Virtually every business and institution has come to embrace social media as a vital component of their respective marketing strategies. However, while some entities are able to use social media to their fullest advantage, others see very little in the way of engagement or success. So, if your business’s social media efforts are currently floundering, you’d do well to address the problem sooner rather than later. Any business looking to maximize their social media presence would do well to avoid the following mistakes.
Inconsistent Posting
Virtually everyone who uses social media can point to a few accounts that update on an inconsistent basis. And more often than not, our interest in these accounts tends to wane. After all, no matter how enamored you are with a certain individual or brand, you’re liable to lose interest if you have to wait weeks – or even months – for new updates. That being the case, there’s no reason to expect your business’s social media followers to feel any differently.
If you don’t post new content to your various accounts on a consistent basis, you shouldn’t be surprised to see interest from followers dissipate. Not only will your followers stop anticipating updates, many of them are also likely to unfollow. With this in mind, make a point of updating each of your business’s social media accounts on a daily basis.
Keep in mind that posts can often be used across various accounts, so you needn’t necessarily worry about crafting content that’s platform-specific. (Granted, you may need to alter lengthy posts to comply with character limits on certain platforms.) Additionally, the ideal number of daily updates differs from platform to platform. For example, a platform that supports longer-form posts, like Facebook, should receive one to two updates per day. Conversely, a platform that’s built around short-form posts, like Twitter, receive one to five daily updates.
Excessive Posting
Just as it’s possible to post too little content, so too is it possible to post too much. So, if you’re posting an excessive number of daily updates on your various social media accounts, some followers are likely to mute you or unfollow altogether. So, while it’s only natural that you’d post more content on some days than on others, it’s important to avoid overdoing it – especially if nothing particularly pertinent or interesting is being said in any of these posts. As such, it’s generally a good idea to avoid posting too many times in a given day unless there’s new information that absolutely must be communicated to your followers.
Refusing to Work with Experts
If neither you nor any of your team members have much in the way of social media experience, it’s in your best interest to reach out to seasoned experts. A dedicated digital marketing agency is liable to have ample social media experience – experience that can be passed on to you and your workforce. In addition to teaching you how to craft engaging posts, seasoned marketers will help you determine the best times of day to post new content on various platforms and show you how to properly engage with followers.
So, if your current social media efforts could use a professional touch, don’t hesitate to reach out to a good agency. For best results, look for a marketing agency that has worked with businesses like yours in the past. For instance, colleges and other educational institutions should make a point of seeking out a highly-rated higher education marketing agency.
On the subject of experts, your business may benefit from recruiting a dedicated social media manager. Per the title, this individual will be responsible for overseeing, implementing and refining all of your social media endeavors. Depending on how large a social media following your business have – or hopes to have – a knowledgeable social media manager may be required to bring about the desired results.
It’s not hard to see why social media has become one of the foremost marketing tools of countless businesses. After all, many of the web’s most prominent social platforms are free, user-friendly and used by millions of consumers. Given how many prospective patrons you stand to reach with a single high-performing post, there’s no reason you should regard social media as an afterthought. So, if your current social media efforts reflect any of the mistakes outlined above, take care to get things back on course posthaste.
