We have heard almost every excuse in the book for why your business can’t benefit from social media. Many of them are not based on fact. We’ve decided to de-bunk some of our favorite myths here.
Myth #1 – I can’t use Social Media in my industry because my business is too boring and my customers are too old.
- Regardless of your business, your customers are most likely already using some form of social media: Facebook, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Twitter, Instagram, etc.
- Current and future customers use social media to find businesses.
- If you do an online search of topics related to your industry to see what people are saying, you will find opportunities to jump into the conversation.
- Social media doesn’t have to be fluffy, irrelevant, or a shameless sales pitch. Think about what your target audience cares about and focus on those things.
Myth #2 – Social media is only successful if you have thousands of followers and post several times a day.
- When it comes to followers, quality beats quantity every time. A local business with 100,000 followers who don’t live near the business will probably not see those high numbers translate to higher sales. However, 500 local followers who can become actual customers or clients are golden. The number of followers or posts means nothing if it can’t bring you new sales.
- One or two posts per day with valuable, relevant information is enough to generate brand recognition. You don’t want to annoy your followers with constant sales pitches.
- When you intersperse sales pitches with information your followers find interesting, it will generate more followers, even if the post has nothing to do with your business.
Myth #3 – I have to be on ALL social media networks to be effective.
- Since the goal in finding new followers is quality and not quantity, take time to research and find out what networks your demographic is using and focus on those networks.
- Companies find success when they focus on using a few platforms well.
Myth #4 – I don’t have time for social media.
- A little planning time each week to plan upcoming posts is all you really need.
- When you schedule the posts at the beginning of the week, it takes less time than you think to update sites each day.
Myth #5 – I only need to check it a few times a week to keep it going.
- Creating a social media account is just the first step. It doesn’t turn off when you’re logged out.
- It’s important to monitor the chatter every day and respond when needed.
- If you’re going to use social media effectively, you need to be fully engaged and active.
Myth #6 – Social media is free.
- Even though it’s free to set up an account, your company needs to invest some advertising dollars into social media to boost quality followers and better promote what you’re saying.
- Between planning posts and monitoring sites, social media does cost you time that would be otherwise utilized in your business, but you will likely see a return on that investment.
Jumping into social media can be intimidating if you don’t know what you are doing. Riley & You has helped all kinds of businesses increase their online presence and find new customers.
