Complete a SWOT analysis, review the competition and maximise your opportunities to make the most of social media for business.
A social media audit is a fancy way of saying, let’s look at:
- how your business is going on social media,
- what your competitors are doing well, and
- how you might improve your presence to meet your business goals.
Before you begin analysing anything, sit down and review exactly where you have a social media presence. For example, did you set up a LinkedIn account 2 years ago? Are you passively hiding on TikTok thinking I’ll post a video one day? Is there a Facebook page for your business that you haven’t claimed? Once you know where you are, let’s start the audit.
Review your current social media results
Keep it simple when reviewing your social media by using the fabulous SWOT analysis, in a table like the one below, or just under headings on a page. You will need some basic metrics about your reach and engagement, but a lot will also be your views and reflections about whether you are satisfied with the results.
| SWOT | What it is | Examples |
| Strength | Where is your business doing well on social media? | Great engagement on Instagram posts / Healthy budget for advertising |
| Weakness | Where do you feel your business is weak on social media? | Not comfortable on camera for lives or reels / Not reaching new audiences when you post |
| Opportunity | What strength can you leverage, or what weakness can you improve? | Learn about hashtags for social media reach / Boost posts to reach new audience |
| Threat | This is probably your greatest competitor and that successful new tactic they have implemented. | Biggest competitor just launched a new website with jazzy offerings / social media manager just quit |
Observe the competition
You might have mentioned a known competitor in your SWOT threat analysis, now take the time to dive a little deeper and see what your competitors are doing, and how they are rating. Tools like Rival IQ can track your competitor’s social metrics, grading you against your competition (great for those of us with a slightly competitive streak). Alternatively, Uber Suggest is good for checking out competitors’ keywords.
However, just because it works for them does not mean it will work for you. Or that you are even trying to achieve the same thing. You may decide that if your competitor focuses on Widgets Canberra, you will target Widgets Belconnen as a point of difference. This may capture a market they are missing. Rival IQ might suggest your competitor is doing much better than you at Instagram Reels, but instead of competing there, you might focus on Instagram Lives.
Remember, you are observing your competitor as another data metric, not trying to emulate them. Knowledge is power.
Identify your opportunities
Throughout the process of your SWOT and competitor analysis, the aim of the social media audit is to find opportunities. If Rival IQ shows you a strength during competitor analysis, add it to your Strengths. If Uber Suggest brings up words you are not ranking well for, consider adding it as a Threat. Insert opportunities as you see them. As with all things small business, your social media audit won’t be as linear as you wish. And that’s ok.
The important thing is to set a plan and act once you have identified your opportunities. Whether they are increasing a strength or improving a weakness, you need to determine what success will look like in 6 months when you next audit your social media. For example, if your weakness is related to the competition killing it on TikTok, you have options. Either you might aim to increase your TikTok presence and compete, or you might set your target on Instagram to capture a different market entirely.
Set a date to review your social media goals again
Social media audits are not a do once and move on process. I review my clients’ socials every 6 months in full and advise you to do the same. Of course, you might love it so much that you do them more often or hate it so much you outsource it to me. Your call…
