Social Media Mistakes in Business

If your business isn’t on social media, you’re missing out. Today’s consumers get most of their ideas and information from social media. If your business doesn’t have a social media presence, they’re less likely to use your business. It’s that simple.

Social media marketing means posting often and sharing your business, but it also provides other tools, too. Live video streams, geo-filters, polls, and chatbots are just a few of the amazing marketing tools social media platforms offer.

Taking full advantage of each platform’s features is important if you want your business to succeed. That being said, social media posting could also wreck your business if you take the wrong steps. Check out the top social media mistakes in business you should avoid if you want to be successful.

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Social Media Mistakes in Business

Over-Automating Your Posts

Your social media page should have a human element to it. In other words, automating it too much takes away that human feeling. Your target audience will feel like they’re dealing with a robot, not a real person behind a real company.

Worse yet, if you combine your automated posts to cut down on the time you spend on social media, you could post information on a platform where it doesn’t belong. For example, the ‘@’ sign doesn’t belong on a Facebook posting, but it does on Instagram. If you use one app to post on all platforms, you may not have the personalization each platform needs.

Posting Too Often

Every audience wants something different, but in general, one to five posts per day is plenty for a social media marketing strategy. Gauge your target audience and see what they interact with on average. If it seems like they’re ignoring your posts, it could be because you’re crowding their feed with your social media presence. They may feel like you’re getting in their face, which no one likes.

See how frequently your competitors post and measure how your audience engages with your content. You may find that you want to cut back or add more posts depending on how engaged your audience is at the time.

Not Posting Often Enough

There’s also such a thing as not posting enough. You need to find that ‘fine line’ to walk. You don’t want to overwhelm your target audience, but you also don’t want to ignore them, as that’s not a part of your marketing strategy. Choose a social media strategy that includes posting relevant content and stick with it.

If it means you only post once a day, then consistently post once a day. But if you post more often, make sure you are consistent about it. Don’t post five posts one day and then post nothing the following week. As you build your audience up, they’ll look forward to your posts. If you stop posting, they’ll stop following.

No Lead Generation Strategy

What will you do with all your leads? Sure, they follow you on social media, but what happens next?

You need a way to send your target audience from your Facebook page or your Instagram to your blog, website, or opt-in page. In other words, give them something to do, like a reason to visit you outside of social media. If you don’t, you’re wasting your social media potential.

No Consistent Branding Strategy

Your branding is your business identity. Think of McDonald’s. Anyone, even toddlers, can spot those arches a mile away, right? That brand recognition is what you want for your business. If you have one color scheme on your website, another one on your Facebook page, and yet another one on Instagram, you’ll confuse your audience.

Come up with a branding strategy for social media posting and keep it uniform across all social media platforms and channels. When you post content, you want your followers to recognize it’s your business’ post before they even read it.

Ignoring Your Followers

You have a social media page for a reason. It’s a great thing for your followers to interact with you. If you ignore them, they won’t continue to reach out.

Interact with your target audience as a part of your customer service. Respond to both the good and negative comments. Choose your words wisely, since all of your followers and page visitors can see what you write. Your other followers may see the interaction and engage, as well. 

Using Social Media to Your Advantage

Your social media platforms can help you build your business. People from every generation use it, so why not make the most of your opportunity to get in front of more people? Avoid the top social media mistakes and see where your social media posts take you and your business.