Social media can be a really powerful way to connect with and build deeper relationships with your audience – but it can be extremely time consuming. So, we asked some folks we admire to share how they manage their social profiles and whether they’ve hired professionals to help.

Blaire Sonnier

I manage my own social media platforms, with Instagram being my main focus. I remember when Reels were first introduced to the Instagram platform, and I knew this feature was going to be a game changer. However, finding the type of content I wanted to make and have representing my brand took a bit longer than expected. I had some reservations about putting myself out there completely, so I first posted Reels of myself lip-syncing to popular audios at the time while showcasing my jewelry. It worked decently well, but I knew I wanted to give something more. I decided to release my inhibitions and just be myself. Read more>>

Angela Haynes

I have managed my own social media which I treat mainly as my personal brand. I’ve been on social media for the last 3 years and for me I decided early on & ever since to manage my social on my own. I decided to manage it on my own because I wanted to have this be a creative outlet for me & be able to make all the executive decisions about how I show up strategically, visually, etc. While it’s for sure been a learning lesson in time management, showing up on social media, and even more – it’s been a great way for me to have total creative control, which I haven’t had a lot of chance to do in my offline life. So far, I’ve been able to organically grow my page to 1000+ followers, achieve an engagement rate of 4.15%, have a viral video of 700K+, and connect with amazing individuals who have become great friends from all over. Read more>>

Hannah Vaughan

I currently manage my own social media for Coastal Moke. My background in social media and marketing gave me the confidence to handle this aspect of the business myself. Understanding content strategy and audience engagement has allowed me to showcase the fun, carefree, beachy spirit of Coastal Moke rentals and connect directly with my community. Read more>>

Kody Hildebrand

I manage my own social media accounts. It’s honestly been incredibly rewarding because I get to post on my own schedule while also creating the content I feel best suits my accounts without having to worry about anyone telling me the do’s or don’t’s. I got to learn what works best for me and what doesn’t, and I’m always learning new things that could potentially work better in either a helpful way to what I’m doing or as a completely different method to keep things fresh. My biggest insights for business owners when it comes to posting on social media is to get to know your demographics better and post the content that would work best to connect with them. Don’t copy trends or memes because that automatically kills the fun of it and makes it weird to see, but instead find humor. Read more>> 

Leda Akyuz

I’ve always managed my own social media, which was initially a decision driven by running a lean business – when you’re bootstrapping, you naturally ‘DIY’ wherever possible. But what started as a cost-saving measure turned into one of the best decisions I made for Woof & Wonder. Read more>>

Margo Zelle

When I was in highschool, I traveled frequently from my hometown of Austin, TX to go to Nashville, TN. I got deep into the music industry in Nashville, and part of that led me into meeting a socal media manager. For a few months, she managed my socials– and did it well!– but I soon realized that the fans I was gaining weren’t organic fans, and I also missed the thrill of creating and posting on my own. I separated from the social media manager and started digging into social media on my own, and it was a long process. I spent years trying to figure out the algorithms and do what other people did, trying to get my TikTok in particular to go viral. Read more>>

Andrew Nucatola

I manage all of my own social media channels! I studied New Media Communications in college and have worked in digital marketing and social media for my entire professional career; I love creating content and adapting to trends. I think the best advice to give anyone is not to be afraid to try something new with your socials. We fall into the idea of “I have to post a Reel” or “this doesn’t match my feed”, but sometimes the post you don’t expect to do well ends up getting you the most reach and engagement. It’s all trial and error, even when you’ve been doing it for 7 years. Read more>>

Nakiyah Santos Nunez

At this point myself and my daughter manages my social media. However social media is a huge part of growing and branding the business and since our business is in the early stages of growing we will continue to manage it until we expand more.Hopefully that will be sooner then later since it it very time consuming. Read more>>