How to Do A Social Media Audit for Your Handmade Business

Disclosure: some of the links below are affiliate links, meaning, at no additional cost to you, I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase.

You know that social media is a “must have” for most businesses these days. It’s the most accessible way to get in front of your potential customers. 

But do you know if you’re attracting the right people? How can you ensure you are posting content that your ideal customer is interested in? 

A social media audit is the answer! Reviewing your strategy, growth and content can show you what’s working well and what needs improvement. Don’t be scared - the word “audit” may strike fear in your heart but I promise this is a painless exercise!

 Don't worry, this audit is less scary than Thriller!

Here’s a quick overview of how to conduct a social media audit for your handmade business.

1. Take note of all your social media accounts. Even if you don’t use them regularly, make a note of every platform you have an account for your business on. 

2. Make sure each account profile is updated. Are they all using your brand elements (the same logo, colors, etc.) Is your contact information complete and current? Is your “handle” or username the same across all platforms? 

3. Make notes on how many followers each account has, and how many people you are following. 

While followers are not the most important metric, it's a good way of measuring if you are producing content that resonates with your audience. If you're gaining a steady stream of new followers each month, then they can be a good indicator that you're providing value.

4. Take a look at your top posts on each platform. Look at the posts that got the most engagement. See if you can notice any patterns. For example, do videos get more engagement than images? Do certain topics fire up your followers more than others?

Write down whatever patterns you see, then use this information to plan future posts, and track your results.

5. Set some goals for each social media channel. For example, on Twitter maybe you want to increase your followers by 20 per month, and want to engage with 5 new accounts each month. Or maybe on Instagram, you would like to increase your engagement by 2% over last month, or increase clicks to your website by 5%. 

Having goals for your social media is a great way to see if you are "getting something" out of the work you're putting into those channels. Who wants to work for free? (Not me!) Your goals are your "pay" for the time you spend posting on social media.

6. Look at the overall performance for each channel. If you’re just starting, you may need to wait a month or two to get some data. Compare each channel against the others. What is the rate of new followers on each? Where do you see the most engagement, and the least? Which channel is bringing the most traffic to your shop?

Compare your performance with the goals you set to see where to concentrate your efforts. You can use this information to review and set goals for the next few months.

7. Understand your audience on each channel. Take a look at analytics, such as your Instagram Insights, to understand the type of people you are attracting on each channel.

Once you have a good overview of each channel, you should take a moment to decide if you want to continue using each one. If you are spending time (and maybe money) posting on Facebook but your return is low (low engagement, not your perfect customer, low click through rate), Hootsuite recommends that it might be time to leave that channel and focus your efforts on the ones that are performing well. 

You do NOT have to be present on every social media channel! You will see much better results by focusing on one or two channels where your perfect customer hangs out, then trying to be everywhere.

Make a date with yourself to run this audit once a month. This will give you the information you need to ensure you’re getting the most out of your time spent on social media. Over time you should see your engagement improve and hopefully an increase in sales, too!

Create a social media audit checklist that you can use each month to track this information, and keep a copy of each month’s notes. Compare month over month, then year over year, to ensure your social media efforts are yielding the results you want.

Meet other makers and get advice on your online business efforts in my free Facebook support group!