5 Tips for Managing Social Media Pages Remotely

Are you a social media manager? Or are you interested in managing social media pages for another business? One great thing about this job (or gig!) is that it can be done from anywhere! Here are 5 tips for managing social media pages remotely.

Maybe you want a job that you can do from the comfort of your home. After all, being able to work in your pajamas does have its appeal!

Or maybe you dream of being able to travel – while still bringing in an income.

Personally, I have managed social media pages in these situations:

For local businesses that were in my own city
For businesses that were several hours away from me
For businesses that were on a different continent entirely!

In all of these situations, I was able to manage social media from my home.

Though it is ENTIRELY possible to do this, I have learned several things along the way that are critical for success.

5 Tips for Managing Social Media Pages Remotely:

#1. Understand the company culture thoroughly.

Since you will essentially be the online “voice” for the company, you need to know both their goals and the culture very well.

What is important to the company?
What are their main goals?
What is their tone? (Are they laid back? Hip? Educational? Professional?)

Make sure you can communicate in THEIR voice. This is key.

Since you are not in the office regularly, you won’t just “absorb” the culture and tone of the company. You need to understand from the beginning who they are.

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#2. Know where you will be getting company information.

This is HUGE. There is nothing worse than the company expecting you to put up regular posts, and you have no idea what’s going on with the company!

To be clear – You do not need management to be outlining your social media posts. BUT you do need a flow of company updates and information.

You will need to know well in advance about special promotions, sales, changes in products, interesting company news, etc.

Who will be your contact for this information? Will you contact them weekly? Monthly?

Will you get your information from the company Slack channel? Will you get an email?

Get these details ironed out with management from the beginning so that you (and whoever is getting you the information) will all be on the same page.

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#3. Have a contact “on the ground.”

This depends what type of business you are posting for, but it’s a tip that I have found immensely valuable.

It’s possible that you will need something from the company, and you can’t create it remotely.

Perhaps you need a photo of the new menu item they just launched.
Maybe someone just asked a specifically local question on social media and you need a quick answer.
Maybe a celebrity just walked in the door of the store, and you need someone designated to get a photo!

Make contact now with a person who is in the store or business regularly that you can reach out to in a pinch. Have their phone number so you can text them quickly and ask them to send you something.

Also, make sure that your contact understands that they are your “eyes on the ground.” If something noteworthy happens, they have all permission to take a photo and text it to you!

Both of you should understand clearly that this will not be an everyday event. If you have a good flow of information coming from the proper channels at the company, this will be the rare time that you reach out for information or photos.

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#4. Set up a regular meeting to check in with the company.

The frequency of this meeting is up to you and the management. Whether it’s once a week, or once a month (or even once per quarter!), this is a way to stay connected.

During this meeting make sure you are up-to-date on big picture things that are coming. Many companies are quite fluid – their priorities and focus may change from time to time. They may want to try a new social media platform, or want to introduce a new product.

Also, these meetings will let you FEEL connected to the company. I don’t know about you, but this aspect is big to me personally. I need to have actual personal contact now and then, just to be inspired by the mission and to feel like a part of the team.

#5. Understand the goal.

There’s a term in the military called “commander’s intent.” This is the picture of what success will look like at the end of the mission. The basic idea is that the commanding officer makes sure that all personnel know the main goal. And then, because the situation is changing and chaotic, the details are more or less up to them.

When you are in a war situation, things can get complicated quickly. Every single detail simply cannot be figured out before you are in the moment. The soldiers know the goal – the intent. And they can make it happen, even if the details change along the way.

You can apply this same thinking to your social media pages.

If you know the business’s intent, you can have more freedom to make it happen, in whatever way necessary.

Do they want more sales? Prayer support? People to join their cause?

It’s much easier to run with it, and use your posts and ads budget well (without much input from the business) as long as you have a clear understanding of the goal.

What will success look like for your pages? Aim for that.

If you can make use of these 5 Tips for managing social media pages remotely – it becomes simple to have a work-from-anywhere gig!