Social media marketing mistakes can slam shut all the doors that a well executed plan can open to various opportunities for businesses and organizations of all kinds. Whether you own a corporation, a small business, or are a part of a non-profit, being active on social media platforms can help your organization reach new users, build loyal followings, and interact with your target audience without spending much of your marketing budget.

Social platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter are basically free. It’s not rocket science so it won’t take time to understand how it works. It’s very user friendly, usually has a simple interface, and even those who are not technologically savvy can quickly make a post or read messages.

Sadly, many brands still struggle to get results from their social media marketing campaigns because they’re not leveraging the platforms correctly. This happens more frequently than you’d think even for brands who already have huge loyal audience profiles.

While there are brands that step outside the box and find unique ways to boost their social media marketing campaigns, most are still making the same common mistakes over and over again. Even simple mistakes like failing to optimize your content can have a long-term impact on your brand as much as posting something insensitive or going political.

In this article, we’ll be discussing the 5 most common social media marketing mistakes and how you can avoid them.

 

Creating a Profile in Every Platform

Do you need to be on every single social media platform? Absolutely not. Your brand’s industry, your target audience, and your marketing goals are the key factors to consider in deciding which social media platform you should be active in. 

If you’re a B2B company, LinkedIn is most likely to give you positive results as compared to Pinterest. LinkedIn is focused on building professional relationships and Pinterest is focused more on displaying creative and personalized content.

It is a waste of valuable resources to aim to rule every social media platform. Less is more. Understand which social media platform helps you reach your target audience and work towards creating an impact here.

 

Failing to Define a Target Audience

Trying to speak to a general audience can be quite ambitious and doesn’t give you the results you need. While you may drive some engagement in your posts by riding on trends, it is less likely to get conversions out of it. 

Identifying your target audience makes it easier to craft the right messaging that produces results, which are in line with your business goals. You want to focus your marketing efforts on those who are more likely to express interest in your products or services so that your resources and investments don’t go to waste.

 

Being Inconsistent

Consistency is the key, always. With the large scale events that changed the marketing landscape in 2020, the transition to digital platforms has been expedited. Competition has become stiffer and social media has been saturated with brands begging for your customers’ attention. 

To cut through the noise, you need a social media strategy. Plan your posts by creating a social media calendar. Great content ideas don’t come by day after day especially if no notable events are happening in your industry. The best approach is to sit down and brainstorm a few days before the beginning of each month and map out a rough schedule. 

Use tools to manage schedules and monitor audience behavior analyzing how they interact with your content. Tools like Hootsuite and Buffer are very helpful for social media marketers to manage post schedules as well as provide an easier way to keep track of interactions within the pages.

 

Failing to Engage with the Audience

As the name portrays, social media platforms are meant to be social. This is what makes it powerful and effective. It’s meant to build relationships and not as a direct sales platform. 

And to be social means that you need to be on top of your page’s engagement. Engage in the comments section, answer questions, and reply to messages on every single platform you’re active on. 

Promptness in reply also plays a crucial role. Do not leave a comment or message unanswered after 24 hours. A five-hour waiting period or less is more favorable and try to respond as thoroughly as possible. 

 

Not Understanding How the Algorithms Work

Just because your audience follows you on social media, doesn’t mean your posts will likely show up on their feed whenever you publish one. Algorithms dictate which content will be served at the top of each users’ feeds depending on their behavior – which content they are likely to search for and engage with. 

This is one of the bigger social media mistakes. If you don’t understand social media algorithms, you can’t optimize your posts for them. This makes it crucial for marketers to learn about each platform they’re using and how their algorithm works.

While there is no exact formula to determine each algorithm, here are the things you should take into account. 

• How often does your audience respond to your content on average? Those who frequently interact with your posts are more likely to see content from you in the future.
• Current page post engagement. Content that received a lot of engagement (likes, comments, and shares) gets a bump in the algorithm.
• Your post’s recency. When you publish your posts does impact its performance. Make sure you stay up-to-date with peak posting times.
• How relevant is your post? If users regularly interact with talk show previews on Facebook, then Facebook is more likely to prioritize similar content in their feed.
• Real-time, live broadcasts are often prioritized on platforms that offer them.

 

Social Media Marketing Mistakes Summary

• Creating a Profile in Every Platform – Don’t spread yourself thin. Go with what works and be the best you can be at it.
• Failing to Define a Target Audience – Know who your audience is and speak to them.
• Being Inconsistent – Frequency and consistency in brand will get you more loyal followers.
• Failing to Engage with the Audience – It’s social media, so be social. Show your audience you care about them.
• Not Understanding How the Algorithms Work – You don’t need to be an expert, but knowing how things work can go a long way to being successful.

Once you avoid these social media marketing mistakes, doing it right is relatively straight-forward. Once you’ve got a strategy in place, you’ll be able to craft the right messaging, design better visuals, and connect to your target audience.