The omnipresence of social media platforms is something no one can have any doubts about today. They have infiltrated our everyday lives as effectively as possible. That’s why it’s normal for businesses that want to attract the attention of their potential customers to use social media marketing strategies. And while converting social media platform users into leads is possible, there are some myths floating about online that might hinder your social media marketing strategy.
We’re here to debunk them.
7 myths of social media marketing – the most popular
1. Just make a social media platform profile, and the rest will come
Unfortunately, merely establishing an account on a social media platform is far from being the only step you need to take in social media marketing. You need to invest a lot of time and effort if you want people to notice that profile. Even more effort is needed for your potential clients to start interacting with you via that profile. That means that no, an account on its own won’t be an effective marketing tool by merely existing. Complacency won’t bring people to you, but, clever strategies, interesting content, and interactions will. And after a while, you can start expecting leads and sales.
2. It won’t take up a lot of your time
If it doesn’t, you’re doing it wrong – to put it simply. If you want to boost your business through social media, you have to invest a lot of time into it. While that doesn’t sound promising, we have to say, all the time you spend on social media will bring results. As you build a loyal client base, your social media marketing effects will last longer and longer. Through this channel, you can both create and improve your brand. In the end, when you look at the time spent/results achieved ratio, you’ll see that it’s well worth every minute you invest in it.
3. No one can find the time for it
Once people get over the “it’s fast and easy” misconception, they usually steer in the opposite direction. They start believing no one has enough time to do it right. While you do need to put in a lot of effort into making a social media platform account a good marketing tool, the longer you’re doing it, the easier it becomes. It’s only tough at the beginning, while you’re grasping the basics. Once you master the main platforms, you’ll see that maintaining social media accounts and marketing strategies of your business is easy. Another thing that’s good to know if you’re a beginner – there are numerous tools online that will make social media management a lot easier. However, if you’re not willing to put in all the time and effort this requires, you can always hire a social media management agency.
4. Social media platforms are for the young
When these platforms first appeared, this was true. Most of their users were young. However, that is no longer true, and according to statistics, the number of older people on social media is on the rise, and they are outstandingly active. To put it simply, if you decide to venture into the world of social media, you’re guaranteed to find a lot of older customers just waiting for you. If you choose to avoid these platforms because your target audience is older, you might be missing out.
5. If you go viral, you’ve succeeded
When one of your campaigns goes viral and large numbers of people start sharing your content without you asking them to do so – that means you’ve gone viral. That’s when it’s easiest to attract customers. Many companies out there are investing a lot of money in attempts at creating viral content. And while viral content is a good way to make your social media marketing a success, it isn’t the only one. Your goal shouldn’t be going viral; it should be getting a steady influx of new visitors and new clients through your social media marketing campaigns.
6. People don’t care for content
Marketers often claim that people don’t care to read content on social media platforms. Well, that’s not really true. Not everyone will read everything they see in their feed, that’s true, but if you spark their interest, they will read. That’s how online magazines and news outlets can survive after all. So, if you create good content, people will read it, and it can affect their purchase decisions. Potential clients can engage with your business through content that you post on social media networks.
Encouraging as this is, before you start posting articles, you need to know what kind of content your potential and existing clients prefer. Typically, people prefer multimedia content. A combination of images and text or a good video will have a greater impact on your engagement rates than a block of text would. Once you do your research and learn what your target audience likes, you can shape your strategy around their preferred content.
7. You must have accounts on all the platforms
YouTube, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter – you have to be everywhere at once. No, you don’t. The number of social media platforms is constantly growing. However, you don’t have to be on each of them for your campaign to be a success. Just imagine trying to maintain a campaign on a dozen different platforms. It would be incredibly difficult, to say the least. What’s even more important, it would be an immense waste of your time and resources. You don’t need to use all social media platforms in existence. You just need to find out which ones your target audience is using. If a large percentage of your demographic uses one network, that’s the one you have to be on. Of course, there are certain platforms where you simply must be present. The platforms such as Facebook and LinkedIn – there’s almost no age group that isn’t using one of these.
The Bottom Line
If a business wants to stay competitive, it has to use social media marketing. But, if you don’t forget about these 7 myths, you won’t be able to gain an advantage through these platforms.
If you require further information or have any specific questions, don’t hesitate to give a member of the GoPromotional team a call on 0800 0148 970 or simply email us today.
