Did You Waste Effort on Your Last Social Media Post?

One might think that hundreds of likes and comments on a post is a big win – or that only 2 or 3 likes on is a big loss.

But what we don’t see (to those on the outside looking in) might be that the high likes engagement post resulted in zero sales for one brand while the post with only 2 or 3 likes and comments resulted in 3 scheduled calls and 2 converted sales.

The first post, along with a highly produced video and additional assets, took 18 combined hours to create. The second, a shorter video with very specific content, took 3 hours.

I call that a win for the second.

There’s more to this than meets the eye.

In comes the Impact vs. Effort Matrix.

But first, let’s take a stroll in the garden. 🪴

Tiny Plants, Strikingly Good Looks

Think of your social media strategy as a garden with plants representing your posts and your activities.

Some plants, like simple tiny, blue flowers, need minimal care but bring beauty and attract attention easily. Cute! Love them.

How. Ever. Exotic orchids may just floor you with their striking good looks, but require intensive care and may not flourish as easily or widely. I must confess, I am the recipient and disposer of many of these poor unfortunate souls.

As you can see, each plant requires different effort and yields different results.

To help you tend your social media garden, let’s dig our heels into the Social Media Impact vs. Effort Matrix.

This tool isn't new - another variation is used by Lean Six Sigma to streamline operations in Fortune 500 companies like GE, Ford Motor Company, and 3M.

This variation will prioritize your social media posts and activities based on their impact and required effort. Here’s a breakdown of the quadrants:

Easy Gains (Low Effort, High Impact): These activities are your garden's low-maintenance beauties. They require minimal effort but yield significant results. Examples include posting engaging content or using trending hashtags.
Big Bets (High Effort, High Impact): These are your investment plants, like a high-maintenance vegetable garden that, with time and effort, provides a bountiful harvest (yum). Activities here might include developing comprehensive social media campaigns or creating high-impact videos.
Routine Tasks (Low Effort, Low Impact): These are your everyday tasks, like watering your plants or pulling a few annoying weeds. Routine updates or sharing articles fall into this category.
Trivial Trudges (High Effort, Low Impact): Beware of these. These activities are like planting exotic plants that require lots of care but don’t thrive well in your climate (or maybe under your care. I see you dying orchid). Deep data analysis with few actionable outcomes or overproduced content with low engagement are perfect examples.

Planting the Right Seeds

Let’s face it: sometimes, we get carried away with the allure of exotic plants. They’re beautiful and unique but often fail to produce the results we need. In the non-botanical world, this is where our Trivial Trudges come into play.

You might find deep personal satisfaction in them, but for our business, they may not provide the right sales, enough calls, or the interest needed to get your brand buzzing in the right ears.

Every business has passion projects, and some might fall into this category. I believe dreams and big ideas need a place to thrive, and we’ve got to throw ourselves a bone every now and then so that we don’t lose our spark.

Still, beware: use sparingly and keep a strong pulse on how much time it takes you away from the content that has the most impact.

Dazzle Your Audience

When your garden is well-crafted, it becomes a sight to behold. All your plants together create a vibrant and attractive display, giving your audience something to "ooo" and "ahh" over.

A well-designed garden will dazzle and get the neighbors talking – and, more importantly, buying. Your social media garden, filled with carefully selected and nurtured posts, will spark conversations and generate the buzz your brand needs.

Prioritize? You Bet

In your social media garden, focus on planting the right seeds. Allocate your time and resources to posts and activities in the Easy Gains and Big Bets quadrants.

This will give your garden its best chance at flourishing with minimal effort while investing in posts and activities that promise a significant return in line with your business goals.

Assess Your Current Activities and Posts: Use the Impact vs. Effort Matrix to categorize your current social media posts and activities. Identify which quadrant each falls into.
Prioritize High-Impact Activities and Posts: Shift your focus towards Easy Gains and Big Bets. These should form the core of your social media strategy.
Minimize Trivial Trudges: Recognize activities and posts that fall into this quadrant and evaluate their necessity. If they don’t contribute significantly to your goals, consider reallocating your effort elsewhere.
Routine Maintenance: Don’t neglect the Routine Tasks. These keep your social media presence consistent and engaged.

Ditch the Flashy Campaign

A common pitfall is becoming enamored with the exotic. It’s easy to get excited about a complex project or a flashy campaign, but always ask yourself: Is this the best use of my time? Will this help me achieve my business goals?

Remember, the goal is to plant seeds that will truly grow and flourish with the resources you have. In other words, putting your effort into achieving the highest impact for the right goals.

So, get to digging and let's watch your social media garden do its magic.