5 Mistakes You’re Making on Social Media
May 2, 2019
The key to any successful social media campaign is content, and while we’d all like to think we’re the next Jane Austen of the marketing world, most of us are not. Content plays such a heavy role in brand awareness, search engine rank, and even customer approval. When it’s not managed properly, you run the risk of falling behind competitors, losing followers, and even losing sales.
While there’s no right or wrong way to market, and many brands are making their own rules as the internet continues to grow, there are some things we know for sure. Research has shown markers some of the things that consumers like least about social media content. Unfortunately, many of us still make these mistakes.
Wondering if your content could be slowly dragging your brand down? Here are 5 social media content mistakes you could be making and how to fix them.
1. Not Customizing Content to Your Audience: Every brand has a very specific set of followers on social media. These are your target demographic – or, they should be. When you create content, it should be geared toward these people. Why? Because these are the people most likely to travel from social media to website; this increases traffic and the possibility of conversion.
Writing generic content from time to time may seem harmless, but if you lose your audience’s focus, you could miss out on sales; not only sales, but shares, which are basically the “word of mouth marketing” of the digital world. A little research will help you decipher what it is your customers most want to see. Personalizing content makes it more relatable, genuine, and humanizes your brand.
2. Not Checking Metrics: Your analytics reports tell you how many consumers visit your social media pages, who are commenting, when social media followers become website visitors, and so on. You can follow all this data in your CRM dashboard through just about any third-party marketing management tool. Ignoring these metrics could be a mistake because it costs time and money to create content, invest in various sites and social media platforms. Metrics tell you which of these endeavors are succeeding and which aren’t seeing profits.
Sometimes, your metrics report can show you which social media accounts need more attention, or which ones aren’t worth the time anymore. Not every platform is a good fit for every business, and it’s important to choose the ones that best suit your brand.
3. Limiting Yourself to One Platform: There are so many options for social media marketing these days. You can narrow your choices by industry and demographic. For example, LinkedIn is the perfect platform for B2B sales, while Instagram is an influencer-led platform. Just because you fit more squarely into one account doesn’t mean you can’t participate in others. Lawyers and doctors have just as much to gain from Twitter as musicians and restauranteurs. Similarly, a candy shop owner can benefit from LinkedIn, the same way a marketing company can. It’s all in how you represent yourself and engage with your audience.
One of the most used social media sites on the internet is YouTube. Many people forget it’s a social site, but there’s commenting, sharing, and following involved, so it’s just as social as Facebook and SnapChat. YouTube is also the second most commonly used search engine next to Google, which is a huge feat considering Google’s hold on the search industry. That means limiting yourself to Facebook, and ignoring YouTube could cost you thousands, or even hundreds of thousands of new followers – depending on your content.
4. Ignoring Negative Comments: It’s easy to ignore the negative in favor of positive comments only, but this isn’t how life works. There are bound to be some customers who experience less than stellar products or services at one time or another. It doesn’t mean your business is bad. It could be something as simple as the website refusing to load properly on a mobile device, or a late shipment due to a weather issue. The important thing is not to brush off these customers, but rather, face them head on.
Acknowledging negative feedback with empathy and a professional attitude looks much better to other customers than outright ignoring a comment. Whether it’s true or not, you can tell a customer that you’re sorry they had a bad experience and you hope the next one is better. Of course, this isn’t to suggest that marketers should put up with trolls. Nasty comments can be deleted or reported, but general bad reviews should always be acknowledged.
5. Considering Marketing A Cost Rather Than an Investment: ROI means return on investment, and this is exactly what you’re measuring when you count your income vs. marketing costs. While some marketing campaigns cost money, it’s better to think of these fees as investments rather than outright expenses. Of course, you still need to budget for them, but it’s more of a situation where you need to spend a little to make a lot.
Growing a business takes dedication and resources, and whether yours is small or big, it’s going to take some seed money. Over time, the amount you spend on marketing will become less. Once your brand awareness flourishes and customers become loyal and share your site with friends and family, you can invest less in paid campaigns and focus more on organic marketing efforts.
Don’t be afraid to try new things, think outside of the box or get your hands dirty. The digital marketing industry has grown in leaps and bounds over the past decade and there’s so many ways to market yourself to the world. Don’t miss out based on old information.