As technology becomes more advanced and AI rises in popularity, many businesses are looking for ways to automate various business processes. Social media is an essential part of a successful online marketing strategy, so, naturally, many businesses wonder if they can find a way to automate it. Is social media automation successful? Do the advantages outweigh the disadvantages? We’ve broken it down in the post below.

Advantages

Efficiency

The main reason that people turn to social media automation is efficiency. Automation makes it easier than ever to post as many social media posts as you want. Automated responses will allow you to relax and avoid worrying about responding to every comment. Automation makes every step of the social media process easier and more efficient.

Optimized Posting Times

Automating your post can help you better automate your posting times. You will be able to post at any time of day you’d like. Therefore, it will be easy to test which times of day are best for posting on your social media accounts. Once you figure out your optimal posting times, you can easily schedule posts at these times without having to do so in real time.

Consistent Posting

Consistency of posting is crucial to the success of your social media account. However, you can’t always be in the office. Automation will make maintaining the consistency of your posting easier. You can schedule posts in bulk to be released at regular increments. When you use automation, you can be sure that your account will post consistently.

Audience Growth

The efficiency of social media automation can lead to a larger audience. Because you will be able to post consistently, you will reach a wider audience. You will have social media posts that are fresh for people viewing them at all different times. When your posts can reach people across different time zones scrolling through social media at different times, it will be easy to grow your audience.

Disadvantages

Computerized Responses

Auto-responses can save you a lot of time and effort. However, most of the time, it’s fairly easy to tell that an auto response is generated by the computer. Sometimes, an auto-response will not totally answer a question or slightly miss the mark to properly respond to a comment. In other cases, it will seem like a generic message. In all of these scenarios, people who engage with your posts will not feel heard or listened to. Without a healthy mix of auto-responses and personalized responses, you can leave the impression that you don’t have time for your customers.

Over-Posting

Automation makes posting easy. You can even upload posts in bulk on Twitter. However, the ease of the process can often lead to over posting. Consistency in posting is important, but if you post too often, it can feel like spam to your followers. It’s important to resist the urge to over post when using social media automation to maintain the image of a reputable brand.

Neglect

With automated posting and automated responses to comments, you can sit back and relax, knowing your social media is taken care of. However, because automation requires so little work on your end, it can often lead to neglect of your accounts. You should be monitoring your content, especially the comment section. It’s important to interact with your followers and attempt to spark conversations. Social media contact that is interacted with will be more successful and will make your customers feel cared about. Automation is great, but make sure you realize that your social media accounts still need attention and care.

Missed Posting Opportunities

If all of your social media posts are pre-scheduled, you can miss out on key opportunities to post. Any news event that occurs, whether it’s a tragedy or a happy occasion, is an opportunity to post. Posting about current events will create interest in your brand and encourage interaction. When all of your posts are pre-scheduled, you will miss these opportunities for interaction. Additionally, it could lead to some ill-timed posts after tragic events.

The Bottom Line

There are advantages to automating social media, as it can save time and energy. These assets are particularly important in small businesses, where manpower and time are limited. For these reasons, automating certain aspects of social media, such as regular posting and weekend posting is a great way to make the most of your social media without overworking your employees. However, automated responses and spam-like posts will do more harm than good. For this reason, a completely automated strategy will not be successful to promote your business on social media, but automating certain parts of the process can save you time and ensure regular posting on your accounts.

ImageWorks, LLC | CT Social Media Marketing

Having trouble managing your social media? Wondering how to figure out proper posting techniques on your own? Don’t be afraid to call in the experts! Whether you are just getting started or have an engine in place that needs fine tuning, ImageWorks can help you join the Social Media wave to get yourself recognized and generate more business. Market yourself and your brand to the 100’s of millions of online interactive users.

We understand that social media can be overwhelming, and it's not always easy to change with each update or refresh. If you are looking to boost your social media marketing then you may want to take a step back and reevaluate the online presence you already have.