Common Social Media Marketing Mistakes in 2021
The popularity of social media isn’t disappearing at any point in the near future, making it a significant piece of your general promoting system. As indicated by Statista, an expected 3.6 billion individuals utilize online media around the world, and that number is required to develop.
Assuming your target audience is part of that overall user count, you have a chance to reach them through the platforms they’re already using. However, at the same time, you need to be cautious about avoiding any social media pitfalls along the way.
To make the most of the opportunities available to you on social media, start with an honest audit of your current marketing strategy. By avoiding the common missteps below, you’ll be more likely to reach your audience, build a relationship with your followers and achieve your marketing goals.
1. Focusing on follower count
Followers are significant as far as building brand mindfulness, acquiring leads, and arriving at new clients. Notwithstanding, you can’t just gather supporters like you gather classical teacups or vintage neon signs.
It’s your main event after you acquire another supporter that issues the most. On the off chance that you acquire devotees however neglect to cooperate with them, your page won’t acquire a lot of footholds. Any modest quantity of natural contact you may have at first when another supporter joins won’t last without the appropriate sustaining.
Ultimately, your adherents won’t see your substance in case you’re not setting aside the effort to fabricate a relationship with them. In return for that “like” or “follow,” they anticipate that you as a brand should make their experience on your page advantageous.
2. Posting irrelevant, boring, or sales content
The content you post for your followers will either keep them coming back for more or cause you to get lost in the social media void. If your content is unrelatable to them, yawn-worthy, or overly promotional, your followers will skip over it, or worse, unfollow you. The more your followers scroll past your content, the greater the odds that your content won’t make it into newsfeeds.
In other words, just because you have 5,000 followers doesn’t mean all 5,000 of them will see your content. You have to post content they want to see in order to get more of your posts seen by not only your followers but also their friends.
Essentially, the vast majority of your content should be focused on them, not you. Here are a few content ideas:
- The owner or team member spotlights: Post a photo and a few fun facts.
- How-to videos: Tell your followers how to use your products or services.
- Customer testimonials: With permission, post a photo of a happy customer and thank them for their business.
- Community or charity events: Do you work with a local school or nonprofit? Give them a shoutout with a photo highlighting how you’re supporting them.
- Behind the scenes or throwback photos: What’s it like running your business? How did you get started? Post a pic to show your audience what goes on behind the scenes.
- Influencer photos: Partner with influencers who can share their own experiences with your brand. You’ll reach entirely new followers with this type of third-party social proof.
The final bullet point above can be especially effective. Influencer marketing, where “regular” people who aren’t celebrities promote your brand, has exploded in recent years as a marketing strategy.
These influencers are viewed as trustworthy and credible, more so than promotional content. In an online influencer survey of 18-to-34-year olds, global communications firm Edelman found that 63% of them trust what influencers say about a brand over what the brand says about itself.
3. Failing to boost content
The idea that social platforms are free marketing mediums is ancient history at this point. You have to pay to play if you want your followers to see your brand on social media.
Even the best content — while it may earn a modicum of organic reach — won’t get the same traction as boosted content. Your followers might initially see your content after liking your page, but over time, your visibility will drop unless you advertise.
You can also create sponsored content that might be more promotional in nature. Think about the different ads you see as you’re scrolling through your feed or viewing stories on Facebook and Instagram.
This content has the potential to reach new leads. With effective calls to action, you can drive website traffic, conversions, and sales.
4. Being tone-deaf
The current year has presented numerous challenges in terms of the economy, the health crisis, social justice, and political matters. It’s important for brands to be aligned with and sensitive to these issues.
Unfortunately, what happens for some brands is that they’re tone-deaf to current events. They’re sending out the same marketing messages they always did, failing to account for what’s actually happening in the world. The timing and wording of their messages are out of touch with what their audience wants to see.
Imagine, for example, a travel agency inviting followers to book a weekend escape — at the height of the pandemic. This kind of out-of-context marketing won’t sit well with your followers.
The same is true with any kind of major world event. When tensions are high and the general mood is more somber, the last thing your followers need is a brand pushing their web hosting service or organic nail polish.
Instead, adjust your social media content to address various issues and be a source of help, inclusion, and inspiration. Back your words with action so you’re followers know what you stand for — and what you’re doing to help your community.
5. Doing it all yourself
When you first start a business, you might be handling your social media yourself. If you continue trying to DIY your social media, however, you’ll be taking time away from other aspects of running your business.
Social media management and marketing, when done right, requires dedicated resources to handle a myriad of responsibilities, including:
- Curating and posting content several times a week.
- Boosting content and creating sponsored promotions.
- Managing the community, i.e., responding to engagements and building brand loyalty.
- Handling any customer service issues or negative online reviews.
- Keeping up with current events.
- Analyzing results, establishing KPIs, and tweaking the strategy to meet goals.
Letting go of this responsibility will free you up to focus on growing your business. Plus, you’ll have more to talk about on social media if you’re actually out there networking, developing a sales pipeline, interacting within your community, building a rockstar team, and retaining your customers and employees.
Avoiding these five common pitfalls takes some effort. However, it also has the potential to help you grow your business significantly. Not only can you avoid becoming irrelevant, but you can also establish yourself as a market leader.
Source – Entreprenuer.com
