Should You Take a Social Media Vacation?

It’s the most wonderful time of the year, a season of celebration for many, and for those who do not have holidays to celebrate this month it can serve as a welcome break while the business world slows to a crawl.  Depending on what type of field you work in, most people take at least a day or two off around this time, but what about social media marketers?  Can they take a social media vacation?

This interesting article from Lance Ulanoff asks and dissects the very question, “Can I really take a social media vacation?”  Ulanoff’s case is slightly unique in that he himself is his brand, and all his tweets, vines, and other social posts are amusing quips that come straight from him.  Because he is his brand and the only person in charge of maintaining his sites, it does make it difficult for him to take a break.

There is also another thing that makes it difficult for Ulanoff to take a break.  He says, “there are times when I’m tired and I don’t want to Tweet, Vine or Instagram. I do so at those times because I fear my silence will lead to a wave of unfollows. I mean, I get this feeling if I haven’t tweeted for two hours. It’s a wonder I can sleep six or seven hours a night. I should be waking up at 1, 2 and 3 a.m. to post something, right?”  This is a common fear of social media marketers, that even a moment of silence will cause a mass exodus of your followers.

So, we’ve seen that for a solo entrepreneur, it can be difficult to detach from the ever present social media, but what about for a larger company?  Can they, and more importantly should they, take a social media vacation?

Chances are, your office is going to be quiet around the holidays because many people will be on vacation, which could make it difficult to push any work projects forward.  This might lead you to believe that by this logic, you could stop posting to your social media sites, but you would be wrong!

In my opinion, most brands should continue to regularly post around the holidays.  Here’s why:  With so many people on vacation what do you think they’re doing?  They’re at home on their computers!  They’re checking Facebook on their iPhones!  If you have a recognizable brand with a large audience or sell a tangible product, this could be an ideal time for you to post to a captive audience.

However, I will contradict myself and say that if you do not have a large social audience it may not be worth your time and efforts.  In this case, I’ll sign off on your social media time off request and say it’s fine to take a little vacation.

So, will you be taking a social media break this holiday season?