There is a lot that goes into creating the perfect social media post. From crafting the perfect caption, selecting the most eye-catching image, and choosing the best hashtags, there is much to think about. That is not even a comprehensive list. However, it is an essential part of any social media strategy.
For those who run several social media accounts, this can be one massive headache. It becomes a time consuming and tedious process. So, what is the solution? Scheduling your social media posts.
No, we do not mean setting reminders on your phone that tells you when it’s time to post. That isn’t practical when you are running multiple accounts and will leave you in a disorganized mess. We mean putting your posts into a social media scheduler and setting the date and time so they will automatically post. Practically magic if you ask me.
The Benefits
The benefits of scheduling your social media posts are practically endless. You may not see it as a big deal, but here are few reasons that are sure to change your mind.
You Will Be Consistent
You have heard it one million times. Consistency is key. In order to grow your social media, you must be consistent. When you schedule your social media posts, you’ll never miss a beat. Consistency is a crucial part of increasing your engagement and growing your audience.
Not only will you be consistent in your timing, but you can plan the look of your posts more carefully. You can make sure that your posts are aesthetically pleasing all together and have the overall feel you are going for.
You Can Effortless Manage Multiple Social Media Accounts
If you are managing multiple social accounts, then it is likely that each account has a different target audience. They all have their unique styles, voices, and purposes.
If you are aimlessly going from account to account, it is easy for each brand’s voice to get lost in translation. When you schedule your social media posts ahead of time, you can focus on each brand’s unique style and ensure you are getting across the message you hope to.
You Can Post When You’re Not Readily Available
There is no need to worry about if you will be available when it comes time to post. You can have a post set to go live whether you are in a meeting, on a flight, don’t have internet access, or really any other scenario you can think of. You can always ensure you are posting at the ideal times while being totally independent of your availability. Talk about convenience.
You Won’t Find Yourself in a Panic
We have all had those moments when we look back at a post on social media and see an error. We may have even just forgotten to post altogether. You then feel overwhelmed with stress as you quickly attempt to edit the post or rush to come up with your post for the day. You find yourself disappointed as it is likely not your best work.
The best way to avoid this is by scheduling your posts ahead of time. You can then rest assured that you have a carefully crafted post ready to go, and you don’t even have to worry about posting it.
More Time to Engage Your Audience
Planning and scheduling your social media in advance gives you more time to engage with your audience on social media. It is crucial to be a part of the conversation about your brand. Taking the time to do things such as reply to your followers, answer DMs, and like their comments keeps them engaged. This engagement builds a stronger and more loyal audience.
So, How Do I Start?
The good news is that there are already some stellar social media scheduler tools out there that simplify this process. They are easy to use and will be essential in streamlining your processes. We think two of the best are Sprout Social and Hootsuite. Let’s walk step by step on how to use them.
Sprout Social
Sprout Social makes managing and scheduling posts across various social accounts effortless. These steps show you exactly how you can do so.
Scheduling a Post
In your account, click on Publishing.
You will be brought to the calendar view, where you can see any posts you have scheduled. Next, click Compose.
Choose the platform you would like to schedule your post for. You can choose multiple platforms at once.
Craft your post to your liking. Then choose how you would like to schedule your post. You can choose:
Publish Now
Save as Draft
Schedule Manually
Sprout Queue: This is a quick and easy way to have multiple queued posts for profiles and have them published automatically throughout the day.
When you schedule manually, simply choose the date and time and select Schedule.
Now you have successfully scheduled a post with Sprout Social. No more stressing throughout the day about all the posts you need to make at just the right time. It really is just that easy.
HootSuite
Now that you have learned how to schedule posts with Sprout Social let’s take a look at another great option, HootSuite.
Scheduling a Post
In your account, go to Create new post.
Select an option to open the composer.
After carefully crafting your post, select Schedule for later and choose the date and time you would like your post to go live.
Now that you have selected the date and time, select Schedule, and then choose one of the following options:
Save draft: Save the post as a draft to return to review or edit at another time.
Schedule and reuse accounts: Schedule your post, retain your social network choices, and begin to post to those chosen social networks.
Schedule and duplicate: Schedule your post but keep a copy of the original content and the social account selection to edit or schedule the post at another time. A new post ID will be created so that you can track the post. This makes creating several similar posts seamlessly.
There you have it! You have successfully scheduled a social media post with HootSuite.
Scheduling Multiple Posts with Hootsuite
Now, if you want to schedule multiple posts simultaneously, you will do so using the Bulk Composer. This is only a bit more complicated, but it will allow you to schedule up to 350 posts if needed. You will upload a CSV (comma-separated values) file of prepared content, then you can schedule multiple posts with the click of a button, or preview, edit, and schedule posts individually.
When you schedule in bulk, you are notified of any errors found in specific posts, which allows you to fix them or remove an individual post if necessary quickly. Use can use the bulk composer to create posts for Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.
Once you have uploaded your CSV, the Bulk Composer lets you add images and videos to your posts and customize link previews before scheduling.
How to Develop a Bulk Post File
Go to Publisher, and then select Content.
Select Bulk Composer BETA, then Try it now.
Now select Download example to start with a sample CSV file.
Open the sample file to any program that saves files in CSV format, like Google Sheets.
Enter your data following the formatting rules into your file. Then save or export the file to CSV.
Formatting rules:
Column A: Enter a post date and time (24-hour time) - Time must end in 0 or 5. The following are accepted data formats:
day/month/year hour: minute
month/day/year hour: minute
year/month/day hour: minute
year/day/month hour: minute
Column B: Craft your post.
Column C: Enter a link using the full URL. You can choose to have these shortened when uploading the Bulk Composer.
Schedule Your Bulk Post
Go to Publisher and then choose Content.
Select Bulk Composer.
Select Select file to upload, select your CSV file, and then select Open.
Select the accounts to publish posts to.
Select Review posts.
Review and make any necessary edits. The Bulk composer will list any errors it detects with a red banner explaining the issue.
When you confirm your posts are just how you want them, select Schedule all posts.
This tool totally changes the game as it allows you to schedule a large number of posts with such convenience.
Tracking Engagement
Both Sprout Social and Hootsuite will be incredibly beneficial in helping you schedule your social posts like a boss. You really can not go wrong with either. They will also help you track your posts’ engagement, which is incredibly important and necessary information to know to grow your brands.
Get Scheduling
Don’t make your life harder than it needs to be. Use a social media management platform and get organized. Not only will it reduce stress, but it will allow you more time to engage with your audience and more time to think of ways to improve your social media strategy across the board.
Author: Alexandra Jaillet