' goals.
In this guide and with the help of our totally free social media audit template, you'll have all the answers you need in no time flat. If you're looking for something quicker, watch our step-by-step video guide on performing an in-depth social media audit.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_cCeeInsP3s
1. Wrangle all of your existing social media profiles
First thing's first: you're going to need to take inventory of your social profiles.
This might seem like a no-brainer, right? But also consider your social profiles beyond "big" networks like Facebook or Twitter. You know, like that YouTube account with two subscribers or the Pinterest profile you haven't touched in three years.
If there are networks you're no longer active on, you don't necessarily need to track them. Just make sure they're claimed and under your company's control. On the other hand, an audit might help you uncover opportunities that are a perfect fit for the unique features of networks you’ve been ignoring.
Our social media audit template has tabs for all the major networks, but it’s simple to add a new tab for any additional platforms you use. We also included a section in the summary tab to list all of your brand’s social profiles in one place.
Once you have all your current social profiles listed, the next step is deciding which platforms you want to focus on. Chances are you're aware of your priorities, but a proper social media audit can be an eye-opener in terms of which profiles are actually your top-performers.
As a quick aside, a tool like Sprout is helpful for keeping all of your social accounts and content consolidated.
3. Make sure your branding, promotions and language are consistent
Consistent branding on social media is obviously important, but some details are easy to overlook.
As you audit your social presence, make a point to double-check that your profiles "match" when it comes to creatives, promotions and campaigns. This includes:
- Bio and "About" language (when in doubt, refer to your style guide)
- Profile and banner images
- Destination URLs and landing pages
- Hashtags
For example, brands like Skullcandy have consistent profiles from Twitter...
...to Facebook...
... and Instagram, alike.
See how that works?
If you don't run a ton of social-specific campaigns and are just trying to funnel traffic to your site, chances are not too much will change from audit to audit.
On the flip side, brands that run seasonal campaigns will need to regularly assess these details. For example, you should double-check that you aren't still running your holiday campaigns in mid-March.
7. Dig into your demographic data
From how you speak to your audience to prioritizing different content or platforms, demographic data matters.
For example, messaging for Gen Z and millennials versus Gen X and baby boomers is apples and oranges. As such, age and gender should be included as part of your social media audience.
Some networks such as Twitter and Facebook highlight this information, while Sprout’s Audience Demographics provides a high-level breakdown for all of your profiles.
Ideally, your audience data should be similar across all your platforms. If not, you may want to reconsider your messaging and content strategy for outlying networks.
8. Assess opportunities from new social media platforms
Although not all of them necessarily stick around for the long-term, new social media platforms do pop up rather regularly.
For example, maybe you're not quite sold on TikTok but are still considering opportunities there. Good! Likewise, becoming an early adopter of new platforms can help you position yourself before your competitors.
In your social media audit spreadsheet, highlight new platforms you want to explore. If you’re using our template, there’s a section for this in the “Summary” tab.
Keep in mind that this isn’t a necessity. If you’re already focused on a few networks or don’t find any new platforms that interest you at the moment, no worries.
That said, it’s always a good idea to stay on top of new and emerging social media trends.
9. Come up with new objectives and action items
At this point, your spreadsheet should be mostly filled out. Now what?
Remember that the purpose of a social media audit is to give you a better understanding of where you are currently and to make plans for the future.
Whether it’s growing your followers on a certain channel, getting more engagement or broadening your audience, you have everything you need to make more informed decisions.
In order to help make your social media assessment more actionable, we included a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) analysis section for each network in the template. You can use this area to add some high-level analysis based on all the data you collect from your audit.
Or to go a step further, conduct a full-blown SWOT analysis after your social media audit to highlight your business' most pressing opportunities.
Additional resources for Social Media Audits
How to conduct a YouTube audit in 5 steps
How to conduct a Twitter audit to improve your brand’s presence
How to do a Facebook audit in 30 minutes or less
10 steps to performing a successful Instagram audit
How to conduct a LinkedIn audit that brings your brand to life
How to conduct a speedy social media audit