As industry leaders put it, running a social media audit is “a game-changer” for maximising online impact. Brands require a comprehensive and detailed inventory of their online activities over a lengthy period, so they can review, reflect, modify, and improve strategies for the next period of operations. We have broken it into systematic steps to guide you through the process of conducting a successful audit.
Step 1 – Clarify Goals and Metrics
First, revisit your goals and KPIs. Before digging into data, make sure you clearly understand what success means for your brand on each platform. For example, are you aiming to increase engagement, generate leads, or raise brand awareness?
Verify that your Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) are still relevant, things like follower growth, click-through rates, or conversions and that they truly measure progress toward those goals. Defining these targets upfront gives your audit purpose and focus. If past audits reveal goals were set too aggressively, now is the time to adjust them to realistic levels.
Step 2 – Inventory All Accounts
Next, inventory all your social accounts and profiles. Create a master list of every official page and profile your brand has – including regional or product-specific accounts – and even scour for any unofficial or impersonator pages. Ensure the usernames, logos, and bios are consistent across platforms. For example, use the same handle structure (or easy-to-track URLs) and high-resolution logo files everywhere. Note down logins and administrative permissions to confirm that all access is secure. If you discover an account that has “gone dark” (no posts or updates for months), decide whether to revive it or archive it entirely. This step ensures that no aspect of your brand presence is overlooked and that everything appears polished and intentional.
Step 3 – Analyse Content Performance
After cataloguing your accounts, ensure you analyse content performance. Pull data from each platform’s analytics or a social media tool. Look at what types of content (images, short videos, long videos, infographics, etc.) drew the most engagement. Identify your top-performing posts – the ones with top likes, shares, comments, or views. Sprinklr advises evaluating both successes and failures.
For instance, ask why a particular video doubled the engagement of your average post, or why a branded article fell flat. These insights form a pattern: if short-form reels are consistently winning and long text posts are lagging, you now know where to “double down” and where to pivot.
Record key metrics such as reach, impressions, engagement rate, and click-through rate for each account. This detailed content audit tells you what matters most to your audience.
Step 4 – Review Audience Demographics
The audience demographic review comes next. Ensure the people interacting with your content match your intended target market. Examine the age, gender, location, and interests of followers and engagers.
For example, if your goal is to reach young professionals but your analytics show most engagement is from an older demographic, that signals a mismatch. Use these findings to adjust targeting or messaging. If needed, realign content to attract the desired audience or consider expanding to different platforms where your true audience spends time.
In tandem, review community engagement metrics: how quickly are you responding to comments and messages? Slow response times or missed inquiries are opportunities to improve customer service. If you find low reply rates, plan to invest more resources into timely community management.
Step 5 – Benchmark and Competitor Scan
The fifth step is competitor analysis and benchmarking. See what similar brands are doing on social media to set context for your results. Are competitors posting more frequently? Which of their campaigns are getting high engagement? You do not copy them, but you learn. Noting competitors’ successful formats or topics can reveal content gaps you could fill.
Also, compare your own metrics against industry averages (many analytics tools automate this). For example, if your engagement rate is below average, that indicates a need for stronger content. Stay alert to emerging platforms too; if a rival gains traction on a new channel, it might warrant a test. This benchmarking keeps you aware of trends and prevents strategy stagnation.
Step 6 – Compile Insights & Action Plan
Finally, compile insights and make an action plan. Summarise the audit findings in a concise report. List your strengths (e.g. the content types or platforms where you “win”), weaknesses (outdated bios, low engagement on certain posts), and opportunities (trending hashtags, new formats).
For example, you might note “Brand wins: high video engagement on Instagram; Improvement needed: Twitter bio lacks keywords; Action: Update LinkedIn logo to the current one.” Be sure to include quick fixes like correcting broken links, updating any stale visuals, or archiving abandoned accounts.
Then translate these into next-steps: perhaps a content calendar tweak, a new response template for FAQs, or a fresh campaign idea. The goal is to move from analysis to execution. As one audit guide concludes, these steps ensure the audit “becomes more than a report, it becomes a social media strategy tool.”
In a Nutshell
By following this expert roadmap, your brand will convert raw social data into smarter actions and stronger performance. We recognise the importance of social media audits in keeping a brand fresh, innovative, and prominent.
If it feels overwhelming at any point, we are a call away to manage your social media accounts, ensuring you achieve the desired brand results.
