You've been told many times to get on social media. And social media is a great way to reach new customers and grow your business. But if you're not careful, it can also be a massive waste of time and money if you don't do it right.
In this blog, I'll share with you some common mistakes on social media I faced while working with business owners and some hints & tips on how to avoid them!
You need to develop a basic strategy before you start posting.
It's all too easy to get caught up in the excitement of social media and wants to start posting right away, but if you need a strategy for what you want to achieve, how can you know whether your efforts are successful?
Before tweeting or posting pictures on Instagram, take some time to create a plan. Ask yourself these questions: Who is my target audience? What will my audience do with this content once they see it? What do I hope my brand does with this social media presence over time—grow organically or hire more staff members? How many times per week should I post content so that it stays fresh but doesn't overwhelm followers' feeds (and thus make them stop following me)? These are just some things that must be considered when developing a social media strategy.
Posting too little and not often enough.
Posting too much and not often enough is a common mistake that can make your brand feel unattached from your customers, who expect to see posts from you every day or every week. They'll wonder what happened to you if they don't hear from you for too long.
Another reason why this is a mistake: If people are following your business on social media to get updates about new products or services, they must know how to reach out if they need help—and posting regularly shows them that there's someone behind the scenes ready and able to respond when needed (even if it's just by replying via social).
Posting brand promotions and content that's not engaging.
The second biggest mistake is posting things that don't engage your audience. People will see this as a waste of their time and will want to avoid following you anymore.
This means that if you're going to post brand promotions, make sure they're engaging! You can make them humorous or share something surprising with them. People like surprises on social media—so long as they aren't offensive!
Not responding to comments, questions, and reviews.
Responding to comments, questions, and reviews on your social media accounts is essential. You'll be able to show potential customers that you're listening and use the opportunity to promote your business or address any issues they may have encountered.
When responding to comments:
Respond promptly. If someone takes the time to leave a comment or question, it's only polite for you to try and get back to them within 24 hours (or sooner if possible). You want your customers to have an answer promptly!
Make sure your response is relevant and helpful. Don't just say "Thanks!"—that doesn't help anyone out much. Try responding with something like, "We're glad you enjoyed our product/service!" or "Sorry about that! Let me see what we can do." This way, they know their concern was heard by someone who cares enough about them as part of their community, so they feel better knowing how things will change moving forward rather than disappointed there wasn't an immediate solution available upon hearing something positive before being left hanging without anything else said after getting some feedback from management directly within those 3 seconds which could take hours depending on where someone lives geographically speaking so keep this tip handy whether posting publicly online via Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, Blogspot, WordPress, and Blogger Sites like these instead of privately reaching out through direct messages.
Check your social media channels regularly.
It's essential to check your social media channels at least once daily, but it's also necessary to do so regularly. If you only check your gutters once a week or monthly, there may be more time to address any issues during those time gaps.
You should check your analytics at least weekly, if only less often. This helps ensure that you are aware of the impact that posts have on your audience and lets you know what works best for them. Don't just look at the number of people engaging with your content; also, look at where they are located geographically and what kind of devices they use to interact with it.
Picking the wrong channels.
Choosing the proper channels for your business is critical to ensuring your social media marketing efforts are successful. The first step in this process is to understand that there are a variety of social media platforms out there, each with different audiences and purposes.
Facebook: A place where people connect with family and friends, as well as keep up with current events
Twitter: A platform for sharing short updates about what you're doing at any given time
LinkedIn: A professional networking site used by professionals to find other professionals for projects or jobs
Pinterest: An image-based platform where people post content based on their interests (for example, DIY projects)
Pay attention to analytics or figure out what is working and what isn't.
You should also be paying attention to your analytics. This can tell you what is working and what isn't so you can focus on creating content and strategies that will significantly impact your business.
If a post isn't performing as well as it should, change it up by adding more photos or changing the location of where the page lives on social media. Consider making some changes in terms of timing - posting at different times of day might work better than what you've been doing before!
If there's something else going on with your account that's affecting its performance overall, like if Facebook changed its algorithm or if Instagram did something weird like removing hashtags from profiles... then there are steps that need to be taken for things to go back "normal."
These mistakes are all avoidable if you take the time to plan out your social media before starting.
Not planning your social media strategy: It's easy to get sucked into posting on one platform and not diversifying your efforts. The best way to avoid this is by taking an inventory of how many people use each platform, then deciding which ones will be most effective for you.
Posting too little and not often enough: If you only have a couple of posts per week when people visit your page, they won't see them or remember what it is about (unless there's some pattern that sticks in their heads). They may even assume that there isn't much happening when they look at your posts—and why would they follow someone who doesn't post often?
Posting brand promotions and content that's not engaging: People don't want to feel like they're being sold something every time they check their feeds—they want exciting content that helps them solve problems or learn more about what makes them unique as individuals! So make sure that promotional material is mixed in with other content such as blog posts (or even photos), videos, etc., so it doesn't seem like spammy ads shoved down people's throats…
Keep these things in mind. All that's left is for you to create great content, stay consistent with your posting schedule and engage with followers regularly!
I hope this blog about 7 Social Media Mistakes Business Owners Make – And How To Avoid Them, has given you some good ideas on where to improve or tweak your strategy. If you have any questions or need help with your social media strategy, please don't hesitate to reach out to me. I'm happy to help you get the most out of your social media presence.
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