Social media strategy

A social media strategy is a set of decisions

A good social media strategy is short. It is not a 60-page deck with industry trends; it is a handful of decisions written down so you stop making them again every Monday. Where will you be active? Who are you talking to? What will you post about, how often, in what tone? What does success look like after 90 days, in numbers you can check?

Those decisions come from your business, not from social media. A cleaning company with recurring office contracts and a bakery with walk-in customers need different strategies even if both use Instagram. So I start with your offer, margins, best customers and season, and work outward to the platforms.

The parts of the document

1. Goal. One main business outcome: bookings, enquiries, store visits, hires, product sales.
2. Audience. Two or three customer types with their questions and objections. If you need more depth here, buyer personas and positioning is a separate piece of work.
3. Platforms. One main channel and at most one supporting one, with the reason for each.
4. Content pillars. Three to five recurring themes, for example: results, how it works, the team, customer questions, offers.
5. Formats and rhythm. Reels, carousels, Stories, text posts, and how many of each per week.
6. Calendar. Ninety days of topics tied to your season, holidays and promotions.
7. Measurement. Which numbers to watch monthly and how to tell if a post helped sales.

Planning around the Canadian year

Seasonality is strong in much of Canada, and the calendar has to reflect it. A landscaper's spring rush starts with posts in late winter. A snow removal company needs to be visible before the first storm, not after. Retailers plan around Black Friday, Boxing Day and back-to-school. Restaurants and patios live by the weather. Thanksgiving, Canada Day and the long weekends of May and August are natural hooks. For more on this, see seasonal marketing in Canada.

Language is part of the plan too. If you sell in Quebec, French-language content is expected at least as prominently as English; my strategies and content are in English, so French posts come from your own team or translator.

Measuring what matters

Followers are easy to count and easy to misread. I set goals that connect to money: messages received, link clicks to the booking page, calls from the profile, promo codes used, and leads tagged with their source in your CRM. Reach and engagement are still tracked, but as signals, not targets. A post with modest reach that brings three booking requests is worth more than a viral one that brings none. If you already run ads, the strategy also shows how organic posts and social media advertising feed each other.

After the strategy

You have three options. Run it yourself with the calendar and templates. Run it yourself with a monthly consultation to review results. Or hand it over: I deliver ongoing social media management with a trusted partner, while the agreement, deadlines and communication stay with me. Whichever you choose, the strategy document is yours to keep and use. It is written so that a new employee or another marketer can pick it up without needing me in the room, which is the real test of a useful plan.

When a broader plan is better

If you are not yet sure social media is the right channel at all, a social-only strategy may be too narrow. The marketing audit and strategy at $2,400 looks at your website, search, ads, email and social together, and tells you where your next dollar should go.