4 Ways to Manage Your Social Media Over the Christmas Break

With Christmas creeping up closely it’s almost about time to pack up the office and flee the 9-5. But hang on a second… drop that suitcase and giant inflatable! Before you trot off, let me ask you this question – have you considered your social media?

There are some simple ways you can switch off but still post some exciting content. The only thing you won’t be able to do is actively respond to comments on your posts, but it’s still better than nothing (well, as far as keeping the algorithm happy, it’s better than nothing.)

To ensure your vacay is as stress-free as possible we’ve prepared 4 tips to help manage your social media over the holiday period so you can leave for the break, and actually have a break.

1. Plan it out.

Before diving straight in, it’s always beneficial to devise a clear plan of the content you will be posting over the holiday period, and to which social networks you’ll be doing it. Have a think about what aspects of your social media you need to take care of while you’re away. A content calendar can help with this. They help you lay out all the posts you want to share over the coming weeks and will ensure you’re not leaving it until the last minute and rushing around in the middle of the peak season trying to create content.

2. Post your holiday hours.

The Christmas period brings a change from the norm, with many businesses having different opening and closing times during the holiday season, so If you are going on vacation then simply let your audience know when you are away! Be sure to change your business operating hours too as you don’t want is a countless number of incoming calls while you’re in the middle of taking that well-earned snooze. Also, ensure you make your business hours clear on ALL of your various social media platforms and don’t forget to set out-of-office reply in your email as it will inform people your whereabouts.

3. Use Canva.

I feel Christmas marketing wouldn’t be complete without eye-catching features on your social media pages and Christmas provides the perfect excuse to post a bit more than usual, and jazz up the content to suit.

Visuals are important because they evoke emotional appeal and people are subconsciously more inclined to take notice, retain information and take action. I also recommend checking out Canva. To me, it’s social media’s secret weapon, and you don’t need to have a creative bone in your body! It’s a user-friendly graphic design tool which offers a full list of design options and ready-to-use templates, and the awesome thing about it is it’s FREE.

4. Schedule your content.

Do you really want to be posting and thinking up content when you’re sitting quietly on the beach, sipping a margarita? Didn’t think so…

The “scheduling tool” on Facebook and apps like Hootsuite for all other platforms are lifesavers for the holiday periods and is one of the best features on social media for small businesses is the ability to schedule content. This tool allows us to get ahead of the holiday rush and scheduling a weekly bulk of quality content will allow you to focus on other areas of your business while your posts reach the intended audience. Also, something to pay extra attention to makes sure all scheduled posts have the proper links connected accounts tagged, and captions ready because you don’t want to be creating extra work for yourself by fixing these mistakes.

The Christmas season gives you an opportunity to be creative with your social marketing and capitalise on the joy and spirit of Christmas, and with a little bit of careful thought and consideration of your social media and you’ll be able to still keep in touch with your followers AND have a well-deserved break.

Do you have any tips to handle social media during the holidays? What are your tricks to tackle it? I’d love to hear your feedback, so comment below and let me know. Virtual Assist works closely with clients in planning and managing social media on your behalf, so if you need some assistance with this feel free to contact us.

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And until next time, keep up the good work!