The ROI of Social Media Management: What You Can Expect

I know you know that having a strong social media presence is a non-negotiable for your businesses. But with all the other work on your plate, you’ve probably considered outsourcing – and wondered what the ROI of social media management would actually look like. Today we’re diving into what results you can expect from social media, how to set yourself up to see an ROI, and more ⤵️

First things first: What is ROI anyways?

ROI stands for return on investment; basically, how much money can you expect to get back by putting in $XXX.

When a potential client asks what ROI they can expect on their discovery call, they’re hoping to hear what amount of $$$ they can make from getting Instagram off their plate. “You’ll see a 5x increase in sales! You’ll make $10k a month!” All attractive promises – but simply not possible to make with social media. Because the answer isn’t as easy as a “2.5 ROAS (return on ad spend)”

Organic social media is one piece of your marketing puzzle – but it won’t lead to sales on its own.

What does it take to see a return on your social media management investment?

The clients who see the most success from social media, in terms of their ROI, have:

• a strong business foundation: they’ve researched their target client, they’ve undergone brand strategy, and they know what their future goals & plans are.
• proof of sales, demonstrating that their pricing works.
• they come prepared with quality photo + video content. There’s only so much you can do with stock imagery and repurposing.
• and finally, a clear customer journey. Don’t get me wrong, sales happen because of social! But there’s a couple steps your lead has to take before they actually swipe their credit card. Do you have a quality website to drive them to? Is that website easy to navigate? How’s your sales process? All of these things play a role in how many sales you see from your social media efforts.

What does the ROI of social media management look like?

It’s also important to reframe ROI. Instead of “how much money will I make” to “what does getting this time back look like.”

Picture this: you spend a five or more hours every week on your Instagram. That’s a whopping 20 hours each month! You spend too much time wondering what content will get the results you want, creating posts, and engaging with your followers. But here’s the kicker— all of that time is time you could be spending on revenue-generating tasks.

Now, let’s put a price tag on your precious time. According to Forbes.com, design professionals charge anywhere from $50 to $500 per hour, with an average of $250 per hour. So, if we crunch the numbers, those 20 hours you spend on Instagram each month? Well, you’re essentially spending $5,000 of your valuable time on marketing efforts.

But what if you outsourced to a social media manager for $1500 a month? You free up 16 of those hours each month. Those 16 hours mean you’re netting $2500 in terms of time that you didn’t have while you tried to DIY.

The Other Impacts of a Social Media Manager

But don’t worry – hiring a social media manager isn’t just about reclaiming your time. It’s also about leveraging their expertise to maximize that time. When you bring on the right person (like the ABC Social Media Management team with our range of services to fit your budget), we know all the tips and tricks. We optimize your posts, boost engagement, and reach your target audience. You don’t have to stress about latest trends and strategies to bring in new leads, because we’ve got it handled. (like the 80+ leads we sourced for a client this month that has turned into 3 new client inquiries already). It’s like having a secret weapon in your corner!

When Talking About the ROI of Social Media Management, Ask Yourself: Can You Really Afford to DIY?

Instead of fixating solely on the cost of hiring a social media manager, it’s important to consider if you can really afford to keep handling it all ourselves. The hidden costs of not outsourcing — like the enormous time investment, lost time on revenue-generating activities, and missed opportunities for lead generation by not using someone who does this for a living —can really hold you back. By making a smart investment in professional social media management, you can free up your time, focus on what you do best, and watch your business thrive. Cheers to that!

Want more where that came from?

Check out these related blog posts:

• Everything You Wanted to Know (But Never Asked!) About Social Media Management
• The 10 Tools I Use to Run My Business
• How I Became a Social Media Manager for Interior Designers

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