Top Social Media Myths:
Myth: Social Media is for teenagers and young people.
Fact: Young people may be early adopters to technology in the 2000-2010, but the fastest growing demographic on social media today is actually baby boomers and generation X.
Myth: Social Media is for Business to Consumers (B2C) companies only, Business to Business (B2B) companies have nothing to gain.
Fact: 92% of B2B marketers use social media as a content marketing tactic to drive sales. There are different platforms that are specific to business transactions such as LinkedIn and Business Networker. (Certain business sales reps have found success in B2B sales over the social media platform Twitter.)
- An effective platform for entrepreneurs and professionals to establish themselves as a trusted expert.
- Great for keeping in touch with customers and prospects without bring intrusive.
- Create a list of qualified leads (Decision makers and procurement officers).
- Listen in on what people are saying about your brand (or competitors brand).
Myth: If I don't set up a social media site, I am immune on social media.
Fact: Whether you have a social media page or not, people will talk about you on social media on websites such as:
- Yelp.com
- Google reviews
- Reddit
- Tweet about it using hashtags
- Facebook post about it
- Blog about it
The benefits of OWNING a social media presence is you will be notified of their posting and have a chance to respond back to. A negative comment may not necessarily be the end of the world, it is an opportunity to look at your business from another perspective and find opportunities for improvements. (Speak to me to discuss about how to address negative reviews)
Myth: It doesn't take much work to set up a social media page.
Fact: That's partially true but much work is needed if you want to have decent social media presence for your brand. A poorly planned social media presence will result in:
- Giving a poor first impression and tarnishing your credibility.
- Fans and followers feeling alienated due to a poorly designed communication plan.
- Not communicating the right style on the specific platform and cause the brand to be perceived as 'out of touch' and 'irrelevant'.
- Setting up on the wrong platforms can cause your brand to miss out on key potential clients.
- Setting up on too many platforms may make social media management overwhelming for you.
A great social media presence does take some effort to set up and maintained and can yield great returns on exposures, brand recognition and social support. A social media professional can help you get started on the right track and establish the online presence your brand deserves.
To sum it up, when it comes to social media, it’s not about you. It’s about your stakeholders, clients and prospects; and you need to meet them where they are. While being absent on social media may give a false sense of 'comfort' but this 'comfort' crumbles when reality dawns (when being told by a client that the company has a few negative reviews). Businesses need to change their mindset if they want to be seen as a relevant change agent and industry leader, not a reluctant relic who misses opportunities and is becoming 'out of touch'.
Schedule a meeting with Edward today to see how you can get started with a social media plan