How to Create a Social Media Strategy

First, Why This Actually Matters for Your Business

Here's the reality: over 5.42 billion people use social media worldwide right now. That's about 65% of everyone on the planet. The average person uses almost 7 different social media platforms every month. Your customers are definitely spending time there.

But here's what actually matters for your bottom line: businesses that plan their social media marketing see better results. According to research from Sprout Social, having a strategy and content calendar helps you stay consistent, saves time, and gives you a clearer picture of what's working and what's wasting your money.

Here's the reality: over 5.42 billion people use social media worldwide right now. That's about 65% of everyone on the planet. The average person uses almost 7 different social media platforms every month. Your customers are definitely spending time there.

But here's what actually matters for your bottom line: businesses that plan their social media marketing see better results. According to research from Sprout Social, having a strategy and content calendar helps you stay consistent, saves time, and gives you a clearer picture of what's working and what's wasting your money.

Step 1: Get Clear on Your Business Goals

Before you worry about posting schedules or which platform to use, you need to know what you're trying to accomplish. What does success look like for your business?

Common social media goals include:

Building brand awareness so more people know you exist
Generating leads (people who might buy from you)
Driving traffic to your website
Getting actual sales
Building customer loyalty and repeat business

Make your goals specific and measurable. Not "get more customers" but something like "generate 50 qualified leads per month through social media" or "increase website traffic from social media by 40% in the next quarter." This is what marketing folks call a SMART goal (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound). Without this clarity, you're just throwing money and time at something without knowing if it's working.

Before you worry about posting schedules or which platform to use, you need to know what you're trying to accomplish. What does success look like for your business?

Common social media goals include:

Building brand awareness so more people know you exist
Generating leads (people who might buy from you)
Driving traffic to your website
Getting actual sales
Building customer loyalty and repeat business

Make your goals specific and measurable. Not "get more customers" but something like "generate 50 qualified leads per month through social media" or "increase website traffic from social media by 40% in the next quarter." This is what marketing folks call a SMART goal (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound). Without this clarity, you're just throwing money and time at something without knowing if it's working.

You can't market to everyone. Different platforms attract different people. For example, TikTok's biggest user group is 18 to 24 year olds. Facebook's largest group is people aged 25 to 34. If you're selling accounting services to small business owners, TikTok probably isn't where you should spend your time.

Think about your ideal customer:

How old are they?
What problems are they trying to solve?
Where do they spend their time online?
What kind of content do they actually engage with?

This isn't guesswork. Look at your current customers. Talk to them. Ask where they heard about you. Understanding this makes every other decision easier and cheaper.

You can't market to everyone. Different platforms attract different people. For example, TikTok's biggest user group is 18 to 24 year olds. Facebook's largest group is people aged 25 to 34. If you're selling accounting services to small business owners, TikTok probably isn't where you should spend your time.

Think about your ideal customer:

How old are they?
What problems are they trying to solve?
Where do they spend their time online?
What kind of content do they actually engage with?

This isn't guesswork. Look at your current customers. Talk to them. Ask where they heard about you. Understanding this makes every other decision easier and cheaper.

If you're already on social media (even inconsistently), go look at your existing accounts. Which posts got attention? Which ones got ignored? What time of day did you post them?

According to Sprout Social's research, you should be tracking things like:

Which types of content work best (videos, images, articles, questions)
When your audience is most active
What topics get the most engagement
Which posts actually led to website visits or sales

If you're starting from scratch, look at your competitors. What are they posting? How often? What seems to get responses? You're not copying them, but you can learn what your shared audience responds to.

If you're already on social media (even inconsistently), go look at your existing accounts. Which posts got attention? Which ones got ignored? What time of day did you post them?

According to Sprout Social's research, you should be tracking things like:

Which types of content work best (videos, images, articles, questions)
When your audience is most active
What topics get the most engagement
Which posts actually led to website visits or sales

If you're starting from scratch, look at your competitors. What are they posting? How often? What seems to get responses? You're not copying them, but you can learn what your shared audience responds to.

Here's something that'll save you a ton of time and frustration: you don't need to be on every platform. In fact, it's better to do two platforms really well than to do five platforms poorly.

Research shows that Facebook still delivers strong return on investment for many businesses. Instagram works well for visual products and younger audiences. But it completely depends on your business type.

Ask yourself:

Where are my customers spending their time?
What kind of content can I realistically create? (If you hate being on camera, TikTok might not be your thing)
Where are my competitors getting results?

For service businesses, LinkedIn often works better than you'd think. For local businesses, Facebook and Instagram are usually solid bets. For product-based businesses with younger customers, Instagram and TikTok make sense.

Start with one or two platforms. Get good at them. Then expand if it makes sense.

Here's something that'll save you a ton of time and frustration: you don't need to be on every platform. In fact, it's better to do two platforms really well than to do five platforms poorly.

Research shows that Facebook still delivers strong return on investment for many businesses. Instagram works well for visual products and younger audiences. But it completely depends on your business type.

Ask yourself:

Where are my customers spending their time?
What kind of content can I realistically create? (If you hate being on camera, TikTok might not be your thing)
Where are my competitors getting results?

For service businesses, LinkedIn often works better than you'd think. For local businesses, Facebook and Instagram are usually solid bets. For product-based businesses with younger customers, Instagram and TikTok make sense.

Start with one or two platforms. Get good at them. Then expand if it makes sense.

This is the part where most business owners get stuck. A content calendar is just a schedule of what you're posting and when. It doesn't have to be fancy.

You can use:

Google Sheets (free and works fine)
Excel
Specialized scheduling tools like Hootsuite, Buffer, or Sprout Social
Even a physical calendar if that's easier for you

Your content should mix different types of posts:

Educational content (tips, how-tos, industry news)
Behind-the-scenes looks at your business
Customer testimonials and success stories
Your products or services (but not every post)
Engaging questions or polls to start conversations

A good rule of thumb: about 80% of your content should be helpful, entertaining, or educational. Only about 20% should be directly selling. People don't log into social media to be sold to constantly.

This is the part where most business owners get stuck. A content calendar is just a schedule of what you're posting and when. It doesn't have to be fancy.

You can use:

Google Sheets (free and works fine)
Excel
Specialized scheduling tools like Hootsuite, Buffer, or Sprout Social
Even a physical calendar if that's easier for you

Your content should mix different types of posts:

Educational content (tips, how-tos, industry news)
Behind-the-scenes looks at your business
Customer testimonials and success stories
Your products or services (but not every post)
Engaging questions or polls to start conversations

A good rule of thumb: about 80% of your content should be helpful, entertaining, or educational. Only about 20% should be directly selling. People don't log into social media to be sold to constantly.

There's no magic number, but consistency matters more than frequency. It's better to post twice a week every single week than to post daily for two weeks and then disappear for a month.

Start with what's realistic for your schedule. Maybe that's:

Facebook: 3-5 times per week
Instagram: 4-7 times per week
LinkedIn: 2-3 times per week
Twitter/X: 5-10 times per week (it moves faster)

You can always increase later. The key is showing up regularly.

There's no magic number, but consistency matters more than frequency. It's better to post twice a week every single week than to post daily for two weeks and then disappear for a month.

Start with what's realistic for your schedule. Maybe that's:

Facebook: 3-5 times per week
Instagram: 4-7 times per week
LinkedIn: 2-3 times per week
Twitter/X: 5-10 times per week (it moves faster)

You can always increase later. The key is showing up regularly.

This is where social media marketing becomes a real business tool instead of just busy work. Every platform gives you free analytics that show:

How many people saw your posts
How many people engaged (liked, commented, shared)
How many clicked through to your website
What time your audience is most active

Check these numbers at least once a month. What's working? Do more of that. What's flopping? Either improve it or stop wasting time on it.

If you set up proper tracking (like using UTM parameters on your links or Facebook Pixel on your website), you can even see which social media posts led to actual sales.

This is where social media marketing becomes a real business tool instead of just busy work. Every platform gives you free analytics that show:

How many people saw your posts
How many people engaged (liked, commented, shared)
How many clicked through to your website
What time your audience is most active

Check these numbers at least once a month. What's working? Do more of that. What's flopping? Either improve it or stop wasting time on it.

If you set up proper tracking (like using UTM parameters on your links or Facebook Pixel on your website), you can even see which social media posts led to actual sales.

Organic reach (posts your followers see without you paying) has gotten harder over the years. Most platforms want you to pay to reach more people. That's just the reality.

If you have a budget for it, even $5-10 a day on Facebook or Instagram ads can help you reach more potential customers. Start small, test what works, and scale up what shows results.

Organic reach (posts your followers see without you paying) has gotten harder over the years. Most platforms want you to pay to reach more people. That's just the reality.

If you have a budget for it, even $5-10 a day on Facebook or Instagram ads can help you reach more potential customers. Start small, test what works, and scale up what shows results.

Look, managing social media marketing properly takes time. If you're running a business, your time might be better spent on what you do best. That's where social media marketing services or a virtual marketing assistant can make sense.

A good marketing assistant can handle:

Creating and scheduling your content calendar
Responding to comments and messages
Tracking what's working and reporting results to you
Running ads and managing budgets
Adjusting strategy based on what the numbers show

The key is finding someone who understands your business and can speak in your voice. They should be able to explain what they're doing and why, not just post random content and hope for the best.

Look, managing social media marketing properly takes time. If you're running a business, your time might be better spent on what you do best. That's where social media marketing services or a virtual marketing assistant can make sense.

A good marketing assistant can handle:

Creating and scheduling your content calendar
Responding to comments and messages
Tracking what's working and reporting results to you
Running ads and managing budgets
Adjusting strategy based on what the numbers show

The key is finding someone who understands your business and can speak in your voice. They should be able to explain what they're doing and why, not just post random content and hope for the best.

Creating a social media strategy isn't rocket science, but it does require thinking things through. Start with clear goals, know who you're trying to reach, pick the right platforms, and show up consistently with helpful content.

Track your results. Adjust what's not working. Double down on what is.

And remember: social media marketing is a long game. You probably won't see massive results in the first month. But six months of consistent, strategic effort? That's when businesses start seeing real leads and sales coming through their social channels.

If this all feels overwhelming, that's normal. Most business owners didn't sign up to become social media managers. Getting help from someone who knows what they're doing (whether that's social media marketing services or a virtual marketing assistant) can be the difference between wasting time and actually growing your business.

Creating a social media strategy isn't rocket science, but it does require thinking things through. Start with clear goals, know who you're trying to reach, pick the right platforms, and show up consistently with helpful content.

Track your results. Adjust what's not working. Double down on what is.

And remember: social media marketing is a long game. You probably won't see massive results in the first month. But six months of consistent, strategic effort? That's when businesses start seeing real leads and sales coming through their social channels.

If this all feels overwhelming, that's normal. Most business owners didn't sign up to become social media managers. Getting help from someone who knows what they're doing (whether that's social media marketing services or a virtual marketing assistant) can be the difference between wasting time and actually growing your business.