Social media audit
Also called social media review, social audit
What is a social media audit?
A social media audit is a structured review of a business's social media accounts, content and results. It checks each profile's details and branding, looks at what has been posted and how it performed, compares the results with goals and competitors, and ends with a short list of changes. Most businesses audit once or twice a year.
An audit usually covers profile basics (names, bios, links, images), brand consistency across platforms, posting frequency, top and bottom performing posts, audience demographics, engagement rate, reach, traffic to the website and how competitors are doing.
It is also a good time to find forgotten or duplicate accounts, outdated links and profiles that no longer match the business.
Why a social media audit matters
Without a review, social media runs on habit. An audit shows which platforms and formats actually bring results, so you can stop spending time on what does not work and do more of what does.
It also fixes small problems that cost customers, such as a broken bio link, an old phone number or a profile picture that does not match the current brand.
How to do a social media audit
- List every account the business has, including old ones.
- Check each profile: name, handle, bio, link, profile image and cover.
- Pull the last three to six months of results and find the top and bottom posts.
- Compare engagement, reach and clicks by platform and format.
- Look at two or three competitors for gaps and ideas.
- Write three to five changes and set a date to review them.
Social media audit FAQ
How often should you do a social media audit?
Once or twice a year for a full audit, with a lighter monthly check of key numbers.
What should a social media audit include?
Profile details, branding, posting frequency, top and bottom posts, engagement, reach, website traffic, audience data and a competitor comparison, ending with clear actions.
Related terms
Engagement rate is the share of people who interacted with a post, usually engagements divided by reach or followers, shown as a percentage.
Brand consistency is presenting a brand the same way everywhere: same logo, colors, fonts, voice and promise across every channel and post.
Share of voice (SOV) is how much of the conversation or ad space in your market your brand owns compared with competitors, as a percentage.
A social media manager plans, creates, posts and measures a brand's social content, and handles comments, messages and community.
A content strategy is the plan for what content you make, who it is for, where it goes and how you will judge whether it works.
Reach is the number of unique people who saw a post or ad at least once. Impressions count every view, including repeats.