Why it's important to perfect social media and work productivity balance

Who isn’t guilty of a swift ‘Alt + Tab’ keyboard manoeuvre after noticing the boss’ impending approach while you’re on Facebook? This image highlights two facts. The first being virtually everyone in the workplace indulges in social media activity. The second is that social media usage in the workplace is often associated with slacking off. But this perception is fast changing.

Like it or not, social media in the workplace is here to stay. According to a study released by Singapore Polytechnic earlier this year, young Singaporeans, aged 15-35 spend about 5.5 hours a day online – and the top three activities are reading content, viewing videos, and commenting or replying to others.

That’s not time spent researching for work or sending emails. Creative agencies, and small brands with an active social media presence are embracing social media’s assimilation into the office environment and have policies to guide employees on appropriate usage.

I know I have questioned the impact on my productivity as I hop from email to instant messenger, to Facebook, Twitter or Instagram, and I know I am not alone. Research has shown that workers are interrupted every ten minutes by social media distractions, such as tweets and Facebook notifications[i].

But surprisingly, researchers also found that social media had a positive impact on productivity. Studies have shown that employees who use social media are more productive, have a higher retention rate, and are more creative and collaborative[ii].

It’s fair to say there are many upsides to social media, such as improving and streamlining customer service, fostering brand awareness, developing a better understanding of consumer needs, and offering inexpensive, easily manageable platforms for marketing campaigns.

Increased productivity, however, shouldn’t equate to a free pass for prolonged social networking during office hours. The key is for employees to prioritise their time wisely and find effective ways to incorporate social media into the working day.

Here are three handy tips to up your productivity whilst maintaining your social media gravitas:

1)   Make social media part of your daily schedule – and stick to it

Similar to setting time aside for emails, allocate pockets of time throughout the day for social media. Who wouldn’t rather write a tongue-in-cheek Facebook post or dive into a friend’s beach vacation album than reply to a hefty client email?

When we put a timer on the minutes we spend on social media, we’re less likely to lose track of time - responding to a LinkedIn networking request will no longer lead to you stalking your high-school sweethearts, and checking your brand’s Facebook feed will not result in you crafting the perfect response to your friend’s cat picture.

2)   Mine the downtime with a passion

There are always golden nuggets of downtime within the working week – during  your daily commute to work, when you’re queuing at the bank or relaxing on the couch during a coffee break. Make full use of this “you” time to attend to your social networking.

Spending ten minutes sharing a funny YouTube clip with a friend and liking a few of your friend’s pictures on Instagram will give your mind the break it needs, and in the long-run, is actually much more effective than staring at a blinking cursor on your screen.

3)   Invest in nifty tools

Juggling several social platforms is time-consuming and draining, and making sense of tweets, Facebook updates, Instagram pictures, et al. easily results in information overload. How often have we wasted time poring through the clutter on feeds just to pick out content we truly care about?

Social media management tools such as HootSuite, TweetDeck, Postling and Buffer aggregate social updates into an easily digestible platform. Some of these management tools are free while others demand a small fee – it’s worthwhile experimenting to find the most efficient way of managing your platforms.

Social media usage in the workplace is the new norm, but even with research  backing its positive impact on productivity, the risk in excessive indulgence remains ever-present. Tools and smart time management will ensure that social media usage remains a driver of productivity.