Navigating social media marketing is no easy feat – loads to think about and lots to consider before clicking that ‘post’ button. Then there’s the strategy, the values you’d like to convey, the voice behind the messaging, and eye-catching visuals to supplement it all. And, it is only natural that marketing mistakes are bound to happen with so many things to think about. And to avoid them, you could take a look at this article where we have listed the most frequently made mistakes in social media marketing. Starting with strategy and ending with messaging, they are all listed here, and reading about them might save you from a slip-up!
Of course, we should start right at the beginning with:
Social Media Marketing Strategy
Social media marketing is a critical tool for any business these days. However, there are still those laggards who don’t believe in the value of this marketing channel, choosing to either skip it completely or do it half-heartedly.
A good social media marketing strategy is the foundation that will carry the rest of the work, and you should plan it carefully. And, probably most importantly, plan it based on goals that are actually doable!
Not Tracking Your Results
Tracking your results allows you to distill which pieces of content actually resonate with your audiences. You wouldn’t want to keep on posting something that gets low engagement rates and just a few impressions, right? Yet, somehow, not everyone thinks to track their results!
Tracking your results might also allow you to make strategic changes to your campaign and tweak them on the go. Of course, you shouldn’t expect a miracle with your first social media post, but that also doesn’t mean you shouldn’t track the progress.
Social Media Platforms Are Not The Same
Thinking that every social media platform is the same is one of the most often made mistakes by businesses venturing into social media marketing. In fact, all of the platforms are vastly different in their users and the content they gather there for!
So, you should also remember that a post made for Facebook might not work on Twitter, or an Instagram Reel won’t be a hit on TikTok. This is because each of the platforms requires bespoke content if you want to make a splash on them.
And one more thing – choose your main platform based on your target audience. For instance, if you’re targeting Gen Z, you won’t find them on Facebook, and if you want to reach older generations, TikTok might not be your best choice.
Avoiding And Deleting Negative Comments
Treat negative comments as a way to grow and use them as an opportunity to up your client service or build a stronger bond with your audience.
So, if you find a negative comment anywhere on your socials, don’t ignore it or delete it – respond to it! Try to solve the case in a way that’s both comfortable for you and beneficial for your customer, and if you do it right, you might even earn a loyal customer.
Responding to negative comments also gives you transparency, which people expect from businesses these days.
Spamming
Another frequent mistake that businesses make in their social media communication is spamming. Throwing loads of links directing to your website or relying purely on advertisements just doesn’t work. Social media platforms are for communicating, and communicate with your audience you must. Socials are a perfect way to converse with your clients, so don’t miss this chance!
Not Engaging With Customers/Followers
Once again – engage in a conversation with your customers. If you do not, they might think that you don’t really care about their opinion or their loyalty, so try to respond to comments as much as you can and as quickly as possible. Again, this is a great way to get your engagement rates up and invite more followers to participate in a conversation. And once you nail this process, you should expect to see a growth in the number of your followers and, naturally, better engagement rates.
Missing Your Target Audience
Do your homework on your target audiences – who exactly are they and where to find them. If you don’t, the results of your social media campaign might be disappointing, regardless of how hard you worked on it. It just won’t resonate with the people you try to target it to!
Having a generic and all-inclusive audience is like searching for a needle in a haystack – the people who see your posts might not be interested in them, and those who would actually be curious about your product won’t see them at all. But once you define the buyer persona and target your content directly at them, expect to see a change in your progress.
No Human Touch
People aren’t known to form bonds or attach to inanimate objects, so show them the human side of your business! Social media platforms are for socializing, after all, so why not use this feat for your benefit? Show your followers your employees and the people behind the scenes, convey your values clearly, and treat your customers as humans and not just profits. And if you do it right, you’ll find yourself surrounded by loyal customers who will surely bring new clients for you, too.
Excessive Amount Of Brand Promotion
Okay, we get it – you are on social media to drive sales and raise brand awareness. But over-promoting your brand might not give you the effect you hoped it would. In fact, believe it or not, once brands over-promote their products, the followers tend to lose interest in them.
So, keep your promotional activities to a minimum, and try to connect with your audiences instead. There’s even a rule for that – one promotional post to four non-promotional ones. Non-promotional being photos that reflect on your brand culture and values, how-to guides, blog posts, or any other material that isn’t meant to drive sales but rather provide some value to your audiences.
Not Posting Regularly
So, you’ve decided to make a couple of posts every day. At first, it seemed easy, but then you’ve found yourself lacking time to continue. You missed one post, then another, and now your page has fizzled out to a post per week. Unsurprisingly, the same thing happened with your followers – their interest in your socials fizzled out, and now your engagement rates are low, and impressions are almost non-existent.
How to avoid it? Plan ahead and set realistic goals! If you don’t have a large team that takes care of your socials, it is best to post less but consistently. Be it just one post a day or a post every other day, the main thing here is to keep it regular.
Unedited Content
To make mistakes is only human, and even if you have a team of brilliant copywriters and social media managers, somebody should always check the content before it is posted. Grammatical errors or off-message content won’t do any good to your brand’s image, so proofreading should be a rule here. Oh, and don’t forget to check for errors not only in the texts but in the visuals, too!
Not Using Paid Promotion Tools
Almost every social media platform has its own tools for creating promoted content, and you should take advantage of them. Paid Promotions can help you reach broader audiences or all the members of your exact target audience. Who wouldn’t want that?!
But, before boosting your content, make sure to pick the exact right post – something that is engaging and speaks about your brand values.
Being Low-Key
Social media isn’t a place for stage fright – you have to put yourself out there! Opt for striking visuals and clear messaging; otherwise, your content will get lost in the myriad of messages put daily on social media platforms.
Stretching Thin
Before you delve into the waters of social media marketing, make sure you have the resources to keep it up. If you’ll be the sole person and the jack-of-all-trades, set realistic goals on quantities of posts – one that you are sure is doable and won’t require sacrificing your other important duties. We all know that quality starts to fail once you have too much to do, and you wouldn’t want to post something subpar to represent your business.
Takeaway Note
Creating a holistic social media presence takes a lot of work, and you are bound to make a mistake or two along the way. But hey, nobody’s perfect, and we are all here to learn! However, once you nail down your strategy and perfect your techniques, there isn’t a better tool to promote your brand than social media platforms.
So, hopefully, you’ll avoid making these mistakes, and your journey to becoming a social media marketing expert will be an easy breezy one. And, if you’d like to expand your strategy by adding an influencer campaign – give us a message, and we’ll sort it out for you.
