I know people who are bright, energetic and engaged in person but don’t come off that way online. They have Facebook profiles that are never updated and Twitter accounts they haven’t posted to in weeks. Or worse, a blog that has gone entirely dark for months.

Sure it’s hard to keep up with but with a little planning it is completely possible to keep it real online 24/7. Here are a few things you can do to plan for it:

1. Post to your blog at least weekly. Try to Tweet everyday. If you’re using Facebook for business try and do something there daily. You don’t have to post everyday – commenting on other people’s posts goes a long way.
2. Exploit auto-posting features. Most blogging platforms, like WordPress allow you to set a later publication date. If you know you’re going have a busy week, you can set it and forget it.
3. Put time on your calender for social media activities. Most people put other important things on their calendar but don’t bother to for social media.
4. Use mobile apps. Take a few minutes on the train or waiting for a meeting to hammer out a post or send a couple tweets.
5. Write non-time-sensitive material and leave it on the back burner. Then pull the material out when things get busy.
6. If you’re maintaining a business profile don’t be shy about delegating all or a portion of the responsibility.  You may find one of your employees is more comfortable in the space than you are. It can be better when someone higher in the food chain takes responsibility for social media activities but if you can’t maintain an active presence, it’s better to go ahead and delegate.

Sure, your offline existence is more important than your online one – no doubt. But the two are increasingly intertwined – so it makes sense to be your best both off and online.

Posted on: April 13, 2010, by : Jimmy Gilmore