Common Pitfalls in Social Media Marketing and How to Avoid Them

Social media marketing is a total game-changer. It gives small businesses a fighting chance against bigger competitors with the promise of going viral and being digitally successful overnight. No wonder more and more brands are putting their best efforts into bringing their A-game to every social networking platform by following brand-building tips for a stronger online business.

But real talk: the world of social media is not always a bed roses; it’s a double-edged sword that can make or break your business. One wrong move and you can lose followers, see a dip in your engagement, not generate conversion, or ruin your brand’s reputation with a serious online backlash.

In this article, we share the most common pitfalls in social media marketing and practical tips for entrepreneurs to avoid them. Read on to find out if you’ve ever been guilty of these social media mistakes.

Thinking the More the Merrier

It’s easy to assume that having a visible profile on almost every social media platform imaginable and increasing your posting frequency to several times daily can pave the way to achieving everything you hope to achieve.

While doing so may have its own merit, it also has its downsides. High-quality content takes time to conceptualize and create. And even with a dedicated social media manager, when you have to churn content for Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, and TikTok three to five times every single day, the quality of your content can be compromised because you’ve spread yourself too thinly. What started as an interesting content strategy may be watered down to senseless posts your audience can’t appreciate or relate with.

In addition, your target audience may not even be active on some of the platforms, making all your effort futile because you’re still not generating leads, traffic, or conversion at the end of the day.

So, what can you do? After using digital marketing tools to boost your business, a far better strategy would be to do marketing research, identifying and defining your customer profile — including age, location, purchasing behaviors, and other demographic data. Based on that information, tailor your social media marketing strategy by answering these key questions.

1. 1. • Which social media platforms do they actively engage in?
      • What are the optimal posting days and times for each social networking site?
      • What type of content piques the interest of your target audience the most (i.e., infographics, videos, bite-sized blogs)?

Knowing your audience gives you a clearer idea of how to communicate and market your brand and products to them on social media. Remember, you don’t have to be everywhere. Focusing on one or two social media platforms streamlines your entire process, saving you time, effort, and money on ads.

 

Posting Only About Your Products and Services

While it’s natural to use social media to put your brand in front of your consumers, know that you have to do it sparingly. Everyone these days is so fed up with excessive advertising that if you post only about hard-sell promotions of your products, you risk getting snoozed or, worse, unfollowed.

Aside from following design tips to enhance your social media images, effectively connect with your audience by offering unique and amazing content that speaks to them. Provide them with something of value and establish yourself as an expert or guru they can seek help about anything. For example, as a home cleaning company, we at SuperCleaning Service Louisville, share cleaning motivations, quick cleaning tips for super busy people, or cleaning hack videos we know they would enjoy watching and find useful in their daily lives instead of overtly advertising our move-in or deep cleaning services.

Not Using Social Media to Encourage Customer Referrals

User-generated content reigns supreme these days. News about how awesome you are can spread like wildfire when happy customers share their positive experiences about your product and services on social media.

It’s a free advertisement and an effective referral opportunity that generates top-quality leads because it’s organic and comes from someone they know. According to Nielsen’s Global Trust in Advertising Survey, recommendations from family and friends remain the most credible form of advertising for consumers in 60 countries.

Follow these tips to boost your social proof and referrals.

• Open your review section on your social networking profiles.
• Encourage customers to post about you on social media by offering reward points.
• Create a branded hashtag that your customers can use on social media when discussing your company.
• Ask them to tag you when they post photos of your products or services on Facebook or Instagram.

Developing your own social media marketing strategy from scratch can be overwhelming. But doing your due diligence to research to get to know your audience and the kind of message you want to put out there can play a pivotal role in helping you steer clear of social media mistakes.