How effective is your social media strategy? With nearly 5 billion social media users worldwide, neglecting your marketing strategy for social media will affect your ability to showcase your business in the right way. Social media doesn’t always come naturally to everyone. Working through the different platforms and finding what works for you means a lot of trial and error to see what hits the mark with your followers. But there are a few basic social media marketing mistakes you should avoid.
Not Using Videos
As platforms prioritize content that keeps users on their apps, video content has become king on social media. Authentic video content connects and resonates with your audience. When you make that connection, people are more likely to share your content with their audience. If your target demographic includes customers in other countries, you can use dubbing interpretation. Or you can create marketing materials in non-native languages. This also applies to using content on your website, in emails, or how-to guides, for example. This will help you to convey your message more clearly than simply using translation services or just text over the video.
Using The Wrong Platforms
Not knowing where your audience is can lead to a lot of frustration. Typically, most people are on Facebook, Instagram, X (formerly Twitter), or TikTok, and each platform has its own major demographic for users. Let’s take Facebook: if you’re marketing toward Millennials, Gen X, or Boomers, this is could be an effective platform to use. But if you want to engage with Gen Z, you won’t be quite as successful. Identify where your ideal audience will likely spend their time and be more active where they are.
Posting Too Much or Too Little
How often should you post? Despite what you might have read, there’s no simple one-size-fits-all answer. Your current audience size, industry, niche, and content focuses all play a part in determining how often it makes sense for you to post. You also need to understand the platform you are posting on. For some platforms, like X, content has a very short lifespan. It might make sense for you to post up to 5 or 6 times per day. Your content has a longer lifespan on other platforms. On Instagram, for example, you can get by posting 2-3 times per week. Or you could post every day. Some users even post twice per day. But it’s not essential for success. Balance your content strategy with the amount of energy you want to put into sustaining your strategy in the long-term. Otherwise you’ll risk burnout.
Not Having A Strategy
Lastly, one major mistake for brands looking to promote themselves via social media is not having a strategy. Or they have a strategy… but they abandon it too early in the process to know if it’s effective. Define what you want to achieve with your posts and how you will track these metrics. For example, if you’re going to boost sales, your strategy will likely differ than if your goal is to increase brand awareness.
Final Thoughts on Social Media Marketing Mistakes
There are many mistakes you can make when it comes to your social media strategy. The good thing is these mistakes are small. They are easy to learn from if you make one. Don’t let the fear of making a mistake stop you from learning how to do better.
