In the last article, we talked a little bit about the power of social media marketing. In this post we are going to go over some of the more common myths and misconceptions associated with social media.
One of the biggest reasons many business owners are reluctant to jump on the social media marketing bandwagon is because they have fallen victim to common misconceptions that lead them to believe that this type of marketing won’t work for them.
That’s why today we’re going to go over a few of those common myths and misconceptions, so you can get those crazy ideas out of your head and finally take advantage of everything this powerful marketing method has to offer your business.
Your customers don’t use social media sites
Wrong, people from all demographics use social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter every day. Chances are your customers are too! Chances are even better that they use multiple social networks to connect with family friends and to network with coworkers.
Social networks are only for young people
Wrong, nothing could be further from the truth as I mentioned in your last issue a large portion of the people who use social networks are over the age of 35 with the majority of Facebook users being between the ages of 55 and 64 years old.
The more social networks you join the better your chance of success will be
Wrong, in fact it can actually hurt your marketing campaign. It’s a good idea to explore a variety of different social networks and even set up a business profile on them. But, when it comes to concentrating your marketing efforts you don’t want to spread yourself too thin and you’ll see much better results by focusing your efforts on a few of the major networks instead.
People over the age of 50 don’t use social networks
Wrong, if your average customer demographic falls into the a over 50 category you may be surprised to discover that over 56% of all Internet users over the age of 50 actively use Facebook, linked in and other social networks.
Twitter is only good for celebrities and big brand names
Wrong, Twitter is a fantastic tool for any type of business big, small, local or online. You just have to learn how to utilize it properly. Once you do, you’ll be able to tap into its massive user base and build a list of avid followers more than happy to hang on and share your every tweet.
The more often you post the better results your campaign will have
Wrong, many business owners feel they have to constantly monitor and post on multiple social networks every day to achieve good results from their campaign. However, statistics show that posting too often can actually lower your overall results. A general rule of thumb is to post once a day to help maintain active engagement.
Negative comments on social networks controlling your business
Wrong again, while no one likes negative comments about their products or services and the bottom line is if someone has something bad to say about your business they’re going to post it online. When you have a solid social media presence, you can take control of the situation and get ahead of those negative comments. Show your consumers that you are willing to handle these things in a positive, timely manner and you will gain more loyal followers than you will lose.
When it comes to using social media marketing to raise brand awareness, increase consumer engagement and to promote products and services online there will always be a few pitfalls. Just like with any other type of marketing you have to take those negatives with a grain of salt and move forward – because the rewards are too great to ignore.
I hope I’ve done a little bit to help alleviate some of the negative myths and misconceptions that may be preventing you from taking advantage of everything it has to offer.
Make sure you look for your next post soon. We will be talking about a few different networks that are perfect for marketing your business.
