These days, brand promotion on social media is a standard practise for businesses of all sizes. There are still many companies out there whose marketing on social media strategies fail at the most fundamental levels. Affirm that you have it under control. Put your social media strategy under the microscope to see if it suffers from any of these common pitfalls.
Goal-Setting That Is Unique To Social Media
Using social media is something that many businesses jump into without first developing a plan. As soon as they discover a channel that might help them reach the target audience, they jump on it, placing a disproportionate amount of importance on superficial measures of success like the volume of their fan base and the number of comments and likes they receive. But how can you tell if these metrics are actually helping your business?
Social media can be useful for your business, but it can be hard to measure its return on investment (ROI) if you don’t tie your social media efforts into your larger business goals from the start. Each social media platform requires a unique approach based on KPIs that relate to overarching marketing and sales targets. Consider metrics like new subscribers to your email list or downloaded content that resulted from a user’s referral to your site.
An Intern Is In Charge of Social Media
Allowing an intern or interns to manage your company’s social media accounts is a recipe for disaster. Many businesses have been damaged by interns who display poor spelling and grammar, voice opinions that are at odds with the brand they are managing, and demonstrate a lack of knowledge about the company itself.
Even if someone “gets” social media and has a degree, that doesn’t mean they should be in charge of your company’s official channels unchecked. In order to effectively manage your social media accounts, you must have a thorough grasp of your company’s offerings, products, editorial approach, and more. It’s fine if you want to teach an intern something. Make sure they are well-supervised by a social media expert with experience in the field, though.
To concentrate only on the most widely used social media platforms
When promoting your business on social media, it’s important to use a multi-channel approach. Despite this, many brands are present on only one of the most popular channels (including such Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn), while ignoring other great channels like Instagram stories, Snapchat, and Pinterest, in which they may also have active and engaged consumers.
Although the aforementioned social media platforms enjoy considerable popularity (Pinterest, for example, will have over 150 million users by the end of 2016), there may be other, more specialised platforms that are better suited to your brand’s needs (Think Vimeo, Periscope, Reddit, etc.). Find out where your ideal customers hang out online so you can incorporate those platforms into your social media strategy. However, don’t feel like you have to join every social media site. Pick the ones that will resonate most with your target market. Then you need to prioritise the quality of your posts over their quantity.
When only promotional purposes are considered
However, social media is just one part of a comprehensive digital marketing strategy. For instance, your company’s HR department can use social media to advertise open positions as they arise. The best way to get the word out about a job opening is to have your followers spread the word to their networks. An instant boost like this can’t be found on typical job boards.
Most importantly, you should use your social media channels to solve any problems your customers are having with your service. Keep an eye out for mentions of your brand online and be ready to address any positive or negative feedback immediately. Comment responses that are both informative and engaging may expand your brand’s reach and encourage repeat business. The customer service department may need to become engaged depending on the nature of your business.
Social media without the social aspect
We have some news for you: your company’s social media accounts shouldn’t focus just on pushing your own branded content. After all, the “social” in “social media” implies two-way communication with your target demographic rather than a one-way broadcast of your material. A brand that just cares about itself will never get any loyal customers. Having a friend who is only interested in talking about herself when you truly need someone to listen is like having a friend who is always talking about herself.
People will view your social media feed as unprofessional and spammy if it just contains posts that benefit you. You should instead combine original material with retweets (if you’re using Twitter), content collected from other reliable sources, and dialogues with your audience.
Inconsistency and a failure to concentrate
Just as you would know who to direct an ad or email at, your public relations team likely has a good idea of who it wants to see its latest campaign. Yet, what about online communities? Do you have a certain group in mind, or are you just throwing your stuff out there and hoping for a reaction from someone? This “spray and pray” kind of marketing (promoting your company everywhere in the hopes that people would notice it) doesn’t often provide the return on investment (ROI) that companies are seeking. Relationships with clients and potential consumers are the lifeblood of every organisation.
Finding a niche and sticking to it requires some thought after the fact. When do you usually update? It’s not a good idea to let your channels go dormant for long periods of time. Create a plan that works for you, then stick to it. If you can, it’s a good idea to make a calendar where you may write out your messages for the week or month in advance. Having a plan and strategy in place from the get-go may take some effort, but it may save you a lot of time in the end.