No other marketing platform is talked as much as is the Social Media in the contemporary world. It is for all, from marketing managers of multinational companies to the freelance web developers. It won’t be sensible for anyone to ignore this medium anymore. But making most out of such a heterogeneous platform isn’t easy as it has its share of competition. Some marketers undermine the power of this media as they often fail to cash in on it. Wrong strategies and bullish initiative result in such failures. This is often a result of certain myth that people have in their mind regarding Social Media.
10 Popular Social Media Myths are:
First Myth – “Social Media is Great Because it is Free”
In any business ‘time is money’ and thus if you are investing quality time into social media then it is not FREE! To manage a good marketing strategy you and your team need to set aside some of your time for Social Media. You need to chalk out a detailed strategy to handle this or else it might not cost you money but will definitely divert you from the core area of your business.
Second Myth – “It is for Everyone, The Most Unprofitable Person in My Business can do it.”
Yes anybody can write a 144 character tweet or make a post in Facebook. But will doing that help your business? No, you need to device a proper strategy for the same. It would be rather wise to avoid a campaign if it is half-hearted. Some goof up somewhere can do more harm to your business than you can imagine.
Third Myth – “I Need to be on Every Possible Social Media Platform”
There are hundreds of them out there and it would be insane to keep posting everywhere. You need to be on those platforms where your clients are and where potentially new ones would join. It need not be the most popular platform but needs to be the most effective one. One or two platforms are good enough to run a campaign.
Fourth Myth – “I Will Keep Posting Press Releases”
When was the last time you browsed through a social networking site to find out a company’s official press release? Any sane soul would visit the company’s website for that. Social media is not a place to make announcements rather a platform to interact. You get the best business leads through informal communication.
Fifth Myth – “Facebook is For My Kids, It Can’t be a Serious Business Platform”
It is a simple prejudice that you have about Facebook. With more than 800 million+ users it is definitely one of the best platforms for business networking. You can promote your business in the most creative and informal way on Facebook. Some pictures in office and parties does let out the humane side of your business rather than that of a programmed robot whose website reads “we the most professional”, “we are the best in business” etc.
Sixth Myth – “Twitter is For Individualists who Announce Their Daily Schedules”
It might seem to be true with the 144 character posts that most people make. But in this heap of coal you do unearth diamonds. Most marketers get to business deal using Twitter in the most informal way. You can hire the best of the individuals though this and also announce some of your services and product within 144 characters of grammatically incorrect words and phrases!
Seventh Myth – “We Need to Have a Specialized Marketing Guy for Social Media”
Social media marketing is all about being creative, interactive and innovative and when it fall into the ‘to do’ list of an individual you will have boring posts and tweets which kill the campaign right from the word go. You could rather form a small group within your company and run the campaign with creativity and no boredom.
Eighth Myth – “It Didn’t Work for My Business, I Tried it for Months”
It is difficult to measure the impact of a social media campaign and you won’t receive measurable results like you do with an email marketing campaign. It might take months for a campaign to yield results and you need to be patient and not give up on it. You can find out some metrics to know about your ROI through social media and you will definitely get rid of the negativity you currently have.
Ninth Myth – “It Invites Negative Comments and Posts”
Does that mean a people don’t post negative comments and feedback about a company which isn’t on social media? There are hundreds of forums to do so and you might not be aware of the amount of negative publicity that your company has received. Social media rather gives you a chance to defend yourself from some cruel campaign that might be run against your business.
Tenth Myth – “My Customers Aren’t Using Social Media”
Search for your business in any popular social media site and see if it doesn’t yield results. Your campaign is not just for your present customers but for your potential customers too. In a social media platform you are looking for leads rather than merely following your existing clients.
