Social media marketing is something that virtually every business is doing these days. Some do a better job at taking advantage of this powerful marketing tool than others, however. Stand out from the crowd and maximize your business’ chances of making a positive presence on social media by avoiding these crucial mistakes.
Not Creating a Plan
A lot of small businesses start their social media page, enter their company information and then essentially abandon the page. If you want to build an engaged following, you’ll have to commit to more than a few sporadic posts here and there. Instead, define a strategy just like you would with any type of marketing. How often do you want to post? What is your advertising budget? What are your goals for your social media profiles? In order to see any real growth in activity or followers, you’ll have to address these questions first.
Handling Negative Feedback Poorly
Occasional negative feedback is a part of social media. How you handle bad reviews or harsh comments matters a lot, and potential customers pay attention to these things. Not responding altogether is typically a mistake. An even greater mistake is firing back and engaging in negative dialogue. Even if you feel you are not in the wrong, you should make an effort to explain that you are looking into the issue and want to do everything you can to make sure the customer in question doesn’t have a negative experience again.
Never Engaging in Conversation
Human touch is key in social media marketing. If someone comments on one of your posts, respond to them! If you advertise or boost your posts often, chances are they will receive interaction. Be sure to have someone on your team prepared to answer their questions or address their concerns. Promptly and frequently interacting with your community will help you build your brand and convert the common passerby to a potential customer.
Casting Too Wide of a Net
Having several active, thriving social media profiles is a great move for any business. The more avenues that can expose your brand, the better. However, if you can’t spare the time to keep each profile active, it might be best to stick with one or two. A Twitter page that hasn’t been updated in two years isn’t doing your business much good, for example. Bruce Lee said it best:
“I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times.”
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