Do you find yourself overwhelmed by, well, let's face it - everything? There's so much to read, Tweet, follow, like, share, post - it goes on and on. What about actually experiencing something?
Do you realise later that you didn't really fully experience something because you were too busy documenting it or planning your status update?
And does all this result in your own company's social media presence not being as great as it could be?
It's easy to feel like you're drowning in it. You have to keep your clients happy and suddenly there's no time for your brand to craft and promote its own voice. Crafting takes time as well.
Well, you're not alone. According to a 2014 Australian Communications and Media Authority report fifty per cent of Australian SMEs are tackling more than seven types of online business activities.
The report found that while many SMEs were using or had trialled social media, the resource and staffing implications for using it were a significant barrier to uptake and led some to stop using it.
There's a lot of overwhelm … digital communications technology is [SME's] biggest enabler and it's a powerful tool for new retailers, but there's a real sense of overwhelm around what, who, how much. Paul Greenberg, NORA
The latest report on Australian happiness, What Makes Us Happy?, found that as social media platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and other social networking sites are becoming increasingly prevalent in our lives, a fear of dystopian disconnect between humans, conversation and intimacy has arisen.
But evidence emerges saying the opposite in the Australian Unity Wellbeing Index which finds that wellbeing remains within the normal range across the spectrum from people who say they spend no time on social media to those who report spending more than one hour a day.
The exception to this is people who report spending about 30 minutes each day on social media who have a level of wellbeing slightly above the normal range.
There may be a couple of reasons for this result. It may indicate that moderate exposure to social media may be associated with optimal wellbeing, or another way of seeing it could mean that there are many benefits the internet brings to our lives that results in us not having to perform daily tasks that might otherwise be a hassle.
Either way, perhaps the key point here is that it has more to do with what we use the internet for rather than how long we spend on it.
So, if you find yourself marvelling at your competitors and their ability to be across LinkedIn, Twitter and a plethora of other social media platforms you can give yourself a break and understand that they probably have a Social Media Manager who has developed a plan and a schedule for them to help them get the most from their social media. They will most likely also be doing all the posting and community management as well.
Just remember, simply reaching eyeballs isn't enough. Building brand equity, proving value and trust are just as important. If you find you don't have the time to even think about this then it's time to engage some help.
We are in interesting times. Social media is not a silver bullet that can magically fix all your business problems. You must understand WHY you are using it before you start. You need to have high quality content and relying on staff internally to develop that is difficult for small business.
However, by allocating some time - an hour a week is a good start - you can begin to get a handle on your social media channels, voice and content, and once you've got a good foundation you can grow from there. It helps to work with an objective eye so if you need a hand getting started with your social media management get in touch, we'd love to help.