Social media management means planning, writing, designing and publishing content, replying to comments and messages, then measuring the results and adjusting the plan every month. Most disputes between companies and whoever runs their accounts come from nobody writing down who does what, so this article starts with the division of work.
You'll find a responsibility table you can put in a contract or share with your team, a four-week working cycle, and a way to judge the results.
What does management actually cover?
The work falls into five tracks, each with its own skills:
- Planning: goals, platforms and monthly themes.
- Production: copy, images and short video.
- Publishing: scheduling content at the right time for each platform.
- Engagement: answering comments and messages, and passing requests to sales.
- Measurement: reading the numbers and deciding what continues and what stops.
Paid advertising is separate work with its own budget and skills. Say so explicitly in your agreement, so nobody assumes it's included.
The responsibility table
An outside party can't know your customers, prices and offers the way you do. Here's a practical split you can adapt:
| Task | Company | Account manager |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly goal | Decides | Proposes |
| Offers, prices and facts | Supplies and checks | Writes them up |
| Content calendar | Approves | Prepares |
| Copy and design | Reviews once | Produces |
| On-site filming | Prepares the place and people | Sets the brief |
| Publishing and scheduling | Nothing | Executes |
| General questions in messages | Provides approved answers | Replies |
| Complaints and special cases | Decides and replies | Passes on immediately |
| Closing the sale | Executes | Hands over the customer's details |
| Account ownership | Owns | Works with temporary access |
Pay special attention to the last row. The page and the ad account should be in the company's name, and the manager should have access you can withdraw when the work ends.
A four-week monthly cycle
- Last week of the previous month: review results and agree on the goal, offers and seasons.
- One week before the month starts: approve the calendar, so requests don't arrive an hour before publishing.
- During the month: publish, reply daily, and make small changes based on what the audience responds to.
- End of the month: a one-page report on what happened and what changes next.
In Egypt and Saudi Arabia, put the seasons on the calendar early: Ramadan, both Eids and back to school, plus National Day in Saudi Arabia. A season planned one week ahead usually becomes a greeting post and nothing more.
An agreement for replying to messages
Messages are where a follower becomes a customer, and an unanswered one may be a lost request. Put three things in writing:
- Reply hours and time: pick a time you can keep, and state what happens outside working hours.
- Approved answers: a file with the most frequent questions and how to answer them.
- The handover path: who receives a serious request and how they know to follow up.
Make logging the request part of the reply: the customer's name, number and what they asked for, in a sheet or system sales can reach. A request left inside a chat on someone's phone can disappear when staff change.
How do you judge the results?
Likes say little about sales. Ask for a report that answers four questions:
- How many new people did the content reach, and which topic went furthest?
- How many messages or requests came from the accounts?
- What was the actual reply time, and how many messages went unanswered?
- What will change next month as a result?
Give any change three months before judging it, unless the fault is obvious, such as unanswered messages or posts that miss their dates.
Which platforms should you post on?
Don't open an account on every platform because others did. Ask your last twenty customers where they found you and where they follow your field. Then apply these criteria:
- Type of content: a product that needs to be seen or tried suits visual content and short video.
- Type of buyer: if you sell to companies, the decision maker may be on LinkedIn more than on entertainment apps.
- Your ability to keep going: two platforms run well beat five left neglected.
How many posts do you need?
There's no correct number for every company. Pick an amount your team can produce at steady quality for three months in a row, then raise it if results appear. A big number that collapses in month two does more harm than a small, regular one.
Spread content across clear goals, so the account doesn't turn into a run of ads:
- Content answering your customer's questions before buying.
- Content showing how you work, your team and your place.
- Content presenting the service, product or offer directly.
To keep the look consistent and production quick, use a social media template system instead of designing each post from scratch.
Mistakes that waste the effort
- Open-ended review: a post that passes through five people will be late every time. Name one reviewer and a reply time.
- Buying followers: it raises a number that doesn't buy from you and muddies your reading of results.
- Copying one post to every platform: each has its own size, style and way of being read.
- Deleting negative comments: reply calmly and move the details to messages, unless the comment is abusive.
In-house team or outside provider?
If your content changes daily, as in a restaurant or a store, an employee close to the action may suit you. If you need several skills for less than hiring a writer, a designer and a video editor, an outside provider may fit better. Social media is one channel among others, which is why it belongs inside your digital marketing plan.
Start with these steps
Go through the responsibility table this week, mark the items with no owner, and confirm the company owns every account. If you want a team to handle planning, production, replies and reports, take a look at our social media management service.