10 Common Mistakes in Social Media Marketing

Nobody’s perfect, right?  Well, you’re about to be a little closer.  Behold this list of what common mistakes people (still) make, the right way to approach it instead and the logic behind it.  Share your comments below if you think I’ve missed a real doozy…

1.  Selling

Joe Schmoe likes to sell all the time on this Facebook page and Twitter account.  You know the type.  The “Come on down!!” type that always posts specials and nothing that calls for any level of engagement.  Well, ew.  You’re not doing that right?  Good.  The right way to do it is to create engaging content that people WANT to see, and that gives them a reason to engage with you.  The whole reason for that and the logic behind is this:  they’re following you because they already like you.  They don’t need to be sold.  🙂  Build a relationship instead!  It’ll go much further and pay you in dividends over the years.

2.  Not Giving Thanks

Who wants to thank the Negative Nancy for posting a rotten review?  Approximately nobody.  But you should anyway.  Hopefully, it goes without saying that you should also thank people for their NICE reviews.  The logic behind this is simple:  validation.  If you can give someone the validation of saying in so many words that, “yes, I hear you.  I’m listening, and I care” … well, you’re ahead of the competition.

3.  Spelling Errors

Keyboard with a red "oops" button.OK, so this is probably the post where someone is going to find a spelling error.  Go ahead, bring it on.  😉  I never said I was perfect.  But the reality is that there is such a thing as spell check, and you should use it.  You should also use your own eyeballs and be your own editor.  I can’t emphasize that enough.  Spelling errors, especially when frequent, are an indicator that the person in charge of the accounts can’t spell… and it makes people wonder what else they’re not very good at.  There is a massive movement of people that call themselves “Grammar Nazis,” and they will actively judge you for spelling things wrong, using improper grammar, and other unforgivable sins.  [Lucky for my clients, I employ a bunch of these such fine folks that know how to write flawlessly on people’s behalf.  (Whew!)]

4.  No Pics

Static posts, content and calls to action, time after time.  Gross.  Who wants to read all the time?  Not everyone – especially if you have something visual like food.  Well, photos are worth a thousand words.  Post a pic with a cheeky comment about it, and off you go.  Statistics prove that social posts across the board perform exponentially better than their counterparts without imagery.  Get snappin’

5.  Posting Too Little

You don’t want to bug people, right?  Nobody wants to do that… so by following the “no selling” rule, you won’t be.  If you’re posting great stuff that people actually WANT to read and engage with, you’re not bugging them.  Furthermore, due to the sheer volume of content that’s being shared every day, every hour, and every minute… you simple MUST post multiple times per day in order to be seen even once a day.  What happens if someone logs into their favorite network at 6 pm and you posted at 11 am?  They won’t see it.  That stinks, huh?  With today’s scheduling capabilities, you really have no excuse for not posting multiple times per day.

6.  You’re “On” Every Network, Duplicating Content

What happens when someone is following you on more than one network and they’re seeing more than one occurrence of … the same thing?  They’re going to tune you out.  It shows lack of time investment in the following, and lack of commitment to whatever is being done.   Instead, choose one or two and be AWESOME at them, and only them, until you get the time or resources to do more as fully as you possibly can.  Why half-ass anything?  (OMG I just said ‘ass’… don’t tell my mother)  Walk before you run, and only take on what you can really rock at.  Then add from there.  You’ll look better to your customers/prospects and you’ll be more respected.

7.  The Only Way People Find You Online… is Online

Well… if you have no storefront, this one doesn’t really apply to you.  But if you do… you’re missing a valuable opportunity to get people involved and thinking about you when they leave your place of business.   It’s so easy to put up a little sign, hand out cards or just flat-out ask people to join you online. It’s either free, or incredibly close to it, and can pay off in spades.  Wouldn’t that be lovely if people could engage with your brand when they were home, and it made them think to come back sooner?  (Yes, that’s a hint… that’s what can happen!)

8.  Not Responding to Responses

Ever go online and post something in response to your favorite brand, and all you heard back was crickets?  Yeah, that’s annoying.  Don’t be that brand.  It’s insulting.  If someone can take the time to reply to your activity online, then you should take the time to kindly reply.  Even if it’s just a like, a retweet, or a smiley face.  Something.  Like in #2, validation goes a long way.  It makes people believe that they matter to you (because THEY DO).  This can take a lot of time, but it’s time well spent.  Here’s some insight on how much time you should consider investing…

9.  Thinking Social Media is Dumb Because YOU Don’t Like It

Well, Plato, you’re not the center of the universe.  Your customers are.  Studies show that 28% of consumers will decide where to go to dinner based on social media.  Wow, huh?   If you’re paying attention to your social spheres, giving people great stuff to share, and they feel all sorts of warm and fuzzy about YOU… guess who they’re going to give money to?

10.  Putting a Novice at the Helm

Your nephew just graduated from college. He’s 21. Therefore he knows all things social media and put him in charge of your business success online.  Brilliant, right?  Nooooooooo, sorry.  Just because someone is a digital native does NOT mean that they understand how to speak to people, how to motivate them or how to respond to a critical customer service situation.

The above listed items are some things you should definitely not do, but ultimately it does take a lot of expertise and time in order to do it right.   Clearly this list is clearly hypothetical for you… I know you would never do anything on this list.  Right?  (wink)  If you were guilty before reading this, come to the light.  It’s nice and warm.  🙂

 

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About the author : Vision Advertising

Vision Advertising is a full-service marketing agency enhancing the online brand presence of business-to-business and business-to-consumer companies across the US. We focus on providing custom marketing services to address unique client needs, customer profiles, and budgetary concerns, created in-house by our team of skilled marketing specialists. This author profile is used for deattributed posts or when content is posted to this blog without comment.