{"id":4068,"date":"2015-03-04T16:03:40","date_gmt":"2015-03-04T21:03:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hellospark.ca\/en-ca\/blog\/5-myths-social-media-marketing\/"},"modified":"2015-09-15T11:19:07","modified_gmt":"2015-09-15T15:19:07","slug":"5-myths-social-media-marketing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hellospark.ca\/en-ca\/blog\/5-myths-social-media-marketing\/","title":{"rendered":"5 Myths About Social Media Marketing"},"content":{"rendered":"

Still hesitant about social media marketing? Are you falling prey to the inaccurate myths that plague social media marketing all over the Internet? Most of what you think you know is wrong. It\u2019s 2015, time to dispel those myths and get your brand on social! Here are 5 of the biggest social media marketing myths, debunked!<\/p>\n

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Myth #1: Social Media Marketing Is Free<\/strong><\/p>\n

Yes, creating profiles and pages on social media is free. Social media marketing, on the other hand, is not. I\u2019m not just talking about the costs in terms of the time you need to invest into planning out your strategy, creating content, and monitoring and engaging with your fans. I\u2019m talking about the increasing importance of paid campaigns.<\/p>\n

With Facebook\u2019s organic reach hovering around 2%, and their recent efforts to cut back on displaying posts deemed \u2018promotional\u2019<\/a>, businesses need to ensure they are backing their posts and content with Facebook ads if they want to reach their targeted audiences.<\/p>\n

Not seeing a lot of traffic being driven to your site from Twitter? Chances are your tweets are getting lost in users\u2019 constantly updating timelines. Make sure your tweets are seen by investing in promoted tweets.<\/p>\n

Paid campaigns may not be essential on every social media network yet, but it\u2019s sure headed in that direction!<\/p>\n

Myth #2: Social Media Is Just A Broadcast Channel<\/strong><\/p>\n

Social media networks are so much more than places to simply blast out messages about your brand and industry. One of the greatest benefits of social media is that it\u2019s a platform for 2-way communication. More and more people are flocking to social media to leave reviews or ask questions. Make sure you\u2019re staying on top of your customer service initiatives online by responding to any and all comments \u2013 whether they\u2019re positive or not!<\/p>\n

Never forget that with social media your fans and audience are right at your fingertips! Take advantage of this by asking questions, conducting polls, or rewarding fans with exclusive deals. The knowledge you can gain about the interests of your fans is invaluable!<\/p>\n

Myth #3: You Need To Be On Every Social Media Network<\/strong><\/p>\n

Get your hands out of that cookie jar<\/a>! Despite what many seem to believe, social media networks are not delicious cookies that you need to get your hands all over! Instead, focus on the cookies (social media networks) that are really going to help your campaign. This means taking the time to figure out your buyer personas<\/a>. What\u2019s your target demo? What are your customers\u2019 interests? What are you selling? Take the time to research all of the social media networks to see if they\u2019re a good fit for your brand and what you\u2019re selling. Are you a law firm or an accountant? Guess what, you probably don\u2019t need to be on Pinterest or Instagram. Don\u2019t waste your time putting effort into social media networks that your targeted audience isn\u2019t interacting with.<\/p>\n

Myth #4: Hashtags Are Crucial<\/strong><\/p>\n

#Do #your #friends #like #to #hashtag #every #word #on #social? Do you ever think to yourself how silly that looks? I hope so, because not only does it look silly, it\u2019s also completely useless and possibly detrimental to your posts.<\/p>\n

Fun fact! The more hashtags you use on Facebook, the less engagement your posts will receive. In a study conducted by Statista<\/a>, Facebook posts with 1-2 hashtags received 593 interactions, while posts with 6-10 hashtags received only 307 interactions.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s important to limit your hashtag usage on Twitter as well. Take the time to research the hashtags you want to use and make sure they\u2019re actually active on Twitter.<\/p>\n

Myth #5: It\u2019s Fine To Ignore Or Delete Negative Comments Or Feedback<\/strong><\/p>\n

Put yourself in their shoes. If you spent the time to write out a post detailing your negative experience with a company, only to find it get deleted, you\u2019d be mad. More mad than you were in the first place. Take the time to articulate an appropriate response, addressing the users problem head-on with a solution in place. Never underestimate how important your online reputation is. Did you know that 90% of customers\u2019 buying decisions are influenced by online reviews<\/a>? Make sure you\u2019re taking the time to perfect your online customer service practices \u2013 your future sales may depend on it!<\/p>\n

With that said, if you receive a comment that is particularly vulgar or inappropriate, there are some rare<\/strong> cases when it may be acceptable to delete the comment and even ban the user from your page in order to prevent the situation from escalating or happening again.<\/p>\n

Have any more questions about social media marketing? Give us a shout!<\/a>
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