Social media can be a great marketing tool for your business, but it can also be very misleading. There are numerous misconceptions associated with Facebook and Twitter.
We’re here to help guide you through the haze of false promises and preconceived notions, in hopes you can better understand what social media can do for you.
Misconception #1: My customers don’t use social media.
Excuse me? They most certainly do. Facebook has reached an all-time record of 955 million users worldwide. Twitter isn’t far behind with almost 600 million users. Missing out on an opportunity to engage with these individuals, could be quite costly in the long run. Customer engagement is vital whether it’s online or off.
Misconception #2: Quantity over quality.
Wrong! Everyone appears to place such a large emphasis on the number of “Followers” and “Likes”, but will these individuals turn into customers? Social media is a tool to engage customers online and hopefully get them through the door. You can have 100,000 followers on Twitter, but if none are generating leads, are they of much use? Followers need to be looked at as people, not as numbers.
Misconception #3: Social media means instant results.
False! Social media agencies promising instant followers and instant revenues are either Social Media Genies or they’re leading you on with false promises. Social media takes time to develop. If you’re looking for instant followers then Google “purchase Facebook Likes”, millions of links will appear, but if you’re looking to engage your customers you have to allow time.
Misconception #4: I have to be on every social media outlet to be effective.
Not true! When it comes to the number of social media outlets your business has, less is more. I always tell my clients to primarily focus on two sites to start. This way they can put their time and energy into having a great presence on both rather than a subpar presence on many.
Social media can be a valuable tool to any business, but before you get involved, you have to understand it. Engaging customers on the web is not a quick fix to your marketing needs; you must realize that quality interactions and relationships take time to develop. Look at what social media outlets will work best for your company and focus primarily on those, never spread yourself too thin. Please don’t let this article discourage you. There is much to learn in this new interactive online world, so get out and explore.
