Strategy: before posting
Who the customer is (age, language, city, where they decide), which channels (Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, LinkedIn), what objective (messages, site clicks, bookings, enquiries), in what tone, how often. A short document answering these questions before the first post. Without strategy, posts are noise.
The editorial calendar
A month ahead: topics, formats (video, carousel, photo, stories), dates, who produces what, holidays and business events. In Albania the calendar follows the tourist season for the coast, holidays (Bajram, Easter, New Year), weekends for venues. The calendar is what tells a living profile from one that posts when it remembers.
Content production
Photo and video shoots (alone or with the photographer), editing, graphics, texts in the customers’ languages (Albanian, Italian, English), subtitles, hashtags. For a restaurant: dishes and people; for a hotel: rooms and destination; for a real estate agency: properties and areas; for a clinic: services and team. Production takes half the time.
Publishing
At the right time for the channel and the customer (evening for venues, morning for services, weekend for foreigners), in the right format for each channel (not the same post everywhere), with the right texts and hashtags. Scheduling tools so as not to depend on the owner’s phone.
Community
Replies to comments and DMs within the hour, in the customer’s language, in the brand’s tone. Managing public complaints. Interaction with local profiles (partners, customers, creators). In Albania DMs are the sales channel: a social media manager who does not reply to DMs is not doing the job.
Ads
Small-budget campaigns on Meta (and TikTok): the right objective (messages, clicks), the right audience (city, age, interests, tourists), the right creative (video), measurement. Not “boost post”. For businesses needing Google Ads, coordination with whoever manages them.
Measurement and report
Every month: reach, engagement, real followers, messages, site clicks, bookings or enquiries from social, cost per result from ads. On one page, readable by the owner. With proposals for next month. The report is what tells a professional from someone who posts.
What they do not do
They do not build the website (but work with whoever does). They do not do SEO (but content helps). They do not guarantee followers (bought ones are worthless). They do not replace the owner: they need material, information and answers. They do not work without admin access to the business accounts.
A typical day
Morning: checking DMs and comments, replies; publishing the day’s post; checking ads. Midday: shooting or editing for the week’s client; texts. Afternoon: stories for venues and hotels; scheduling tomorrow’s posts; checking Google reviews. Evening: checking DMs for restaurants and bars at decision hour. Weekend: stories and DMs for businesses working on Saturday.
Tools
A post scheduler, video editing apps on phone and computer, graphics, Meta ads manager, native statistics, an Excel sheet or a tool for calendar and report, WhatsApp Business for customers. No expensive tools needed: method is needed.
The questions to choose
Show me a client report (anonymised). What is next month’s calendar for a business like mine? How do you measure bookings from social? Who replies to DMs and how fast? Who produces photos and video? Which languages do you write in? What do ads cost and who owns the account? Whoever answers well knows the job.
In-house, freelance or agency
In-house: knows the business, but often without method and time (doing it alongside their own job). Freelance: flexible, variable method, a risk if they leave. Agency: method, team, continuity, higher cost. For many Albanian businesses: the agency for strategy, calendar, shoots, ads and report; one in-house person for stories and DMs with guidance.
Example: a week for a dental clinic in Tirana
Monday: DM and comment check, a post with Dr X explaining whitening in 30 seconds (Albanian with English subtitles for dental tourists), checking the ad to Italians. Tuesday: monthly shoot at the clinic (team, rooms, two procedures), texts for the next four posts. Wednesday: carousel “5 questions before an implant”, stories with a happy patient (with permission), Italian replies to three enquiries from Bari. Thursday: clinic Reel, checking Google reviews and replying. Friday: team post, next week’s planning, a short weekly report to the owner: 60 messages, 14 appointments, 9 from Italy.
What the business must provide
A contact person who replies within the day for approvals. Admin access to Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and the Google profile, with accounts in the business’s name. Information: services, prices if shown, hours, events a month ahead. Two or three hours a month for shoots, with the premises tidy. Customer releases for photos. Answers to customer questions the social media manager does not know. Without these, even the best method produces generic posts.
Frequently asked questions
How many hours a week for a business?
From 4-6 hours for a small profile to 20+ for an active hotel or venue in season.
Must the owner provide content?
Basic material yes (information, access, time for shoots); production is done by the social media manager.
Which languages?
The customers’: in Albania usually Albanian, Italian and English.
Who owns the accounts?
Always the business. The social media manager has admin or editor access.