How much time should you be investing on Social Media?

Social media has transformed the way businesses approach marketing and there popularity is not surprisingly still growing. But have you ever wondered how long you should be spending on Social Media from a professional/business perspective? So let’s start by looking at some numbers for social media users:

• 62.3% of the worlds population use Social Media (Webindex Jan 2024)
• The average daily usage is 2 hours and 23 mins (Webindex Jan 2024)
• The average person uses 6.7 different social networks per month (Digital Global Overview report 2024)
  

It’s safe to say that Social Media is a must!

So lets start talking about why we are here. How long are businesses taking on their social media?

• 43% of small businesses spend about 6 hours per week on social media (Vertical Response survey 2023)
• The average business allocates 24% of its Marketing budget on social media (Hootesuite)

To some of us, that may feel like alot of time, to others, not so much. While social media presents excellent opportunities for businesses in terms of brand awareness, lead generation and sales, it also requires dedication. Many experts recommend spending at least 60-90 minutes per day crafting social content, engaging followers and analyzing performance. However it is important that this time is spent with a goal in mind, otherwise you will find you have wasted an hour and you are now watching videos on the restoration of an old Gameboy (if you are like me).

So is there a tangible answer, no I don’t think so. All businesses are different so will likely need to invest different time in the social media and marketing for instance.

The key is finding a balance - be active enough to see results, but don't become overwhelmed. Set a reasonable social media time allowance per week for creating and scheduling content and plan this into your diary. And don't forget the 80/20 rule - 20% of effort drives 80% of results - identify and focus on what delivers the best ROI.