The power of social media is constantly increasing, and smart businesses are taking advantage of this power to promote their brands. Social media can be a useful promotional tool, but only if it’s used correctly. Unfortunately, a poor social media strategy can often do more harm than good for a brand. Because engagement is key to the success of a brand’s social media, it’s important to know which mistakes will hinder that engagement. We’ve compiled a list of the top mistakes that businesses make in their social media strategies to help guide you to social media success.
Infrequent Posting
It’s unfair to expect people to follow along and engage with your company’s Facebook page if you are posting inconsistently. Social media news feeds are constantly stocked with new and engaging content, so sparse publishing will make it easier for people to forget you. On the other hand, posting too much can end up painting your brand as annoying. In other words, social media publishing is a balancing act.
Your end goal should be to find a happy medium where you can consistently craft useful content that engages followers. Try releasing posts during times of the day that garner the most attention— consider when your ideal customer is most likely to be online. Take some time each week to look at your analytics and try to find a common pattern. Once you have honed in on a good timeframe, create a schedule for consistent posting. It’s helpful to have a few non-tine-sensitive posts on reserve, for the times when you need to work more on developing killer content— this way you won’t have to sacrifice quality during a time crunch.
HubSpot offers a great scheduling tool that allows you to pre-plan your social media posts, setting a schedule for consistent distribution.
Ultra-Promotional Content
Businesses use social media because they are trying to promote their brand, but it’s essential to remember that these are social platforms. People use social media to interact with people and ideas they have interest and investment in. No one wants to be bombarded with sales content on social media. Instead of posting ultra-promotional content, post ideas and photos your customers care about. Use social media to form connections with your followers and foster trust in your brand.
Attempting to Dominate Every Platform
Commonly, businesses get over-enthusiastic when it’s time to ramp up a new campaign. While you should shoot for the stars, this doesn’t mean that you need to distribute your content on every popular platform. Many companies create accounts and build business pages, neglecting to consider the difference between social networks. It may seem obvious, but, Twitter is not LinkedIn; and Facebook is not Instagram.
There’s an implied design for successful posting on each platform— they have specific rules and don’t necessarily fit your brand identity and marketing purposes. Don’t try to be on every social network unless you have the content and time to craft posts that are worthwhile.
An Inconsistent Voice
This mistake is particularly an issue for businesses who have more than one person posting for them on social media. If some posts sound like an ultra-hip millennial littered with the latest slang and others sound like a 75 year old professor writing a dissertation, no one will want to read your posts. Social media provides an opportunity to show off the human side of your brand and shape your brand’s identity. If the voice you present is inconsistent, people will not get to know your brand and your content will feel forced and overly promotional. When using social media, agree upon a company-wide style philosophy to serve as the foundation for all posts, regardless of who is posting.
Jumping on Every Trend
Most people understand the power of being part of something that is “trending” on social media. When you’re part of a trending idea, it can increase your brand’s visibility and give your brand a voice in important conversations. However, jumping on every single trend bandwagon will come off as superficial to your followers and show them that you only care about likes and followers. Instead, jump on trends that are relevant to your industry and messaging. These trends will help form your brand’s identity and show your followers what is important to you as a company. A relevant trend provides a great opportunity to increase the visibility of your brand, but taking advantage of every trend will come off as superficial and ultra-promotional.
ImageWorks, LLC | Social Media Management
Does your social media marketing strategy consistently fall short of your goals? Knowing is half the battle. If it’s time to rethink your strategy, all is not lost. Do research on what others in your industry are doing in social media: what works, what doesn’t and their tone. Take the time to get to know what your potential clients or customers want to see from you.
We understand that social media can be overwhelming, and it's not always easy to change with each update or refresh. If you are looking to boost your social media marketing then you may want to take a step back and reevaluate the online presence you already have.
