Social media has become extremely important for businesses in all sectors, but there is a lot of bad advice going around when it comes to how to market your brand. Because the professional social media revolution happened so quickly there are a lot of misunderstandings about how to use social media. People can give bad advice about how to implement your social media programme, so you need to be aware of some of the things that sound like a good idea, but can really hold your company back.
1) Go Crazy With #Hashtags
Hashtags have become a popular way to build up support for an idea, or get a likeminded group of people together. But the excessive use of hashtags can lead to a lot of confusion on Twitter and the original message can easily leave users wondering what the original tweet was aimed at.
One of the most important things to keep in mind when using social media is that the message you present should be simple and limited in scope. Used well, a hashtag can drive home a point, or catalyse an idea in the public mind. When used improperly, people won't have any idea what you are trying to express, and you will bog your image down with nonsense.
2) Social Media Is A Sales Tool
Social media can be a powerful marketing tool, but using it as a direct sales platform is a huge mistake, unless you understand your audience extremely well. People don't go on social media sites to be bombarded with spam advertising, and if you try to use Facebook like email marketing from the year 2000, you will quickly lose all your connections. The approach your company takes to social media has to be different. There are strategies that work and some that do not.
When you publish to your connections on social media, delivering great content must be your priority. When your company posts, it should be something interesting or useful. Social media gives you the chance to create associations between your image and interesting content, and this is how you can take advantage of services like Facebook.
3) More Accounts Is Better
A danger lies in the sheer number of social media options out there today. What isn't often considered is that there are only going to be so many people out there that are interested in your brand or product. Clearly the goal of marketing is to grow that number of potential clients, but using a gaggle of social media accounts isn't going to help do that.
Instead of trying to shotgun social media with poorly planned content from every available outlet, focus on a few places where your customers are likely to be active. Deliver quality, focused content that genuinely creates value, and you will get people sharing.
4) Just Be Yourself, Don't Bother With A Plan
Social media was popular with individuals long before it became a necessity for businesses, so many people feel like their personal social media habits will be useful when it comes to publishing for a company. This is perhaps the worst and most risky advice you could take.
While marketing on social media follows different rules to traditional marketing, it is still a part of your company's image building strategy. When you embark on a social media campaign for your brand, having a plan in place will make sure that your company keeps to a core message, and publishes content that maintains the overall image. At JDR we can help you achieve the right mix of social media content while avoiding the common pitfalls. Give us a call to find out more.
