What’s that sound? It’s the sands of time, the ticking clock and and my unfinished to-do list — all being eaten whole by Facebook, Twitter and my blog. Prioritizing social media time is a challenge in today’s communications world. How do people draw the line between true engagement and online time-wasting?
I was recently asked a question about this on a panel. The question was:
How do you find hours in the day to “do” social media for yourself and clients? Doesn’t it take up all of your time?
The answer? It can — if you let it. The best way to carve out the time is to set limits on how much time to devote to each social media footprint. The worst thing for me is to leave my time wide open. Like most of us, I can’t usually afford to let my time evaporate. I’ve got a family to get home to, client deadlines to meet and other normal life commitments.
I try to spend 30 minutes on each Twitter account per day — 15 each in the morning and the afternoon or evening. I keep myself focused on content within my industry areas of interest and don’t get sidetracked. With the blog, it’s a couple of hours a week. Just one post a week, usually. And then I’m reading others’ blogs through my reader, usually an hour a day.
Then there’s Facebook. How much sharing is enough, really? I try to limit myself to sharing just a few items per day of others’ content, with a couple of status updates and/or content of my own.
It does add up, all told. At least 10 hours a week is a standard commitment for just one social media account.
What are others’ experiences? Amber Naslund, director of community at Radian6, recently put up a good series of posts about time management in the midst of social media. Bottom line, it’s about knowing one’s goals and setting priorities aligned with them. She shares helpful information to guide social media priorities.
For me, it’s all about the balance. Easy to write about, not easy to strike! DM me on Twitter with questions, or leave a comment here on the blog if you have ideas that work for your own social media time management.
