The promise of ‘free’ advertising and easy PR draws business owners, both big and small, to the social marketing arena.
They think that all they need is to establish a Twitter account or set up a Facebook and LinkedIn page and it’s off to the races. They’ll just get going, get posting, and figure it out as they go. If they don’t know what they’re doing quite yet, who cares, right? Any social networking is good social networking, right?
Wrong!
There are common social media misconceptions that can actually hurt your online relationships with your customers. Here are just a few to watch out for:
- Hi…now BUY!
I’ll start with the most obvious. It’s not okay to push your products the second you get online. It’s just not. You need to take the time to make a connection with your readers and your prospects. If you’re lucky and you do it right, soon you will be calling them “clients and customers.” - No Turning Back Now
If you want to profit from being online and in front of your customers 24/7…you need to deal with the added demands. If a customer tweets you a concern or leaves a question on your FB page, you can’t ignore it and just focus upon the raving fan posts. You have to deal with the good and the bad. - Cohesion , cohesion, cohesion
Scattershot marketing efforts won’t work. And they will turn off most customers. You have to be consistent and you have to have a plan. - Big Fat Arrows Towards the Shopping Cart
In the midst of your conversations, remember that, if you want to make any money from this, you need to let them know that they can actually buy from you. Always make it clear how they can do so. - Know Thyself
If you hear negative feedback, it’s not okay to simply shut them out, block them or move on. Find the right tone to deal with detractors and always make sure you look within to figure out if maybe – just maybe – what they’re saying about you might have a hint of truth to it. - Extend Your Brand Online
Don’t Replace It Going online doesn’t mean reinventing your brand. You.com should still be YOU.
What mistakes have you made in social media? What else should we warn people about? Let us know by posting a comment below.
Hi Guys,
i would say another key mistake made on social media is : Tone Of Voice
its easier for the larger brands to be lost in conversation with their customers without adding that personal touch. By simply adressing each customer with their name and adressing both positive and negative comments with equal concern they will see their engagement and ROI increase. 🙂
Great insight!!!
Don
Hi Don
Chris D. again 🙂
Do you think “quotes” from other people is a mistake for posting on Twitter?
Like for example,
“Money doesn’t change men, it merely unmasks them. If a man is naturally selfish or arrogant or greedy, the money brings that out, that’s all.”
– Henry Ford (1863-1947)
Is it OK to “speak” AT them, rather than “speaking” TO them? or posting other people’s content, within one’s niche, would be more valuable than quotes?
I’ve been thinking, well, I can’t measure the performance of the quote, since there’s no link to it and see how many people READ that or SAW that tweet.
I can track the impressions for each tweet, but this does not tell me the “engagement.”
I am a guy who wants to test everything. So, if I post a “quote” is it like doing things blindly, without knowing the impact that piece of content had. Well, if someone RT’s the quote, it shows certain interest in that content, but again, it does not tell me much.
I like when you say, “Twitter is a sport for writing and developing skills in writing great headlines.”
To me “RT” on Twitter or “Like” on Facebook is like “I agree.” Getting them to “agree” with you is great, but call the action is missing.
So do you think quotes are good engaging strategy or simply a waste or time?
Thanks Don!
I believe that the utility of generic quotes is declining, but there is still some value in them. People simply like them, and those positive emotions within your target market then spill over onto you.
That said, I think that highly specific quotes (quotes that really address your target market in a unique way) have great utility.
For example, if your product is Mac accessories, a series of classic Steve Jobs quotes could be incredibly powerful. Think – are there quotes that truly serve my target market?
Don
Hi Don,
Thanks for the prompt response.
I am into the hip-hop a little 🙂 and often times I use rhymes in a way that “rephrases” a quote or an idea behind that quote.
I see very famous rappers use rhymes to ENGAGE their audience, with some special effects and music of course.
But my point is that this can also be done when you are communicating to others on Twitter.
I’ve done that, and people respond quite well. So far so good 🙂
Examples:
“Get your aims high, even if it is a lie, you’ll see things through a new eye, and ultimately getting the juiciest pie”
“Trying to be someone who you are not puts you instantly in a blind spot. We must do things in our own way to get involved into the foreplay.”
“When we get too busy the work seems always dizzy, when we focus at the most important things first, the process gets reversed”
And last one, just can’t help it 😀 lol
“Defeat comes sooner or later, but we choose to surrender or step back on our feet and take the heat, because we have dreams to feed”
All right, that’s it!
Thanks for the advice Don, great stuff.
It is all about the emotion, I’ll reduce or even eliminate generic quotes, and get more specific ones into the game!
Thanks a TON Don 🙂
Yours,
“Chris D.” Cribs 😛
Those are great, if your target’s into hip hop and rhymes.
But if they’re not, you could actually be turning off the very people you want to be attracting. Just saying – not knowing your audience.
Take care,
Don
Very interesting.
I did not think of that Don. Hop hop is really “me,” not my prospects.
I’ve seem many mistakes entrepreneurs make in talking about themselves, or “be themselves” since we have to create a mirror of the prospect, and when the prospect comes into our site, they are looking at that mirror of themselves 😉
I forgot about this very important point. Perhaps I can show the “hip hop me” when they are already on my list or when they have bought what I am offering.
Before that, no “hop hop” – this seems to be a process 🙂 because they do not know me yet, and trust me yet.
Perhaps, you wouldn’t have approved this hip hop comment, if it was the first comment on your blog and you did not know Chris Diamond before.
But since you have some understanding about me, you seem to be cool with it 😛
Very interesting psychology.
Thanks for this valuable “eye opener” Don!
I hope your readers, reading those comments can relate to what I am saying here.
Not about the hip hop part, but about knowing their audience and see if what they are doing is “talking about themselves” or the prospect.
Chris D.
That’s always the foundation of everything we do in social media – figure out what your audience wants and needs and give it (and nothing else) to them.
That way you’re focusing on their needs and interests and not your own.
Don
Hi Don,
I think you are doing great, and the success you enjoy now not by accident 🙂
Some people say “automation” is a mistake… especially for Twitter & Facebook. What are your thoughts on that?
I am currently automating tweets on Twitter (quotes from dead people 😉 ) and links to some of my competitions on the niche I am in to build trust (not just my content). I include promotional tweets (self-serving) on every 200 tweets or so.
But automation kills people on the inside when they see it (destroys the trust), and it kind of defeats the purpose of Social Media. This is what I heard anyway, but it seems like EVERYONE has an opinion about something they do not know what they are talking about 🙂
So, I prefer to stick to the experts 😉
Time is also the most valuable resource we have, automating tweets, make things easier. Just like in email marketing, we automate the auto-responder series to build the relationship. Can we use automated tweets to build trust and relationship on the same way? This view seems to contradict and it does not resonate with most “social media experts.”
Thanks Don!
This is a really good question.
Frankly, most automation in social media IS a mistake, especially the automation that automatically posts the same content to multiple sites.
The one piece of automation that does have good results is posting on a schedule to spread your posts out throughout the day. That has very little downsides. You will, however, want to pay attention and make sure that you’re being responsive to those who do post questions and comments on your posts.
Don
Great, this is what I am currently doing. Spreading 3x (2-3 tweets) throughout the day. Meaning I sent 2-3 tweets in 3 different time periods throughout the day (which is total of 10-12 tweets per day) – not including conversations and responses.
Here’s a good article from a friend of mine that writes about automation, where I’ve been having a discussion about, titled “I Die Inside When You Automate” -> http://jillclark.biz/social-media-automation
She gave me great insights, and allowed me to change my entire Twitter strategies for testing.
You may want to check that out Don 😉
Thanks!
Thanks Chris. Nice article BTW.
Don
Thanks Don,
I also like your blog, and the structure of it.
Less is more! 😉
Just bookmarked your blog, so I hope you are gonna update frequently 😉
I always admire people who’ve been through difficulties to get to where they stand today. It is quite inspiring to know how much a person can achieve in a short period of time.
I’ll be in touch 😉
Chris D.
Thanks!
Don
Mine have been inviting friends to Like a Facebook page too early. Should have waited until my “brand” was fully integrated. Result was none of my own friends joined the page!
Don,
I agree with you completely. The biggest thing business can do to make the best use of their social media is to provide consistent, frequent, and relevant good content. Keep up the good blog!
Fred
I’ve made a number of mistakes online, mostly related to expressing political opinions on blogs.