At some point or another, it is likely that you will get kicked off or locked out of at least one of your social media accounts.
Whether it is because your account has been hacked or you violated a community guideline, social media companies hold a lot of power when it comes to disabling accounts, often with little to no warning.
This can be hugely disruptive to businesses on social media.
Below are a few tips to help make it less disruptive if it ever happens to your company.
Don’t build your content in-app. It is tempting to build all of your videos and content in-app, but keep in mind that you will lose all of your content if your account gets shut down. Consider using third-party apps to create and edit video. You can then post the same video on multiple platforms, while still having access to the original file. At the very least, if you do create content in-app save a copy of your videos outside of the app.
Keep your content organized. If your account ever gets disabled or shut down, it is possible that you may lose your entire history of posts. The good news is that you can reuse content IF you save it and keep it organized. By grouping content and saving it, it makes it easier to repost content again in the future.
Keep a list of your followers. Regularly capture a list of your followers. Some social media platforms allow you to export follower data, but many do not. At the very least, take screenshots of follower handles or create a spreadsheet. This will at least allow you to reach back out to people if you have to set up a new account with a different handle.
Create backup accounts with your company handle. If your social media account gets shut down, you may not be able to get your original username or handle back. Be sure to grab at least a backup potential handle just in case. Set up the account and have it ready to go in case you need to quickly switch to the new account. Your downtime will be less if you are prepared.
Have a communication plan in place. If you suddenly disappear off a platform where people are used to seeing you, people may assume your business has closed. Have a communication plan in place to communicate if you want people to follow you using a new handle, etc. Let people know where they can find you.
Keep a list of where your profiles are linked.
If your account is permanently shut down, be sure to update all of your bios that
include your social media handles. Keep a list of where your company bio and social media handles are listed and systematically update them. This could be directories, speaker bios, ebooks, lead-gen downloads, etc.
Be on more than one platform.
Don’t put all of your eggs in one social media basket. If one platform gets shut down, you still have multiple other audiences.
Build your email list (not just your social following). Make sure to move as many people as possible from social media onto your email list where YOU own the contacts.
So don’t panic if you have a social media account that gets shut down. It happens sometimes. Just be ready so that it is the least disruptive as possible.