What Are the Benefits and Disadvantages of Using Scheduling Tools?

While most of us may use just one social media platform for personal use, many organizations use multiple platforms to maximize their reach to the public. In addition to helping them manage work efficiently, what are the reasons why organizations use such tools. What are the benefits and disadvantages of using them?

I’ve also used scheduling tools such as Hootesuite and Buffer for work before. For me, the greatest benefit is that I can manage all platforms in the same place, including writing and publishing posts, and generating the analytics for each platform. These tools also let me plan ahead and visualize the post schedule on a monthly basis. This is very handy when I want to ensure that I am not missing any days or when I need to pace out event promotions online. It seems like these factors are also the top benefits that others have shared based on their experience as well.

Of course, there are downsides too. If I do not spend time to customize posts, the readers may find the content awkward. For example, have you seen the line “Link in Bio Above” in a Facebook post? That line is for Instagram users to click on the website link in the profile header to access more information so it is not necessary to be included for Facebook. Or have you seen an Instagram post with only 280 characters and maybe even full of acronyms or shortened words such as IDK, BRB, IMHO? Probably the post was originally written for Twitter but was not altered for Instagram which has a longer character limit. Without customization, your posts may sound very robotic and impersonalized which may eventually damage your brand. Likewise, people have shared additional disadvantages.

Since the introduction of Hootsuite and Buffer, the market has seen the launch of many more tools such as Later, Shortstack, Planoly, Loomly and more. If you are using Twitter only, Tweetdeck is an option. The “Best in 2022” list is already out.

Do you use scheduling apps? Which one do you use and how do you evaluate it?

Photo by cottonbro from Pexels

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Facebook: How do you schedule your social media posts? Do you use any tools? What are the advantages and disadvantages? Read about my experiences at https://bit.ly/3ELFsUc

Twitter: How do you schedule your social media posts? Do you use any tools? What are the advantages and disadvantages? Read about my experiences at https://bit.ly/3ELFsUc           

#socialtrends2022 #SocialMediaScheduler #socialmedia #socialmediatools

What Do You Like to Post On Social Media?

Have you ever done an audit of what you post on social media? What type of content do you share with your audience?

Photo credit: FWU

I checked my Facebook profile and my last post (excluding posts where I was tagged by others or when I updated the cover photo) was in April 2021. In that post I asked which of my friend attended certain university as I wanted to borrow a book from the library. The previous post before then was in January 2021. It was a photo of my lament over the 2021 Winter “Stay home order” captioned over January 2020 flight over the Aegean Sea.

There are many types of posts that people can share on social media, including photos, videos, pure text, stories, opinions, update in life, link to other articles or reposts of other people’s content. Research show that on Facebook and Instagram, the top type of post in 2020 is photos (70.3% and 66.0% respectively). Specifically, selfies were the main type of posts by teenagers in 2006 and 2012, at 70% and 91% respectively. In a newer research also by Pew Research in 2018, 40% of US teenagers said they posted about accomplishment, 44% posted about family and 34% posted about their emotions.  

Though I do not post much, I do enjoy reading the following content from businesses and personal accounts.

Businesses:

• Contests, gift giveaways, coupons, special offer, discounts, product promotion
• Food menu, recipes
• Business history, Did-You-Know’s
• Guest or customer compliments
• Industry or business updates

photo credit: (Left) https://www.facebook.com/akispetretzikisofficialpage / (RIGHT) https://www.instagram.com/nextdoorrestaurant/

Personal posts:

• Jokes, memes, humour
• Exercise
• Fun, food, party
• Covid vaccine shots
• Travel

photo credit: (LEFT) https://www.instagram.com/mapandwanderlust / (RIGHT) personal friend

What do you usually post on your social media? What do you enjoy reading from your friends or from local businesses? What will you post next?

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Facebook:
What do you like to post on social media and how does that compare with others? Find out more at https://bit.ly/3Ikam8n

Twitter:
What do you like to post on social media and how does that compare with others? Find out more at
https://bit.ly/3Ikam8n

#content #contentmarketing #socialmediapost #contentdistribution #socialmediahabit #selfie

How Can Charities Engage Supporters Through Social Media?

Website and social media are often the primary outlets for the public to find out more about charities. If the content is carefully drafted, these free social media posts can provide tons of information to engage the readers. They also can potentially convert a new visitor to a donor or volunteer!

There is a myriad of content that charities can share online and readers react differently depending on the content. If you are visiting a charity’s social media for the first time, what type of content would most pique your interest?

Statistics

Statista projects that in 2021, we will create 74 zettabytes of data and will create 180 zettabytes of data by 2025 (one ZB is 10²¹ or 1 followed by 21 zeros). This is a massive pool of data that can be generated into statistics. Charities can use stats to present the results of years of research or summarize annual accomplishment. They can show giving trends and help management with the following year’s budget planning.

Traditionally, statistics are presented as bar graphs or charts or in a simple sentence that can be dull to the readers. But recently, infographics turn plain numbers into more interesting visualizations that are better received by readers.

Do you find statistics boring? What types of statistics interest you and help you understand a charity more?

Source: https://cancer.ca/en/research/cancer-statistics/cancer-statistics-at-a-glance
Photo by Nik Shuliahin on Unsplash

Source: https://cancer.ca/en/research/cancer-statistics/cancer-statistics-at-a-glance

Source: www.cancer.ca/statistics

Myths vs Facts

Science and technology have advanced much over the past decades. What we know as true decades ago may no longer be so with new scientific discoveries. If we disseminate outdated knowledge, they can eventually become myths and can hinder public awareness for the causes. Continuous education will help us stay informed about charities and the meaningful work they do in the community.

Did social media posts debunk any myths for you?

Source: https://www.understood.org/articles/en/common-myths-about-adhd
Photo by Anissa Thompson from FreeImages

Impact Stories & Quotes

While statistics and facts tug our rational side of the brain, stories about the faces of the charities appeal to our emotional and sentimental side. Whether they are stories of volunteers, donors, staff or service recipients, the testimonies can speak volumes about how the charity’s work is impacting their lives. The stories, presented as a story series (Parts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5) or linked back to the website or as a simple appreciative quote, can detail the transformation in people’s lives BEFORE and AFTER the charity enters into their lives. From darkness to light! Despair to hope!

Have you been touched by the testimonies from a charity? Are you willing to share your experience with charities in their social media posts?

Source: https://www.facebook.com/ShineThroughTRF/photos/a.136196689786769/6418494188223623/

An Invitation to Participate

Charities do not want to use social media just as a one-way communications channel to the public. Charities can also initiate conversation with the audience. Maybe a simple question for the audience to answer in the comment or ask them to fill in a blank in the sentence or perhaps an invitation to an upcoming event. Most importantly, social media helps charities in solicitating donation such as those recent posts reminding us to donate on Giving Tuesday.

Source: https://www.facebook.com/PrairieHospice/photos/a.1662921620586079/3172162026328690/

Photo by Samantha Gades on Unsplash

So What Do You Post?

Although there are many types of social media content that charities can use to engage the audience, charities must be prudent in balancing what to post in order to engage the audience. It will take time to experiment with different posts, but in the long run, analytics will confirm which type of content is more welcomed by the audience.

Do you respond more to one type of content over another? If you are researching about a charity you have never heard of before, what type of content do you want to see and will most help you understand the charity?

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Facebook:

When it comes to learning about a new charity, do you tend to respond more to statistics or to heartwarming stories about its people? What are other types of content that charities post to dialogue with you? Read more at https://bit.ly/3CE7K18

#charitystory #charity #news #charitystatistics #charitystats #GivingTuesday #Nonprofits #donations

Twitter:

Are you more responsive to a charity’s statistics or its people’s stories? What are other types of content that charities post to dialogue with you? More at https://bit.ly/3CE7K18

#charitystory #charity #news #charitystatistics #charitystats #GivingTuesday #Nonprofits #donations

Didn’t You See That Wardrobe Malfunction Before Posting?

Image credit: Pixabay

As a smartphone user, I have a massive collection of photos of myself with other people taken at various events. Regardless of who the photographer was, they have one commonality: they are memories that I cherish very much. Yet they can also be my nightmares, especially when they were posted without my consent or could have possible adverse consequences in the future. Since social media does not ask us if we have consent from everyone in the photo before we click “POST”, we need to consider other people’s privacy and wishes before posting photos. Or even before taking those photos.

Did you see that online?

You would think that as adults, my friends and I would be careful before sharing anything online. Not always.

As an example: As soon as I saw a friend posted a photo of me standing next to a radiant bride at her wedding, I called my friend and asked her to remove it. Messaging her was just not fast enough. I needed it deleted IMMEDIATELY!! Why? I did not want the whole world to see the minor wardrobe malfunction on my dress. Thankfully that “Please delete that” phone call kept the number of people who saw that photo to a minimal.

Another time a teenager posted her friend’s student card on Facebook, complete with her photo, school name, grade and year. Nothing was blurred. I asked that teenager to remove it due to safety reasons.

Do not think that I was careful in posting on my profile either. Long ago, some classmates and I were at an event to smash computer monitors with a baseball bat after two very intense terms in a computer lab. Of course, some photos appeared on my Facebook profile afterwards. My phone dinged with a Messenger notification from another “smasher” requesting me to untag her. She was in the process of job search and did not want prospective employers to discover that.

Monitors, keyboards and printers celebrated our end of term with us. Photo credit: FWU

In hindsight, I would…

These incidents had taught me to be more careful when posting anything online, not just photos. Although Kalev Leetaru from Forbes argued that social media has normalized the idea of sharing without consent, I still follow one simple rule before posting photos of others: ASK for permission, unless I already know they are comfortable with posting without consent.

To prevent my photos being posted is simple: let my friends know that I do not want my photos posted. Better still, just tell them not to take photos of me. This is especially true if I am a non social media user.

Another way to minimize undesirable consequences is to think before posting and think twice before posting children’s photo. In general, here is a list of Do’s and Do Not’s when it comes to posting on social media.

How about you?

Take some time today to scroll through your social media profiles. Ask yourself how many times you checked for consent before taking and posting those photos. What are some guidelines that you follow when it comes to posting other people’s photos online? Did you ever have to ask someone to remove your photo? Did others asked you to remove theirs?

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Facebook:

Memories of seeing photos of my wardrobe malfunction on ANOTHER PERSON’s Facebook profile still haunt me. How could I have avoided future mishaps for myself and for others? Read about my experience and some Do’s and Do Not’s at https://bit.ly/3qC2zMG

Twitter:

Have you ever posted a friend’s photo online, only to be asked to delete it afterwards? Always remember to ASK for consent before posting. Read about my mistakes and some Do’s and Do Not’s at https://bit.ly/3qC2zMG

#socialmedia #posting #consent #photographs