6 Steps for Sweeping Up Social Media

Now that we're into a new year and everyone has fallen back into a schedule (right?), it's a great time to review your social media accounts. After all, you've already made your New Year's resolutions and decided on your three words to follow for the year. Or, at least you've really thought about doing that? (wink, wink) Actually, I made no resolutions and I don't have a clue, yet, of what my three words would be for this year except for "Make More Coffee." However, I'm not waiting on "Spring Cleaning" time to tidy up my social media accounts. A new year is a great time to perform a little "sweeping up" of your social media. I suggest doing this while on a full desktop and not mobile. My recommendations below apply to personal accounts, business accounts, and sometimes both. These six easy steps to freshen your Facebook, Twitter, or other social media accounts may take you a little time right now but are worth the efforts.

1. Review Your Facebook Groups

When's the last time you took a loot at your Facebook Groups? Take a moment and look at the groups you're a member of. Do you really want to still be in that secret group created by someone 4 years ago, that hasn't had anything posted in 3 years? You can also hit "Leave Group" in the mobile Facebook Groups app, but again reviewing on the full desktop version seems easier to me. We all evolve over time. Not only might you want to leave groups, you may find new groups to join that represent current and recently discovered interests. If you want to make sure you don't miss a post by a certain Group, check your settings.

2. Audit Your Facebook Pages

Much like reviewing your Facebook Groups, take a moment and review the Pages you've liked. Look in the margin on the left. Under "Pages," you'll see "Like Pages." Click on that to see a page that will show you "Top Suggestions," "Invites", and "Liked Pages." The first tab is pretty self-explanatory. Pages that your friends have invited you to like will show up under that second tab. You'll probably find some here that you had no idea you had bee invited to "like." On that note, consider yourself invited to "like" LMCB Social on Facebook. The more the merrier! The third tap shows the pages you've already "liked." Discovering pages whose posts you're not seeing? Go to that page and make sure you've chosen correctly for what you want to see in your News Feed.

3. Freshen Up Your Header Images

Does your "Cover Photo" on Facebook still represent the holiday season? Change it if so. If it doesn't, now is a good time to freshen it up anyway. If you don't have a good image that you want to use, think about what would be good in your space and plan for it. The same applies for your Twitter header photo. Whatever you use, if it's for business purposes, make sure that it's consistent accross your various social media accounts. This doesn't mean that it must be the same photo, but it should at least be similar or present the same tone.

4. Rewrite Descriptions

This applies to almost all of your social media accounts, and it doesn't need to be a major rewrite. Just change a few words or a phrase. Keep it fresh. If you've never thought about keywords when it comes to your social media accounts and descriptions, there's no time like the present. Last year, Social Media Examiner posted a great article that dives into this subject. Click here to see that.

5. Unpin Outdated Posts

Being on the other side of the holiday season now, you may have forgotten about that "special offer" you pinned to the top of your Facebook page or your Twitter account. If you haven't pinned a new post recently, at least make sure your pinned post isn't irrelevant at this point.

6. Have Fun

Remember, social media started as a way to be social. It doesn't matter whether it's Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, or whatever. By all means, don't get too caught up in the technical aspects of whatever social channel(s) you prefer. Remember to talk to people, post what makes you happy, and have fun with it!

Happy New Year!! Now, go forth and be social!