Staff+and+Training

=Staff and Training=
 * //Who will implement your organization’s social media strategy?//
 * //Can you allocate a minimum of five hours per week to your strategy once you've passed the learning curve?//
 * //Do you have the most efficient work flow and tasks in place?//
 * //Do you need any outside expertise?//
 * //Will your content updates depend on any other resource or person?//

Depending on your strategy, implementation can take anywhere from a minimum of 5 hours per week to over 20 hours per week. Keep in mind these are rough estimates. As with any new skill, you need to factor in learning curve time. As soon as you have the workflow in memory and have it down to an efficient routine, it will take less time. Most importantly, it is how [|you manage your online time]. Are you staying on task and getting the workflow done for each specific strategy? It is also important to keep in mind that it often takes a few months before you see begin to see results from your social media effort.

It is important to consider who is going to implement your organization's social media strategy. Whether you hire someone new or entrust an existing employee with the role, the person in charge should be comfortable using the tools, passionate about your organization's programs, and should enjoy interacting with other people. It is after all, called “social media.” That said, social media should not exist in a silo and be implemented as a supplemental channel by "a young intern alone in the corner." It needs to be owned by the entire organization.

Some organizations take shared staff responsibility for the implementation. For example, some organizations implement multi-author blogs so one staff person does not have to do all the writing and can it can be shared cross departments.

There are definitely pros and cons to using volunteers and interns to implement your social media strategy. On the one hand, it is a great to begin testing social media without the investment of staff time, particularly when budgets are lean. On the other hand, it may not be an effective in the long run. What happens when your intern moves on? Does anyone staff know how to manage the Facebook Fan Page left behind?

Consider whether your staff may need additional training or could benefit from outside expertise as part of the implementation. Sometimes it may be a matter of allocating work time to the efforts.

Heather Gardner-Madras, [|Should You Use A Volunteer or Intern To Do Your Social Media?] Nina Simon, [|How Much Time Does It Take To Do Social Media?] CC Maine, Tweeting 9-5: [|The Daily Routine of a Slightly Insane Social Media Strategist] Beth Kanter, [|52 Ways To Streamline Your Social Media Use] Beth Kanter, [|Social Media Strategy Is Everywhere in the Organization - Indianapolis Museum of Art] Beth Kanter, [|How Much Time Does It Take To Do Social Media?]
 * Resources**