Seven Behaviors of Successful Social Media Managers

There was a time not that long ago in which managing three to four social networks would not have been a problem. Today this can be quite a feat - the competition out there is bigger than ever before and your brand's messages are not getting the same attention they previously received.

Developing the right habits is the best way to get your brand to stand out of the crowd as well as get your customers to pay attention in the B2C and B2B space. Here are seven habits which highly effective social media managers have incorporated:

Have Defined Goals

Not setting specific goals is one of the biggest mistakes you can make with social media. If you do not have goals, you have no heading and are just wasting your time.

Although this may seem like a no brainer, it is astounding how many of us are not really aware of what our specific goals with social media are. There are many individuals who are unable to identify the business impact which every one of their daily responsibilities has.

In the words of the great Earl Nightingale: "The reason why people with goals succeed is because they are aware of where they are going."

Follow these three tips to set goals which are clear and actionable:

• Be As Specific As Possible - Be clear, stating you want 10,000 followers next month, is much more effective than merely saying; "I want more followers."
• Take it One step at a time - small consistent improvement build giant communities.
• Set Goals Which Will Change Your Business - In what way would 4,000 followers benefit the bottom line of your business? How will you raise sales by increasing your reach? By taking the time to ask and answer these types of questions, it will be easier to determine whether the goal is one that is worth setting.

Take Care of the Difficult Tasks First

It is stated by popular belief that the easiest tasks such as answering questions, commenting on an image, sharing new content, etc. should be done first. That being said, people who are successful believe it's the opposite.

There have been several studies which have proven that in the morning your willpower is at its peak, in other words at the beginning of your work day. This indicates this is the ideal time to do the things which you may not want to do. Then, once your will power is not as strong, you can place your focus on tasks which are simpler.

Productivity is increased with this type of schedule, this indicates that you will also be saving time.

Skill Up

Skilling up is important and can benefit the business as much as the individual. Good social media managers are trained in the skills that help them provide great online customer support. This helps them enjoy the work they do and turns their job into a career. Businesses ideally should provide training to staff in this regard.

Additionally, it's never any hard to ensure other members of staff are savvy too in the social media area. Companies such as ApprenticeshipsManchester.com provide social media training that fits this bill and can greatly benefit staff and the business as a whole.

Maintain Organization

This may once again seem obvious, however the key to effectiveness is staying organized. This is exactly why there are countless "productivity" tools online which focus on organizing social medial tasks as well as workflow.

When your activities are organized, you are able to stay focused on the things that really matter. This encourages accountability. It is important to make sure that not only you, but also your team are using tools such as Slack or Trello to share ideas, communicate and organize the task load.

Understand what a "Social Listener" is and Become One

It is odd how social media managers tend to forget about being social.

You miss out on many great growth opportunities when you are not listening to what people online are saying. If you are always aware to what your audience is saying, you find out more about their opinion on your brand, the content they are interested in reading as well as the language which is used to describe their issues.

You can use tools such as Google Alerts or Mention.net to help you develop this habit. Every time your brand is mentioned by someone or important keywords are used on social media, these tools will send you an email notification.

On top of this, designate a certain time of each day to interact with your audience and answer any questions they may have.

Connect With Others Daily

The key to success is based off of strong relationships. It's not only true in business, but in everything that is done. This is why it's important to always be engaging your audience as well as building new relationships with those who influence the industry.

Serving others is the best way to build relationships that will last. Begin by giving more than you receive. This can be done by sharing other's content, offering them ideas as well as commenting on what they post. When this approach is taken, the community that you are creating will be more loyal and long term.

Share Amazing Content

A great social media manager will know his or her audience so well that they will know the articles that will get the best response. This is why habits four and five are so important. The more you know your audience, the more you are able to provide the best content.

Once you are aware of the content you audience loves, create a list of go-to resources where you can very quickly access fresh content and then share it. Being as one of the most time consuming processes on social media is content curation, this list will really save you lots of time.