By Jill Kurtz, Owner, Kurtz Digital StrategyNo matter how small your business, a social media strategy should be a a core part of your marketing and communication efforts. Americans of just about every demographic use social media to get information. Whether your target audience is large or small, national or hyper-local, you need to connect with them on social media.Social media management may seem overwhelming, especially for a small business. Below are some tips to successfully manage social media for your business.Have a Plan (aka a Strategy)Strategy is not a bad word! In fact, it is essential if you want to make sure that your limited resources of time and money are used effectively on social media.A great strategy will take into account your business goals, your target audience/market, the resources available, your key messages, available content, the right channels for your needs, and measures of success.Get the Whole Team on BoardInvolve the entire team with your strategy. Allowing everyone to have input in the play is a great way to get everyone invested in involved. If the plan is already in place, make sure everyone knows about it. Google Docs, Slack and other free tools can help you share and get ideas from everyone on the team.Use Free ToolsWith a strategy in place and an understanding of the social media channels you’ll use, you can pick a social media management tool to help you with day-to-day implementation and activities. Hootsuite and Buffer are great places to start. There are many tools available and the best one is the one that’s the best match for what you need to do.Access the Analytics Provided by Each ChannelBe sure to use the free analytics of every social channel you use. The analytics tools provided by social media channels are designed to help you understand the impact of your efforts and get insight into how you can improve. Facebook Analytics, for example, shows page managers everything from number of visitors at varying times of the day to interactions with every post.[author]About the Author: Jill Kurtz founded Kurtz Digital Strategy to help clients see the communication potential of the newest trends and technologies. She is an expert at website strategy and redesign, social media planning, and developing exceptional content.[/author]