Last Updated 4 weeks by Emily Standley-Allard
Believe it or not there are a ton of social media mistakes business owners make in 2023. In order to increase customer growth and foster positive business relationships on a consistent level there are certain social media mistakes business owners can make that can either hinder business or cause it not to reach its maximum potential. Here are 12 top social media experts answering the question ‘What’s a Big Social Media Mistake Business Owners make?’ Scroll down for my personal answer at the bottom!
What’s Are Some Big Social Media Mistake Business Owners Make?
Ignoring social media altogether in 2023 can be a fatal mistake for business owners just because they don’t have time to understand it and its enormous impact.
They write it off in the name of focusing on other more pressing priorities — or they misinterpret social media as a distraction, silly networks and apps that kids use.
Or…they don’t want to spend the money to hire an expert social media consultant that can help them reach the audience they need.
That is a tremendous mistake that can be costing business owners literally millions of dollars.
Especially in times of crisis as was evident during the global pandemic, social media proved itself to be a vital avenue of connecting with not only those we care about but an important way to strengthen business networks and connections and communicate important services. and changes.
Another mistake business owners make is they jump into all of the hottest social properties without considering how a certain platform will impact their business in a positive or negative fashion.
Let’s start talking more about how customers can connect, learn, share and engage.
Take the time to really think about how you can use social networks to deliver true value to your customers, readers and strengthen your brand promise.
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Brian Solis, Altimeter GroupFollow @briansolis
Inconsistent branding on different social media sites. So many entrepreneurs have one look, feel and message on their web site, but then totally different ones on their Twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn profiles.
Presenting one consistent brand in logo, look and message is critical. To do this, use only one or two photos for all your social-media sites. Customize your Twitter and Facebook backgrounds using elements from your website.
Keep the keywords and core descriptions of who you are and what you do relatively the same across all sites. Oh, and make sure all information is up to date and current.
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Karen Leland, Sterling Marketing GroupFollow @karenleland
Talking about themselves too much. Social media is much more of a conversation than anything.
A real conversation is a two-way street where people are actively engaging and listening to each other instead of blasting out updates about your newest product or promotion.
If you find yourself being too promotional, try being helpful with others in your niche and sharing helpful content not only from yourself, but from other people as well.
You’ll find that you’ll start to ‘get’ social media a lot better once you start doing so.
@cybermom24 Have a solid plan and don’t bargain. #socialmediaconsultant #socialmediamanager #buildyourbusiness #growyourbusiness #onlinebusiness #womeninbusiness #businessadvice #socialmediamarketingtips ♬ Devil Doesn’t Bargain – Alec Benjamin
Eric Siu, EricOSiu.comFollow @ericosiu
Using Vine. Kidding, but not really. Each new platform that comes along is a new bell or whistle. It’s easy to get lost in the buzz and fun of something new and exciting and there is merit in trying to be first in your competitive set to figure something out and win the hearts and minds of customers. But we’re overthinking things.
There are several hundred blog posts about how to use Vine for business or how to use the new Instagram Video (InstaVid?) for business out there and these services are months, if not weeks old.
Social media is a unique channel of communications, but it’s still just a channel to communicate with an audience.
If you need a consultant or blogger to tell you how to leverage six seconds of video to communicate with your customers, you probably shouldn’t use the platform at all. Define your audience. Know what they would see, read or hear and say, “Holy Smokes! That’s cool!” Then go produce that using the channel in question. This ain’t rocket surgery.
Jason Falls, CafePressFollow @JasonFalls
Jumping in without thinking. The biggest social media mistake I see is believing that everyone must do social media, diving in without a strategy and without knowing which platform your market is focused on.
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Ilise Benun, Marketing-Mentor.comFollow @MMToolbox
Jumping in but not staying in. If you are going to participate in social media, then you have to maintain a consistent presence.
Continually engaging with your followers, contributing to the dialogue, becoming a member of the community. Social media is not a “one and done” vehicle… it’s a living breathing being that you have to commit to.
Jim Joseph, Cohn & WolfeFollow @JimJosephExp
Jumping into various channels full-on without figuring out if that’s actually where their audience is. Look, let’s face it – We’re a society that loves “ooh, shiny!” But putting your eggs into the shiniest basket just because it’s shiny is more than likely going to be a failure.
You need to be where your audience is. Casey Stengel (the famous baseball coach) once said, when asked how he won so many games, “we simply hit ’em where they ain’t.” The opposite is true in social media. You need to know where your audience IS, and hit them where they ARE. Do that, and you’ll hit a home run, or at least a double, every time.
Peter Shankman, Shankman|HonigFollow @petershankman
Trying to be active on every social media platform is a big mistake. Make a plan or sit down with someone who can help you make a plan about what social-media channels align with your goals as an organization.
Time is money and the more channels you are active on, the more time they require for upkeep. Take a look at each channel and understand what audience is active on that network and if they match your customer base and your company’s messaging.
A healthy starting point for most organizations is using Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at first since each have a broad user base and can help many different types of businesses reach their goals.
Brian Honigman, Brianhonigman.comFollow @BrianHonigman
Thinking that simply having a Facebook page and a Twitter account means they’re doing social-media marketing.
A successful social-media campaign requires engagement and dialogue with your audience, and that doesn’t mean one or two “updates” a week. It means participating in discussions and “humanizing” your brand. This is what builds brand loyalty, authority and credibility.
Jayson DeMers, AudienceBloomFollow @JaysonDeMers
Thinking social media is free. Too many clients think that they can just start a Facebook and Twitter page and not have to pay for marketing. That is not correct. To be effective, social media requires strategic planning and dedicated resources.
If you’re going to half-ass it, don’t bother.
You need to understand what you’re trying to accomplish, what channels you’ll use, how you’re going to use them, who will be doing the using. If you’re a business owner who loves Twitter, that’s awesome, but if you’re not, you need to make sure you have someone on your team with ownership and accountability. David Ogilvy used to say “if you pay peanuts, you get monkeys.”
Adam Kleinberg, TractionFollow @adamkleinberg
Misusing transparency. I am a big fan of keeping your social-media updates personal and authentic as a small-business owner. You should be talking about how the day went, what’s new in your business, and what you are up to.
However, sometimes small-business owners take it a step too far and post about challenging customers, complaints about interactions with them or overall information that is just too personal when you are representing a small business.
Don’t forget that these social channels act as both a conversation platform and a discovery engine. Make sure to use transparency effectively, but not go too far.
Joanna Lord, BigDoorFollow @joannalord
Forgetting the “social” part of social media.
Yes, social media is another channel, but it’s unique in that it really allows your true voice to be heard. If used properly, social media can be use to “humanize” your brand. Keep it interesting. Share good stuff.
Don’t be afraid to let a bit of your personality shine through. People do business with people, not companies. Oh, and what Jason Falls said. That too.
DJ Waldow, Founder & CEO of Waldow SocialFollow @djwaldow
Conclusion
I agree with all the experts!
Also, important is don’t forget to include implementing the 80/20 rule to engage with the targeted audience 80% of the time in a light, not too serious, yet genuine fashion, not focused on business but on a human level as DJ mentioned and 20% of the time to zero in on business and targeted strategies to gain conversions and improve ROI.
And on another note – with TikTok surpassing Google as the top website application it would definitely be a mistake to ignore it! Read below how your business can go viral on TikTok!
@cybermom24 Have a solid plan and don’t bargain. #socialmediaconsultant #socialmediamanager #buildyourbusiness #growyourbusiness #onlinebusiness #womeninbusiness #businessadvice #socialmediamarketingtips ♬ Devil Doesn’t Bargain – Alec Benjamin
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