It’s 10 AM, do you know where your content is? Bad ‘80s references aside, is your social media strategy actually aligned or scattered across platforms without direction?
Are all five billion of your accounts aligned with your organization’s core strategy? Do all your teams know where to find the pictures they need in “The Drive”, (no, not that one, the other one, the one we use now!)?
Oh, and have you spent enough time figuring out what’s working, what’s not, and why? Am I giving you anxiety? I’m giving me anxiety.
If you’re working on developing your organization’s social media orchestration, you can see why this chaos needs to stop. Luckily, there’s a quick(ish) fix!
Perform your first social media audit!
A social media audit is the foundation for fixing content chaos and building an orchestration strategy that delivers measurable impact. Without knowing where you are, it’s hard to know where to start or where to go. Without an audit, communication orchestration is dead on launch.
I know; audits of all kinds suck. Have you ever heard the word “audit” in literally any context and thought, “Yes! That’s exactly what I need more of in my life!“
No, you have not.
But before you can really do any serious social media orchestration, you must examine your accounts, performance, workflows, and tools. In doing so, you’ll identify what works, what doesn’t, and where you can improve.
Content audits of any kind can be frustrating if you’ve never done one before (they can be frustrating if you have), and social media audits add another layer of complexity.
How is a social media audit different from a traditional content audit?
When I did my master’s degree, I had an entire course dedicated specifically to content audits. We used a specialized tool to scrape an entire website and auto-generate a hierarchical URL list of all content. We then chose various audit criteria (relevance, language, SEO keyword overlap, etc.). We scored each content piece one by one against those criteria to determine whether it met its intended purposes. The site we got was super messy, and it took four people and a 900-row spreadsheet three weeks to do it. It wasn’t even a large website.
Thankfully, social media audits are different. They focus less on individual content pieces and more on strategy, performance benchmarking, and the overall management or orchestration processes. So you won’t have to pour over thousands of posts – just a couple dozen – and it will probably only take one person a few days.
I know that still sounds like a lot when you have a busy team, but you’re setting yourself up for major success by uncovering opportunities to make your social media orchestration process evolve more smoothly. A moderate amount of time spent now can save a ton of time later.
One of the biggest differences between these kinds of audits is in what you’re looking for.
Traditional content audits start with something called a content inventory. A content inventory is quite simply an overview of everything you’ve got. You can’t really assess your content for quality if you’re not looking at it all in one place. Generally, it refers to the stuff you have on your website – each domain, sub-domain, and URL is all laid out hierarchically for you to see. Like a sitemap, but more detailed.
You can partially forego this process for social media audits, though you still need to know what content you have and where it’s located. This is because most of your content now exists across disparate networks, and you can’t just compile it all in one place easily the way you can with your own website. You’ll usually end up only looking at a recent subset of your content for your audits, though the depths to which you dig are yours to decide.
Furthermore, social media audits look at more than just content. They also examine processes and all other elements of your strategy.
You can gather this information any way you like, using any tools you need, but Facelift is uniquely designed to help you manage your audits cost-effectively.
So, here’s how to conduct a social media audit step-by-step and set the stage for smarter, more strategic social media orchestration.
Step 1: Map your social media presence
First, gather a complete list of all your organization’s social media accounts. This includes official accounts, regional or departmental accounts, and even inactive ones made by former employees for unknown reasons, abandoned in a digital void since 2013.
Many organizations discover duplicate or forgotten accounts during this process, which can confuse audiences and dilute their brand later. Sometimes they can even pose security threats.
How to do it:
- Search platforms systematically: On each social network that you use (e.g., Facebook, X, Instagram, LinkedIn), search for your organization’s name and variations. Don’t forget older brand names or handles that may still exist or social media networks you may not use anymore. Dig deep, you need everything.
- Centralize your findings: Create a spreadsheet (I know, I know…) with columns for account name, platform, owner, and purpose (e.g., customer support, branding, developer notes). Note if the account is active or inactive, and make a cell for language if you’re producing multilingual or regional content.
- Audit permissions: Check who has access to each account. Remove outdated logins or unauthorized users to ensure security.
Outcome: You’ll have a clear inventory of your accounts, making it easier to spot inconsistencies or gaps. This also sets the stage for aligning teams and reducing chaos.
Quick tip: If you find social media accounts you don’t use and won’t use, strongly consider deleting them or at least deactivating them. It is tempting to “own” all accounts with your name to avoid impersonation, but this really isn’t as common an issue as it sounds. It’s more likely that abandoned accounts can be hacked while nobody’s paying attention – you may not be the person receiving security notifications and may have limited access to the account. Companies with verified accounts can often request deletion of old or impostor accounts they cannot access. There’s no guarantee, but it’s worth a shot.
Step 2: Analyze performance metrics
Here’s where you turn numbers into insights. Data can tell you what’s working, what isn’t, and where to focus your efforts, but only if you know how to look at it.
You’re not just interested in vanity metrics like likes and followers (though they have their place). You’re digging deeper to see how your social media activity aligns with your goals and what kind of ROI it’s delivering.
How to do it:
Start by exporting performance reports from each platform (Facebook Insights, LinkedIn Analytics, etc.) or your preferred social media orchestration tool. If you’re already using Facelift, this can be done in Analyze in a few minutes.
Focus on the past 3 – 6 months of activity, depending on how much content you produce, and collect:
- Click-through rates (CTR) for posts with links.
- Engagement rates (likes, shares, comments).
- Conversion data (if you’re tracking leads, ads, or sales)
- Follower growth (are you gaining or losing audience members?).
Look for patterns.
Instead of analyzing individual posts, identify trends:
- Which formats consistently perform well? (e.g., video vs. image vs. text-only posts).
- Are certain times or days driving more engagement?
- Do specific campaigns or topics connect better with your audience?
Compare metrics across platforms. What works on Instagram might not succeed on LinkedIn, and that’s okay, as long as each platform serves its audience effectively.
It may help to prepare and download or print a report with this data, even if it’s just for you and your team. It can be useful to have at a glance or to show to management when explaining social media orchestration.
You can build reusable templates with this data in Facelift.
Identify outliers
Highlight standout successes and underperformers. Did a specific campaign go viral or exceed expectations? Was there a post that really flopped? Trying to understand why will help refine your future strategy.
Advertisements
Include ads. These are a form of content, they still carry your brand’s message, and can definitely be campaign-specific, after all! Make sure they have a special indicator in your spreadsheet so you can tell paid content apart from non-paid content.
Outcome:
By the end of this step, you’ll have a clear picture of your social media performance. You’ll know what’s driving engagement and conversions and where to double down, or rethink your approach entirely.
Step 3: Evaluate your content strategy
Brace yourself because this step is the trickiest. A content audit can feel overwhelming, especially if your organization has been active on social media for years – this is why we’re just looking at the last several months.
But it can also be the most valuable step because your content is the front line of your brand’s identity.
This isn’t about nitpicking every post you’ve ever made. Instead, you’ll analyze a representative sample of your recent activity to spot trends, strengths, and opportunities for improvement.
Here’s how to do it:
Pick a manageable sample
Don’t try to analyze every post, just focus on recent content. If you have them, pull 10-15 posts from each platform, making sure you include a variety of campaigns and formats (videos, carousels, single-image posts, short-form videos like reels, snaps, etc.).
If you have limited time or need to simplify, you should only worry about platforms with content created in the last 3-6 months. Older platforms or abandoned accounts are unlikely to produce content relevant to your current situation anyway.
If you’re running long-term campaigns, pick representative posts from each phase. For newer platforms, include as many posts as is necessary to get a baseline view.
You can organize these posts any way you like, but you can use the spreadsheet you made in Step 1 to open up a second tab and enter the post title, type, and platform or account.
If you use Facelift, you can sort the top performers over the past 3-6 months across any connected accounts, so you don’t need to scroll through each network feed post by post.
Evaluate tone and style
Review each post for consistency. Your tone and visuals should match your brand’s voice and feel cohesive across platforms. Make sure you contrast your content against your company’s brand and corporate style guide. (You do have one of those, right?)
Look for:
- Tone: Is the language appropriate for the audience? A LinkedIn post may sound very different from an Instagram Reel.
- Visuals: Are images and videos consistent in quality, branding, and style? Did you ensure that they are all meeting the correct technical specifications? Each platform has different requirements.
- Messaging: Does the content align with your brand’s overall vision and mission? The Communication Orchestration Framework outlines how content efforts, including social media, must be tied back to your organization’s vision, mission, and the strategic goals that support them.
Check for content variety
An engaging social presence balances different types of posts. Look at your sample posts and ask:
- Are you blending evergreen content (e.g., tips or educational posts) with campaign-driven posts?
- Are you incorporating different formats, such as videos, infographics, or polls?
- Are you creating posts tailored to platform strengths (e.g., visual-heavy posts on Instagram vs. professional updates on LinkedIn)?
If your feed feels repetitive, it’s time to diversify.
Connect content to goals
Every post should have a basic purpose, whether it’s driving engagement, generating leads, or educating your audience. For each post in your sample, ask:
- Does this post support a broader campaign or objective?
- Is the call-to-action (CTA) clear and aligned with your goals?
For example: How often have you seen company leadership say, “We had an event! Let’s share a picture from it on LinkedIn and Instagram!”
This request always raises red flags for me because while it’s not necessarily a bad idea, it is usually done “just ‘cus someone took a picture, it’s decent, let’s post it”
First, are you sure that this actually aligns with a particular goal? Social media orchestration relies on campaign-centric content. Unless your party pics are relevant to an employer branding campaign, don’t bother. Unless you manage social for Victoria’s Secret, no X follower is there for your party.
The second issue is that you cannot post the image to both platforms and expect the same results.
Nobody in the history of construction materials has ever bought cement because their local cement company posted a weird, unpolished picture on Instagram of three colleagues talking around a bowl of Glühwein at their Christmas party.
Now, if they were drinking the cement, that would be Instagram-worthy.
If you’re just posting to post something, you’re better off with a cat meme.
Identify and flag all of this disconnected content.
Flag weak points and standouts.
Identify posts that underperformed or feel off-brand. Ask yourself why: was it timing? Tone? Visual appeal? Sometimes, the algorithm simply isn’t in your favor, but usually there’re things that could have been done differently that may have helped.
At the same time, highlight your best performers and analyze why they worked, scrutinizing the same factors as above.
Pro Tip: Create a “do more of this” list based on your standouts and a “do less of this” list from your weaker posts. You can also mark these with red or green cell coloring in your spreadsheet.
By the end of this step, you’ll have a clear understanding of your content’s strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities for growth. You’ll know what resonates with your audience and what doesn’t, helping you refine your content strategy moving forward.
Step 4: Audit engagement and response workflows
Posting content is only half the battle because social media is a two-way street. How you engage with your audience directly impacts trust, loyalty, and even sales. An engagement audit helps make it so that no comment, message, or mention slips through the cracks while maintaining a consistent, brand-aligned response.
Pull a sample of interactions
Look at the same 3-6 month period you used before when analyzing content performance.
Focus on:
- Comments: On posts and ads.
- Direct messages (DMs): Inquiries, complaints, or compliments.
- Mentions: Tags or mentions of your brand, whether they’re direct or passive.
Use platform-specific tools like your Facebook inbox or a centralized tool like Facelift, which combines all your inboxes in one place.
Evaluate response times
Analyze how quickly your team responds. Industry standards suggest:
- DMs or urgent inquiries should be within 1–2 hours.
- General comments or mentions: Within 24 hours.
For each platform, note your teams’ average response time (these teams could be marketing, sales, customer service, or another). Also, check the percentage of interactions with no response.
If certain platforms, types of interactions lag, or the teams responsible for them are lagging, flag them as areas for improvement.
Assess tone and effectiveness
Review responses to ensure they align with your brand voice and solve the issue at hand. Look for:
- Tone: Is it professional, friendly, and otherwise aligned with your brand?
- Effectiveness: Are questions fully answered? Do complaints receive meaningful resolutions?
- Consistency: Are responses uniform across platforms and teams?
Example: A customer asking the same question on Instagram and X should receive similar information, even if different team members handle the responses. If this is not the case, the communication orchestration at play here needs to evolve to be more symmetrical.
Identify bottlenecks
Audit your workflows to uncover gaps or inefficiencies slowing responses or leaving interactions unresolved.
Follow the path of an interaction.
Track a comment, tag, or DM from start to resolution. Pinpoint delays:
- Who handles it first, and does it need escalation?
- Are approvals or unclear steps causing slowdowns?
Spot platform-specific issues.
Compare response times across platforms. For example:
- Are Instagram DMs slower due to uncertain ownership?
- Are X mentions overlooked because of notification gaps or account issues?
Check tools and team access.
Ensure your team has everything they need:
Confirm responsibilities.
Are issues routed to the right teams? For example:
- Are technical questions being sent to marketing instead of support?
- Are leads from social media passed to sales promptly, or are they sitting in your CRM collecting dust?
Quick Fix: Assign backups for slow platforms or set up alerts for overlooked mentions. Facelift users can manage user roles and community management assignments centrally.
Outcome:
It’s impossible to make a functional orchestration strategy without a social media audit that includes issues with the underlying workflows. The insights you gain will help your teams to operate faster, smarter, and better aligned than before – all of which is necessary for anyone orchestrating at scale.
Step 5: Assess your tools and workflows
Finally, evaluate whether your current tools and workflows support your goals or create unnecessary friction. Social media orchestration depends on having the right systems in place to align teams and simplify processes. We wrote a short guide to choosing the right social media orchestration tool, but to summarize:
Start by creating an inventory of your team’s social media tools. This includes core platforms like scheduling tools and analytics dashboards, as well as supplementary tools like design software or CRM integrations.
For each tool, document:
- What it’s used for.
- Who uses it, and how often?
- Its cost and whether it’s meeting expectations.
Once you’ve mapped your tools, look for inefficiencies. Are multiple tools overlapping in functionality? For example, having three different kanban board platforms creates more confusion than efficiency. On the other hand, are there gaps? If your analytics platform isn’t integrated with your content workflows, your data might be siloed, limiting your ability to measure success effectively or orchestrate it across teams.
Next, map out your workflows. Follow the journey of a piece of content from ideation to publication:
- Who creates the content? Are responsibilities clear?
- How is it approved? Does it require multiple steps, many stakeholders, or unnecessary delays?
- How is it published? Are tools helping or hindering the process?
If approvals take too long due to scattered communication, consider consolidating your workflows in a unified orchestration tool. Built-in collaboration features, shared calendars, and centralized approval systems eliminate bottlenecks and keep your team aligned.
Finally, consider scalability. As your organization grows, your tools and workflows should grow with you. The best platforms integrate seamlessly with your existing systems, centralize processes, and adapt to new demands without requiring constant rework.
Outcome:
Assessing and optimizing your tools and workflows reduces your redundancies, cuts unnecessary costs, and creates a smoother, more aligned system.
Conclusion
How long does a social media audit take? It’ll depend on the size of your business and the number of networks, but we estimate that one social media manager takes between 30 and 42 hours, or roughly one week’s worth of work to complete a social media audit. Facelift users can cut this down to about a day on average. (Here’s how).
A social media audit is almost always going to be the first step to implementing communication orchestration at your organization. Once your accounts are mapped and analyzed and your workflows made clear, you’ll be in the ideal position to achieve alignment, consistency, and measurable results that really align with your business goals.
