Investing in a social media marketing package might initially seem like a good idea for your business.
But we’re here to tell you, it’s not.
In fact, social media marketing packages suck, and in this post we’re going to explain why.
It all boils back down to the fact that your business is unique and it should be treated that way. The problem with a ‘package’ is that it goes against this very concept, and gives you a list of set services which are being used by hundreds of other businesses.
It fails to take into account your wants and needs, and lumbers you into the same category as everyone else.
Does that sound like the best approach for your business?
With that said, I do see how people can fall into the trap of thinking a social media marketing package is a good thing. Perhaps you’re new to social media marketing or you haven’t got a lot of time to dedicate to it.
As such, hearing that a company can offer you a ‘package’ deal might sound attractive as you can simply hand all of the work over to them and get back to running your business.
Hopefully, after reading this post, you will realise that there is a better alternative. At Canny, we’ve never offered social media marketing packages and we never will. Instead, we provide a tailored offering based on your exact business needs.
Let’s take a look at three different social media marketing packages and what’s involved in each.
Social Media Marketing Package Provider: Number One
Company number one offers 3 different types of social media packages which are simply called, ‘social media package 1′, ‘social media package 2’, and ‘social media package 3’.
For the purpose of this post, let’s concentrate on their middle weight package.
So what do you get for your money?
£50 ad spend
OK great, but what if you don’t want to concentrate on paid advertising? What if your main focus is through growing your social media presence organically?
In this case, £50 a month is a waste as it’s not part of your current strategy. It doesn’t fit the direction that your business is trying to go on yet it’s still something you’re going to be charged for.
Why?
Because it’s part of your set package, regardless of the fact you don’t want or need it. Those points aren’t important, because you’re still getting it. This is one of the biggest problems with social media marketing packages as they’re a blanket approach.
On the other hand, what if £50 ad spend isn’t enough? What about if paid advertising on social media is something you really want to focus on?
Well be prepared to fork out even more money, as you’ll have to upgrade to a more expensive package deal.
2 social media channels
Two social media channels? Are you supposed to just pick your favourite two?
In my experience, most businesses are active on a lot more than just two social media channels. Even if you only stick to the main ones, there’s Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and Instagram. Already you’re over your limit.
And that’s without mentioning highly popular and upcoming social channels such as TikTok, Reddit, and Pinterest.
That takes you to a grand total of 7, way over your allotted number. Just choosing two social media channels sounds really silly to me. Surely the whole point of social media is to promote your business and get your name out there to as many people as possible.
However this is totally overlooking the fact that not every audience is active on every channel. Therefore by only focusing on two channels, you’re potentially missing out on a huge proportion of your target market.
Cross-pog is very important as this allows you to easily share content from one channel straight over to another, thereby maximing your reach further.
This part of the deal seems very, very stingy to me.
3 posts per channel per week
Again, 3 posts per channel per week isn’t going to make the impact you need. Especially when you factor in that you can also post across two channels.
These two points alone really limit your chances of making a splash.
Whether you’re a startup or an established business, the whole point of utilising social media is to grow your network. Whether you’re posting company updates or sharing a daily blog post, the whole point is to let people know you’re there and to give them an insight into your company.
3 points a week just isn’t going to do the trick.
In fact, I would suggest posting 3 times a day.
Think about how easy it is to scroll past a post on social media. Your feed is now literally cluttered with brands and adverts all trying to catch your attention. If you’re posting 3 times a week, this scattered approach makes it very easy for your content to get lost.
You need to be reminding people that you exist, which is only made possible through posting on a regular basis.
Posts written and designed by us
Well I would hope this was a given.
After all, you’re paying the social media company to provide this service so I’d be highly concerned if it was outsourced elsewhere.
To me, this feels like it’s just been thrown into the package to bulk it up a little. Surely this could have been bundled up with the point above or left out altogether?
This point is standard, and doesn’t add any value to their offering.
Unique graphics and content
Again, this feels a little blah. They’re not really telling you anything here.
The graphics and content they give you should be unique, or were you hoping they would copy and paste material from one of your competitors?
It doesn’t really make sense to position this as a benefit, as similiar to the point above, providing unique content should be a given.
You’re trusting these guys to create content that you can be proud of. Whether you’ve got a huge social media following, or you’re still in the early stages of growing your online presence, every piece of content you put out directly reflects your business.
Tailored strategy
This also falls into the same rant as above. If the agency is creating your social media content on your behalf, it should be based on a tailored social media strategy.
Otherwise they won’t know what works/ doesn’t work for your business, or what direction you want to go in.
It’s not enough just to post on different social media channels and hope it yields results. There needs to be a solid plan in place so that you understand what you’re trying to achieve from the outset. Otherwise it’s pointless, and you’re almost just hoping for the best.
What underpins all of this is having a tailored social media strategy.
Therefore, I would hope this would already be tip top of their priority list…
Monthly statistics
Statistics are highly important to your social media activities as they allow you to work out what’s working and what isn’t.
You can therefore change your tactics based on top performing content to make sure you’re getting the most out of your social media efforts. Similarly, you can identify any room for improvement and therefore maximise your efforts even further.
Whichever social media company you choose, monthly statistics should always be provided. Otherwise you’re working in the dark and you won’t have a clue which social media channels are performing best or which posts your audience resonates with.
Having these insights is key, as you can build on them moving forward. Your chosen agency should provide you with all of the necessary data covering everything from number of likes, top performing posts, web traffic, number of comments, number of page views, clicks on your bio, and post reach.
If they didn’t, it would scream alarm bells …
Social Media Marketing Package Provider: Number Two
Our second social media provider offers three different packages to their customers.
These are called their ‘starter’, ‘business’, and ‘bespoke’ packages.
For this section I’m going to look at their cheapest option, the ‘starter package’.
Weekday posts on Twitter
I’m a little confused by this package as it’s rather vague.
Weekday posts on twitter are fine, but how many are you getting for your money? Does this mean a single post on twitter a day or several posts each day?
Your guess is as good as mine!
Also, why the focus on twitter? There’s a mention of Facebook and Instagram in this list also, but there’s no mention of other platforms such as LinkedIn and TikTok.
For some businesses twitter might be their best social media channel as that’s where most of their audience might be. However, for another business, twitter might not produce the best results and they might therefore want to dedicate less time to this.
That’s why social media marketing packages suck as they don’t account for what truly works for your business.
Weekday posts on Facebook
Similar to the point above, I’m unsure what this actually refers to.
It would be useful if the agency detailed how many posts you’re getting as part of the packaging so you have something to base your decision on.
There’s a big difference between being restricted to posting once a day, or having the option to post several times a day if you’re trying to make a bigger push. Sometimes there’s a lot going on in your business at the same time, and it’s important to know you have the flexibility to post more than once if need be.
2 posts per week on Instagram
Ah, finally some numbers!
However, I wouldn’t get too excited about it as you can only post to Instagram twice a week. That’s nowhere near enough to make the sort of impact you need.
As we’ve already touched on, it’s very easy for people to just scroll past your posts on social media as you’re competing with lots of other brands. We’re also living in a time where our attention span is getting shorter so you need to keep reminding your audience that you exist.
This concept is summed up beautifully by Gary Vaynerchuk.
In the below video, he talks about how marketers should took advantage of any space which is capturing peoples attention. If they’re not then they’re missing a huge opportunity.
Handpicked content
I’m not sure why, but I find the choice of word ‘handpicked’ quite odd.
It doesn’t really tell you anything about the content you’re going to receive. Instead, they should have said ‘professional’ or ‘high quality’ as at least they make sense!
I think they’ve tried to sound fancy here, but to me, it’s a bit fluffy. As a client, you just want the facts. You want to know exactly what you’re getting from your chosen agency as you’re spending a lot of time and money on this.
You haven’t got time for fancy words or jargon!
Dedicated account manager
Now this point is really important, as when you partner with an agency, you need to know who you’re working with. This really helps bridge the gap between you and your chosen agency as you’re not physically working in the same office.
If a member of your in-house team were managing social media, then you’d be able to pop over to their desk whenever you had a question.
However this option isn’t available when you’re outsourcing your content, so it’s important you know which member of the team you can reach out to.
I would have said having a dedicated account manager was a bit of a given and is definitely something you should look for when you’re researching different agencies.
At Canny, we provide you with a dedicated point of contact from start to finish so that you feel supported throughout the entirety of your project. There’s nothing worse than having to explain yourself over and over again because you keep speaking to a different person. That’s why one point of contact guides you through the entire process.
Monthly custom graphics
Keeping in line with the previous trend, this point is very vague.
‘Monthly custom graphics’ doesn’t tell you how many you’re going to get. And what type of graphics are they talking about? Are they just offering you infographics or any other type of graphics you could possibly need?
Again, this should be a conversation between you and your chosen agency to identify exactly what you need from their services.
You might not actually require any custom graphics at all as you might be quite happy using stock photo websites such as Unsplash or Pexels. Of course, creating your own custom imagery is much more effective as it adds authenticity to your brand.
However, this shouldn’t just be lumped into the package as you should be able to cherry pick the deliverables you actually want.
Social Media Marketing Package Provider: Number Three
The third site offers three different types of packages called ‘moderate impact’, ‘high impact’, and ‘full impact’.
We’ll focus on my favourite of the three – ‘high impact’.
Now if Canny were to offer social media marketing packages, this is the way I would go. It’s comprehensive, varied, and offers the tools you need to really get your social media efforts off the ground.
This package leaves no stone unturned, and is definitely one of the better offerings I have seen.
So without further ado, let’s take a look at what’s involved.
Channel management
According to their website this involves the ‘Creation and distribution of original, brand-appropriate and engaging content across two platforms.’
Again, two platforms is very limited, especially when it comes with a higher price tag. However, we’ll let this one slide as the rest of the package offers you more for your money.
It’s also important to let businesses know that their social media channels will be ‘managed’ as this allows them to feel more relaxed and focus on other tasks, knowing their social media is in safe hands.
Engagement
This is the first package in the list that mentions engagement – which is really quite worrying. One of the most important parts of growing a successful online presence is making sure your audience is engaging with your content.
This can take the form of likes, comments, and shares. Therefore, if your chosen agency isn’t concentrating on this side of things, I’d be very worried. Whilst lots of likes isn’t always a direct indication of how successful a post is, it’s definitely something important to consider.
With this package, the agency goes a step further and ensures you’re engaging in conversations with the right type of brands. This is key to growing your online network as you should be interacting with other people in your industry.
This not only positions you as a thought leader, but can also lead to new business partnerships.
Advertising
Not only do you get a £200 ad spend, but the agency will also plan and execute your ads in line with your business objectives, whether that’s driving sales, generating awareness, or boosting engagement.
They will work to ensure your ads are strategically placed so that they are seen by the right people at the right time.
You would however, expect this from your chosen agency so still not 100% sure this is a unique benefit.
Ad optimisation
Arguably this could be coupled up with the point above as you would expect your ads to be optimised to attract the right people.
The agency states that they will spend time monitoring your ads and optimising the delivery methods to ensure your money is delivering the best results.
This is really key as it allows you to identify what’s working best for your business so you can capitalise more on those methods.
Advanced campaign testing
Campaign testing is key when it comes to social media.
Essentially this involves running versions of ads that differ from each other in just one aspect. It’s important to only concentrate on one aspect at a time otherwise you won’t know what you’re testing and it could get rather confusing!
Whilst this concept might seem quite simple, there are some many different types of adverts that you can take advantage of, that you need to be very precise and plan your split tests in advance.
Failure to plan means you could end up gaining no significant insights. This is why it’s very sensible to hand A/B testing over to an agency.
The fact this package includes campaign testing is hugely beneficial as you can work out exactly what is working and what isn’t. With this information you will also be able to learn what types of imagery, supporting post texts, headlines, and CTA’s work better for your audience.
1 infographic
Infographics are a great way of communicating key pieces of information with your audience. Instead of trying to read chunks and chunks of text, it’s so much easier for them to learn from an image.
Especially when it comes to a complex product or service, such as Tech or IT as it really helps to break down how something works. They’re also so much more pleasing to the eye as you can use a range of colours, fonts, and icons to get your message across.
Again, this is the only package which includes infographics as part of its offering. And that’s a real shame. This type of content is effective across pretty much any industry and is a great way of educating your audience about your business.
You don’t just want to hit them with lots of texts. You want them to truly understand what your business does and the advantages it can bring. Infographics are a great way of ensuring this happens, and it’s great to see that at least one agency understands their potential!
2 blog posts
This involves the agency researching, writing, and optimising two 500 word blog articles.
I’m really pleased to see this in the package as blog content for any business is essential. It remains one of the most effective types of content marketing as blogs position you as a thought leader in your respective field.
By talking about topics in depth that your audience cares about, you’re showing them that you understand their wants and needs and you’re there to help. Your business can solve their problem, and over time, you build up a great deal of trust with your audience. You therefore become the person they come to next time they need something.
Out of all the packages we’ve mentioned in this post, this is the only one that has mentioned blog content.
And as a content strategist that worries me!
A slight concern with this package is that you only get 500 words. This isn’t giving you enough space to explore topics in depth, and to build trust with your audience, your content needs to act as an end-to-end guide.
I’m skeptical how you’re going to cram all of this into 500 words!
The Three Key Issues With Social Media Marketing Packages
At Canny, we never advocate social media packages and we never will.
Hopefully by reading the above examples you can see why, but if you’re still unsure, then let’s take a look at three key issues.
One size fits all doesn’t work
Your business is unique and so are your project requirements.
Therefore offering you the same list of services as another company really doesn’t make much sense.
You will probably require a totally different set of services to make your social media marketing work.
You’re too restricted
As we’ve seen with the three packages above, lots of the services listed are too restrictive.
For example, only posting across two social media channels isn’t enough for every client, yet that’s what the package is giving you.
The services you receive should be flexible and tailored towards what you need.
You end up paying for things you don’t need
When looking at the above packages, you end up paying for a lot of services that you don’t actually want or need!
Do you really need a paid ad spend?
Or would it be more important to focus on growing your social media presence organically?
Say no to paying for things you don’t need and choose a social media agency which offers bespoke services.
Social Media Marketing Packages Suck! Here’s Why
Hopefully after reading this blog post you’re in agreement with us that social media marketing packages aren’t the best solution for your business.
What might seem initially attractive, doesn’t treat your business the way it deserves. Any service you invest in should add value to your company in some shape or form. Otherwise it’s pretty much money down the drain.
The biggest problem with social media marketing packages is that they’re too generic. You don’t have the opportunity to tailor services to what you really need, as you get whatever is on that list.
It’s essentially like being given a set menu at a restaurant. If you don’t fancy a dessert then tough, you’re paying for it cos it’s part of the deal.
At Canny we would much rather work with you to identify exactly what you need from us. Maybe you need 3 posts a day across every social media channel but you’re not interested in paid promotion. And that’s absolutely fine. We would prefer to give your business exactly what it needs instead of just focusing on making more money.
If we sound like an agency you’d like to partner with then get in touch.
