Our world seems to be immersed in social media marketing. With that comes a lot of assumptions and misunderstandings. Fortunately, I’m here to clear things up!
Today we’ll explore the top eight myths of social media marketing to help give you a better understanding of its true potential and benefits.
Myth #1: More Likes and Followers = More Success
Although it’s a great ego boost when your page has an abundant amount of followers or posts receive a lot of reactions, the fact is, it’s just a number. To learn more about why this is, I suggest reading my blog, “Social Media Engagement is Greater Than the Number of Followers.”
Myth #2: You Need to be on Every Social Media Platform
Not every social media platform is suited for your business. Although it may seem important to be involved on all of the platforms, that doesn’t necessarily make it the most strategic decision.
Let’s take, for example, a health insurance company that specializes in senior citizen care. It wouldn’t make sense for it to be on Snapchat since the majority of the platform’s users are between 18 and 24 (Pew Research Center).
The best practice is to understand each platform’s niche and determine if your business is well suited for it.
Myth #3: You Can Post When You Want, as Often as You Want
You know “that friend” on your feed that posts way too much? The same thing can happen for a business. Your audience wants to see relevant and interesting content.
When you post at odd hours of the day and way too much, you lose both relevance and interest. Don’t let your business be “that friend.”
Myth #4: All You Need to Do is Post and Share Content
It takes a lot more than just posting on your business’s social media profile(s). Brand loyalty and awareness grows from engagement. Encourage your audience by asking questions, interacting with their comments and ultimately building a relationship.
Myth #5: You Can Share Any Photo You Find Online
If you do this, it’s stealing. That’s right, if you freely reuse someone else’s picture you found online without asking permission or crediting the original creator, you’re violating their ownership rights.
Always ask permission, or try using royalty-free photo sites!
Myth #6: Social Media is Free Marketing
Although it’s usually free to sign up for a majority of social media platforms, it does take an investment if you wish to see results. Platforms, like Facebook, are changing the algorithm in how content is viewed, making organic content rather stagnant.
In order to make an impact, it’s all about establishing a strategy to implement paid advertising through social media.
Myth #7: You Can’t Measure Social Media ROI
There are a variety of tools that can measure the results of your social media page. Google Analytics is a great example to look at as it can determine where leads are coming from.
An effective social media campaign relies on such results as it determines both the successes and flops of your social media strategy which ultimately helps to fine tune it and ensure it’s reaching maximum potential.
Myth #8: Anyone Can Handle Your Business’s Social Media
Technically, anyone can do social media. However, that doesn’t mean they do it in a tactful way. That’s why it’s essential to invest in a social media professional to manage your business’ social media to ensure its setup for success.
The fact is, the social media world can change on a daily basis and a professional social media manager understands this. They know what to look for, new tactics to be tested and ultimately what drives the company’s goals up.
Well, that commences the social media detective work! Hopefully you’re able to take away some insightful information from this and utilize it for your business’s social media strategy.
If you’d like to learn how JP could assist your business’s social media needs, click here.
–Katie Silva, Outreach Coordinator
