Social Media Audit: The Most Effective Social Media Channels Report

Exclusively available on IvyPanda Available only on IvyPanda
Updated: Feb 7th, 2024

Inventory of Social Media Presence

To develop a selection of relevant assessment criteria for the choice of social media channels, it is necessary to consider the findings of recent academic studies. According to Schlagwein and Hu (2017), the most effective social media channels are characterised by the following qualities: “broadcast, dialogue, collaboration, knowledge, management, and sociability” (p. 194). The authors suggest that Facebook and Twitter are channels with a high degree of versatility in their use that can increase the absorptive capacity of a company’s social media strategy (Schlagwein & Hu 2017). The use of Twitter makes it possible to locate pertinent online conversations, which is a key step in establishing large following bases (Ashley & Tuten 2015; Bik & Goldstein 2013).

We will write a custom essay on your topic a custom Report on Social Media Audit: The Most Effective Social Media Channels
808 writers online

It is clear that the selection of the most relevant communication channels should be based on the criteria of broadcast and engagement since they lend themselves to an analysis of empirical metrics (Bredl, Hunniger & Jensen 2014). According to a recent report on the state of global social media use, the number of monthly active users of Facebook reached almost 2 billion in 2017 (Social media 2017). The company has the most significant social reach and owns 18 percent of the market (Chaffey 2017). Figure 1 shows the number of active users of the top social media networks worldwide.

Monthly active users of top social media networks worldwide
Figure 1: Monthly active users of top social media networks worldwide (2017) (Chaffey 2017).

The focus of this section of the report is on a social media audit. Conducting the audit is essential for determining proper marketing actions with respect to social media content (Frick & Eyler-Werve 2014). In addition, the social media audit is central to developing a working understanding of the purpose of each communication channel employed by HWCS (Frick & Eyler-Werve 2014). Table 1 presents the social media audit for HWCS.

Communication ChannelTotal
Followers
Post FrequencyPrimary PurposePost Content and Assumed Purpose
Twitter2,78415 times per week on averageCustomer relationship management; news generation; entertainmentNotifying subscribers of upcoming activities; advertising available careers
Facebook1,878Three times per week on averageCustomer relationship management; news generation; entertainmentAlerting subscribers of graduate program closing, thereby using a scarcity appeal to prompt actions (Song, Yi & Huang 2017); posting video reports from career fairs; posting recommendations
YouTube1,920Eight times per month on averageEntertainment; video bloggingPost short videos containing advice on how to find and explore career opportunities
LinkedIn2,783One time per day on averageSocial network for connecting professionals; news gatheringAnnouncing upcoming career events; encouraging subscribers to submit their applications; providing career advice

Table 1: Social Media Audit of HWCS.

To address the temporal component of the SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and timely) approach, it is necessary to specify a time frame that will be used for implementing the strategy: 11th April-11th June 2018 (Basri & Siam 2017). The time frame has been selected under the assumption that positive time-lags can increase the chances of a project’s success (Greenwood, Perrin & Duggan 2016). This assumption is backed by empirical evidence showing that constrained scheduling is connected to the diminished productivity of key stakeholders involved in a project (Hanzalek & Sucha 2017). Table 2 presents SMART goals for a social media content strategy for HWCS.

ChannelGoal
Facebook
  • Increase the number of followers to 7 percent of the current alumni population by 11thJune, 2018
  • Increase the number of page likes to 7 percent of the current alumni population by 11thJune, 2018
LinkedIn
  • Engage 50 users per month on average by 11thJune, 2018
Website (Watt Club Connect)
  • Increase website traffic by 30 percent by 11thJune, 2018
  • Achieve 7 percent average click through rate (CTR) by 11thJune, 2018
  • Attract 15 percent (7500 people) of alumni with email addresses signing up in the 1styear by 11thJune, 2018.
YouTube
  • Grow YouTube subscriber base by 50 new subscribers each week starting from 11thApril, 2018
Twitter
  • Gain 1,000 followers by 11thJune, 2018
  • Attain 15 mentions per week by 11thJune, 2018 (Coletto et al. 2017).
  • Attain 7 percent average CTR by 11thJune, 2018

Table 2: SMART Social Media Goals.

By following these actionable and measurable goals, it will be possible to help the advisory body to perform its primary objective of delivering career guidance to graduate students with the utmost efficiency. To clearly define whether a goal can be accomplished, it is necessary to connect it to empirical measures of success. Furthermore, goals should be time-bound to create a sense of urgency, which is essential for achieving successful outcomes. There is ample empirical evidence suggesting that the success of administrative work and resource planning activities hinges on the creation of a sense of urgency (Basri & Siam 2017).

1 hour!
The minimum time our certified writers need to deliver a 100% original paper

Survey of the Competitive Landscape

To arrive at a comprehensive view of HWCS’s social media use, it is necessary to consider the current state of the competitive environment in which the advisory body operates (Kim et al. 2014). To this end, the study conducted an audit of competitive career services, which is presented in Table 3.

CompetitorChannelsStrength
University of St. Andrews’s Careers CentreFacebook, Pinterest, LinkedIn, YouTubeLarger following (2, 838 on Twitter), a higher level of engagement, and an additional communication channel (Pinterest)
University of Aberdeen’s Careers ServiceYouTube, Facebook, Pinterest, LinkedIn, Instagram, and WeiboTwo additional communication channels, which can substantially increase the organisation’s outreach (Carah 2017); the use of Weibo and Instagram allows for capitalising on the young audience’s interest in emerging social trends; engaging website
University of Strathclyde’s Careers ServiceYouTube, Facebook, Google+, LinkedIn, InstagramThe use of Google+; substantially larger Twitter following (37,187); higher frequency of posting; links from large news outlets such as the Guardian; affiliations with top employers

Table 3: Social Media Audit of HWCS’s competitors.

Preferences and Behaviours of Target Audience

The average age of alumni at any university amounts to 25 years old. Today, these people belong to the generation Z. Therefore, they prefer to be different from their parents or other people who are older than they are. Their behaviours sometimes can be characterised as that of introverts. Fortunately or unfortunately, contemporary young people do not like to spend much time together. Instead, they would rather stay home (studio, university, or office) and work on their hobbies or professional activities. The youth wants to develop and reach new horizons in the modern world. By the age of 25, almost every person knows what he or she wants to do for living. Therefore, there is no need for them to seek new acquaintances in public places anymore. Nevertheless, these statements are not applicable to all individuals. However, the majority of alumni are highly-educated people, which means that they are interested in some sciences.

Conclusions from Audit

Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter are the three social networks that are designed to help various businesses develop and expand. Moreover, the audience that uses these web sources consists predominately of the age category of people that is discussed in the given work (the average age of alumni in the USA is 25 years old). These individuals sometimes have problems with finding decent jobs after their graduations as all the most preferable positions in popular or developing firms are already occupied by older professionals. Hence they need to monitor all the new opportunities regarding their future careers (Chan et al. 2017). However, they might not be able to read all the news online. Therefore, it would be beneficial for them to follow the HWCS’s Facebook profile or read the service’s updates on its official website.

It would be proper to mention that many students seek someone to help them with their future jobs in universities. However, alumni are interested in such services as this question is actual for them at the present moment. Indeed, it is somewhat hard to find the best jobs for the representatives of Generation Z because they focus on both personal development and satisfaction with their social statuses, working conditions, and so on.

Facebook and Twitter are considered to be the best social media choices to address the category of people described in the previous paragraph. Instagram appears to be an ineffective tool for a bureau because these businesses cannot present any entertaining content to its followers. Instead, the target audience would be interested in news, surveys, or other facts related to their process of job seeking.

Content Strategy

Engagement Strategy

To begin with, it is necessary to state that the term of engaged audience can be interpreted as a group of people that likes the content that a certain profile posts, shares its news with friends, relatives, and colleagues. Also, an important element of social media engagement is confidential relations between the author and his or her followers. As stated in the appendix, if people do not trust a person who publishes updates on the page they are subscribed to, the audience is likely to leave and find more friendly content makers instead. Therefore, it is necessary to share only credible information and think about its benefit to every subscriber of the Facebook page or Twitter account. Moreover, it is important to follow certain rules to maintain the growth of the virtual community intensive. Some of the suggestions as to the engagement strategy will be listed below:

Remember! This is just a sample
You can get your custom paper by one of our expert writers
  1. Analysis and assessment of every action or progress. It would be proper to analyse what pieces of content gather more likes from the HWCS’s subscribers on Facebook. The results of the evaluation should be considered in every next post to attract as much audience a possible.
  2. Classification of all the publications made on the profile. There must be several types of publications that are aimed at both entertainment of the audience and provision of some information that people seek. For instance, humorous pictures can be published to make raise people’s moods and demonstrate the loyalty of the web source. However, some compilations of new vacancies or innovative services available at HWCS also must be presented. It appears that people appreciate pages on social media that help them resolve certain problems.
  3. Demonstration of services. This element is necessary for people who want to use the job service for the first time. To show them how the system works and what the firm can offer to its clients, it would be advantageous to release some tutorial videos or instructions.
  4. Promoting HWCS among the target audience of alumni. New clients should be attracted by some unique offers or ideas that could help them. It is essential to launch an advertising campaign to make the Twitter and Facebook profiles more popular among the discussed population.
  5. Increasing posting frequency to let people see that the business is prospering is essential at the level of its development.
  6. Motivating clients to share their impressions with their friends, relatives, or colleagues. This will popularise the service among people of the target age category.

The use of Twitter and Facebook will be valuable for posting short messages notifying the subscribers about upcoming job fairs, internships, and other messages necessary for both achieving the primary goal of social media use (the provision of job recommendations) and attracting additional followers. To improve engagement among the members of the follower base, regular humorous messages will be posted through the main and additional channels. This strategy is closely aligned with a study by Fraustino and Ma (2015) whose findings point to the fact that the use of humour in social media campaigns has the potential of quickly spreading information to new audiences at a fraction of the cost. The results of research conducted by Whiting and Williams (2013) also justify the use of this approach to gaining a larger following by showing that social media users receive gratification from entertainment, which reinforces their interest in the consumed content.

Proposed Editorial Calendar for One Week of Activity

A One-Week Content Strategy for HWCS.

TimeChannelSample PostsContent TypeTarget Audience
Day 1/7:30TwitterJoin a new line-up for lunchtime workshopsCall-to-Action/Authority buildingAlumni
Day 1/7:30FacebookDo not forget about our online appointment bookingBasicAlumni
Day 1/12:00TwitterAre you having jaw-dropping ideas for business? Join
Call-to-Action/Authority buildingAlumni
Day 1/12:00FacebookRetweet of Guardian articleAuthority buildingAlumni
Day 1/17:00TwitterClick here to review the best #STEM job opportunitiesCall-to-Action/Authority buildingAlumni
Day 1/17:00FacebookWe have 12 #PhD openings available
Authority buildingAlumni
Day 2/7:30TwitterStart your career adventure with
Call-to-Action/Authority buildingAlumni
Day 2/12:00FacebookWant to develop commercial awareness?Call-to-Action/Authority buildingAlumni
Day 2/17:00TwitterNYQUEST Camp retweetBasicAlumni
Day 2/21:00TwitterThe European Funding Guide supports outstanding achievers by
BasicAlumni
Day 3/7:30FacebookThe Careers Services centre videoBasicAlumni
Day 3/12:00TwitterScottish students can connect with employers by
Authority buildingAlumni
Day 3/21:00TwitterHumorous photoBasicAlumni
Day 3/21:00FacebookVideo report from a job fairBasicAlumni
Day 4/7:30TwitterCheck magnificent photos from a workshopAuthority buildingAlumni
Day 4/FacebookApplications are now open for
Authority buildingAlumni
Day 4/12:00TwitterA panel of experts shared their thoughts on career decisions. #phdlife. Check a video report
Call-to-Action/Authority buildingAlumni
Day 4/21:00TwitterHumorous photoBasicAlumni
Day 4/21:00FacebookNot sure how to prepare for assessment reviews?Call-to-Action/Authority buildingAlumni
Day 5/7:30FacebookUniSupport are at campus delivering a speech on graduate opportunities
Call-to-Action/Authority buildingAlumni
Day 5/7:30TwitterDon’t miss our new workshop #careerworkshopCall-to-Action/Authority buildingAlumni
Day 5/12:00TwitterEnter #Careerbites for help with establishing successful business venturesCall-to-Action/Authority buildingAlumni
Day 5/12:00FacebookApplications are open for #ITScotlandAuthority buildingAlumni
Day 5/17:00TwitterCongrats to winners of the Education Prize!BasicAlumni
Day 5/21:00FacebookCheck out our new and engaging video report on a research trip to CanadaCall-to-Action/Authority buildingAlumni
Day 5/21:00TwitterCheck out our new and engaging video report on a research trip to CanadaCall-to-Action/Authority buildingAlumni
Day 6/7:30TwitterAre you interested in a gainful career in Customer Relations Management (CSR)?Authority buildingAlumni
Day 6/12:00FacebookTake an HWCS quiz and you could win up to
Call-to-Action/Authority buildingAlumni
Day 6/21:00TwitterHumorous photoBasicAlumni
Day 6/21:00FacebookWatch the latest Careers video blogCall-to-Action/Authority buildingAlumni
Day 7/7:30TwitterComplete our survey on the National Careers FairCall-to-Action/Authority buildingAlumni
Day 7/7:30FacebookComplete our survey on the National Careers FairCall-to-Action/Authority buildingAlumni
Day 7/12:00TwitterOne-year business management undergraduate placement is now open for applications. #DaiwaCall-to-Action/Authority buildingAlumni
Day 7/17:00TwitterHumorous photoBasicAlumni
Day 7/21:00FacebookFind out about environmental development summer placements with Clair Erickson at the open session on the campus #SummerPlacementsCall-to-Action/Authority buildingAlumni
Day 7/21:00TwitterWatch a report from the North Scotland Careers FairCall-to-Action/Authority buildingAlumni

Table 5: Editorial Calendar.

Suggestions for Integration with Other Communications

Although Facebook and Twitter are perfect for the promotion of services, they are not designed to consult and communicate with clients. Therefore, it would be proper to create a WhatsApp account for HWCS. People could see the phone number in the information section of both Twitter and Facebook accounts. This method is beneficial for the management of conversations with new clients and for people who want to receive immediate answers to their questions (Raghavendra 2016). Another integration suggested in this paragraph is YouTube channel. By posting videos on this hosting, the firm can attract new customers and educate permanent users of its services.

Critical Evaluation of Strategy

The content strategy presented in this section of the business report is successfully used by many other organisations in the entire world. There is no need to invent new approaches to the process of content making as all the sound and effective theories were already invented and used by many social media profiles. However, it would be proper to mention that it is necessary to make all the publications regularly (Moreau 2017). Otherwise, informational overload or the lack of updates will make subscribers confused regarding the structure of the web source. In general, the strategy described above implies both interactive and one-sided communication with customers (Pansari & Kumar 2017). This will give people an ability to choose the most comfortable methods to gain some knowledge about HWCS’s services, which is beneficial for the company as the audience become aware of its offers.

Suggestions for Tracking Social Media Performance and “Tweaks”

As it was mentioned above, all the publications and social media activities of HWCS must be analysed. Moreover, it would be beneficial to assess competitors’ accounts to avoid the common mistakes these companies make in managing their web sources. The program that is called Twitonomy can help regular users to see the statistics of different pages on Twitter (Liu et al. 2014). Another tool that is called WordPress SEO Plugin gives people an ability to optimise their posts and makes it easier for subscribers to find them. This “tweak” is essential for beginner firms that are not popular yet as it improves the rate of awareness of its services or products (Goddard 2016). To conclude, it is necessary to state that all actions on social media have to be planned, organised, and analysed. These three stages will help account managers to take all the advantage that Twitter and Facebook can give to their users.

Reference List

Ashley, C & Tuten, T 2015, ‘Creative strategies in social media marketing: an exploratory study of banded social content and consumer engagement’, Psychology & Marketing, vol. 32, no. 1, pp. 15-27.

Basri, WS & Siam, RA 2017, ‘Identification of sense of urgency as critical success factor in implementation of ERP for educational sector of Saudi Arabia: a case study’, International Journal of Supply Chain Management, vol. 6, no. 2, pp. 155-165.

We will write
a custom essay
specifically for you
Get your first paper with
15% OFF

Bik, HM & Goldstein, MC 2013, ‘An introduction to social media for scientists’, PLOS, vol. 11, no. 4, pp. 1-9.

Bredl, K, Hunniger, J & Jensen, JL 2014, Methods for analyzing social media, Routledge, Abington.

Carah, N 2017, ‘Algorithmic brands: a decade of brand experiments with mobile and social media’, New Media and Society, vol. 19, no. 3, pp. 1-19.

Chaffey, D 2017,, Web.

Chan, HK, Lacka, E, Yee, RWY & Lim, MK 2017, ‘The role of social media data in operations and production management’, International Journal of Production Research, vol. 55, no. 17, pp. 5027-5036.

Coletto, M, Esuli, A, Lucchese, C, Muntean, CI, Nardini, FM, Perego, R & Renso, C 2017, ‘Perception of social phenomena through the multidimensional analysis of online social networks’, Online Social Networks and Media, vol. 1, pp. 14-32.

Fraustino, JD & Ma, L 2015, ‘CDC’s use of social media and humor in a risk campaign—“Preparedness 101: Zombie Apocalypse”’, Journal of Applied Communication Research, vol. 43, no. 2, pp. 222-241.

Frick, T & Eyler-Werve, K 2014, Return on engagement: content strategy and web design techniques for digital marketing, CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL.

Goddard, C 2016, Guide to Google Keyword Planner for SEO, Web.

Greenwood, S, Perrin, A & Duggan, M 2016, , Web.

Hanzalek, Z & Sucha, P 2017, ‘Time symmetry of resource constrained project scheduling with general temporal constraints and take-give resources’, Annals of Operations Research, vol. 248, no. 1-2, pp. 209-237.

Kim, YH, Lee, D, Han, NG & Song, M 2014, ‘Exploring characteristics of video consuming behavior in different social media using K-pop videos’, Journal of Information Science, vol. 40, no. 6, pp. 806-822.

Liu, Y, Wang, C, Zhou, K, Nie, JY, Zhang, M & Ma, S 2014, ‘From skimming to reading: a two-stage examination model for web search’, Biometrics, vol. 7, pp. 849-858.

Moreau, E 2017, , Web.

Pansari, A & Kumar, V 2017, ‘Customer engagement: the construct, antecedents, and consequences’, Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, vol. 45, pp. 294-311.

Raghavendra, RN 2016, Social media listening and monitoring for business applications, Hershey, IGI Global.

Schlagwein, D & Hu, M 2017, ‘How and why organizations use social media: five use types and their relation to absorptive capacity’, Journal of Information Technology, vol. 32, no. 2, pp. 194-209.

2017, Web.

Song, T, Yi, C & Huang, J 2017, ‘Whose recommendations do you follow? An investigation of tie strengths, shopping stage, and deal scarcity’, Information & Management, vol. 54, no. 8, pp. 1072-1083.

Whiting, A & Williams, D 2013, ‘Why people use social media: a uses and gratifications approach’, Qualitative Market Research: An International Journal, vol. 16, no. 4, pp. 362-369.

Print
Need an custom research paper on Social Media Audit: The Most Effective Social Media Channels written from scratch by a professional specifically for you?
808 writers online
Cite This paper
Select a referencing style:

Reference

IvyPanda. (2024, February 7). Social Media Audit: The Most Effective Social Media Channels. https://ivypanda.com/essays/social-media-audit/

Work Cited

"Social Media Audit: The Most Effective Social Media Channels." IvyPanda, 7 Feb. 2024, ivypanda.com/essays/social-media-audit/.

References

IvyPanda. (2024) 'Social Media Audit: The Most Effective Social Media Channels'. 7 February.

References

IvyPanda. 2024. "Social Media Audit: The Most Effective Social Media Channels." February 7, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/social-media-audit/.

1. IvyPanda. "Social Media Audit: The Most Effective Social Media Channels." February 7, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/social-media-audit/.


Bibliography


IvyPanda. "Social Media Audit: The Most Effective Social Media Channels." February 7, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/social-media-audit/.

Powered by CiteTotal, best citation maker
If you are the copyright owner of this paper and no longer wish to have your work published on IvyPanda. Request the removal
More related papers
Cite
Print
1 / 1