The Cost of Doing Social Media in Ghana

by Jeffery Opoku August 15, 2023
Cost of doing Social Media
With more businesses shifting their marketing efforts to the digital world, social media has been on the rise. In 2016, approximately 2.34 billion people worldwide were active on social media. This tells you how relevant it has become.
 
 
With this in mind, businesses are including social media in their marketing plan. Business owners have the option of in-house or a digital marketing agency. This decision depends on the services you need and the size of your business. It will also depend on the experience level of the agency and the skill set of employees.
 
Deciding whether to go in-house or hire an agency can be difficult. 
 

hiring digital marketing agency

In this blog, I’ll highlight the key factors to consider when it comes to social media and how much it will cost you. 

Some key factors to consider
 
  • Outline your goals
 
First of all, you need to outline your marketing goals. What do you want to achieve from having a social media presence? Do you want to grow traffic? Increase brand awareness or increase engagement?
 
Also, what social media platforms would you like to focus on? Remember, not all platforms will yield results for your brand. Your goals serve as a guide on whether you should outsource or manage an in-house team.

Source: Ascend2 Marketing Technology Trends Survey, Ascend2 and Research Partners, October 2016

  • Money matters
 
It also comes down to your budget. How much are you willing to spend? A company with a tight budget might decide to include a social media manager’s role in an existing employee’s job description to cut costs.
 
A company with a big budget might decide to build an in-house team or go all in for a marketing agency.
 
  • Do you want to be hands-on or free?
 
Social media takes time. Some people are of the opinion that it takes little effort – posting pictures and videos on different platforms. It’s more than that. You’ll have to create a marketing strategy and research your competitors.
 
Also, create engaging posts, be consistent, and also stay in touch with your audience. Would you like to take part in day-to-day activities? Or allow an agency to handle it for you while you focus on other things?

Social Media Channels

 
What platforms would you like to be on? All? Remember, your goals should guide you.
 
In Ghana, Twitter and Facebook are usually the top two options for businesses. For starters, it’s best you go for these two as they provide the greatest Return on Investment (ROI). Other channels include Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest, YouTube, and Snapchat.
 

Time, they say is money. An in-house team with little experience might end up testing platforms. However, an agency has a team of qualified individuals who know which platform will get you more ROI.

To run a social media campaign, you’ll need landing pages, videos, design, strategy, execution, blogging, and set up. An in-house person might not be able to handle all these campaigns (plus any other extra role assigned to him/her).

Tools

 
For a social media campaign to work, there’s a myriad of tools available. You can use these tools to track engagement, schedule your posts, conduct analytics and report findings. Among the myriad of tools, these are the most common ones.
 
Hootsuite: This tool helps increase your social media presence by scheduling social content and finding prospects
 
Buffer: An easy and simple tool to share content across many accounts and networks. 
 
Sprout Social: This is a social media management and engagement platform. It makes it easy for companies to engage with current and prospective customers.
 
Canva: If you’re not an expert in graphic design, this is a great tool to get you started. It provides you with a range of templates to help create stunning visual content for different platforms.
 
Bitly: If you would like to share your blog on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook, this is a great tool for that. It shortens your links to fit on any social media platform.
 
Agorapulse: You can manage all social media content from one space. Create, schedule, and publish social media content across channels.
 
Wistia: This tool provides insight into watching your videos
 
Unsplash: Photos and videos are engaging on social media platforms. If you’re looking for high-quality images, Unsplash is a great tool.
 
BuzzSumo: This tool helps you find out what keywords get the most attraction
 
TweetDeck: Schedule, post, and track your tweets on Twitter using TweetDeck.
 
Animoto: Platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, and Twitter all thrive on video. Animoto has loads of photos and video editing tools to help you come out with a perfect post.
 
Lumen5: This is a video creation tool for your posts   

Team

There’s no right or wrong answer when it comes to the size of a social media team. Some companies have one person who handles everything from creation to promotion.
 
Also, some companies hire more than one social media person to manage other aspects of the campaign.
 
The size of your team depends on your goals, budget, and resources available. When deciding your team size, it’s important you know the roles and skills needed.
 
 
1. Social Media Manager: Responsible for developing a strategy for social media presence. He/she handles day-to-day activities on different platforms. The individual heads publishing and listening. The social media manager can double as a content creator in some cases. Publishing social media posts and engaging with your audience.
 
 
2. Content Creator. In cases where the social media manager isn’t responsible for creating content, the content marketer takes up this position. Content is the currency of social media. Not only does it spark a conversation and encourage engagement, it also drives traffic back to your website. He/she handles writing blog posts and social media posts.
 
 
3. Analyst: Assess data and social media. They’re responsible for developing solutions to meet client’s needs. A strategist decides which platform is the best to increase engagement.
 
 
4. Graphic Designer: The graphic designer handles creating visuals for your content.
Role Average Salary
Strategist 2,000
Content Creator 1,500
Social Media Manager 1,500
Advertiser 1,500
Graphic Designer 1,500
Total GHC 8,000/ avg monthly

In-house Option

While it’s good to have an in-house you can manage closely, you want to make sure he has the right skill set for the job. Is he aware of the tools needed to successfully carry out a campaign? It can be quite overwhelming for one person – schedule and post content, track progress, engage with your audience, and promote ads. Your chances of finding an individual to juggle all these roles are slim.
 
There’s also the issue of time spent recruiting or training the person. Plus, you’ll factor in employee benefits and the cost of tools.
 
In the end, you could spend a total of GHC 96,000 in a year.
 
This does not include employee benefits and the cost of tools. You would have to factor in training, office space, and tools that come with hiring a new employee.
 
 

Agency Option

When it comes to an agency, hiring the best agency is important. An agency that can deliver you results! To see the best questions to ask before hiring a digital agency, click here.
 
With an agency, you could hire a team of let’s say 6+ for the price of one and end up saving 30% or more. But, you’ll have to find the right agency that aligns with your business goals and budget.
 
An agency has a team of experts on board to execute your campaign from start to finish. From strategy to planning, research, implementation, content writing, graphics, nurturing, and analytics.
 
If you decide to go for a digital marketing agency, it will cost you 3,000 – 6,000 a month. This depends on the agency, tools used, and services required. In a year, you’ll spend between GHC 36,000 – 72,000.
 

Making a decision

 
Making a decision all comes down to your goals and budget. What’s best for your business? Consider your goals and budget. If you decide to go to an agency, make sure it’s the right fit for your business.
Weigh your options before arriving at a decision. It’s better that you do your research than go for one that seems convenient but doesn’t get you the best return on investment.
 
In conclusion, social media is important to all businesses. Social media is changing the face of businesses today. To get the most out of it, you’ll need a variety of tools and a diverse set of skills to build a team. That is enough reason to hire someone you’re confident can move your business a step further. Whether it’s an in-house person or an agency, put some research into it and find a good match.
 

Your Turn,

Would you go in-house or outsource to an agency? What will inform your decision?
 
If you’re looking for a digital marketing agency to manage your social media, contact us today.
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