Running on Social Media Alone Isn't Social Enough

Everyone is on social media, right? So creating an account for your business is sure to get you all of the customers you can handle (and more)!

Well, not so fast.

Social media is a critical component of your digital marketing strategy, but it shouldn't be your only one. If you're relying solely on social to support your business and service your customers then you are doing both a disservice.

How Is That Possible?

In case you haven't noticed, your customers have opinions. Strong ones. Not just about your business, your products and your services, but also about where they expect to find information and updates about each.

Social media is an obvious assumption for where they might look first, but remember that people use different social networks for a variety of purposes (and that Google is still the most visited website). For example, according to Statista, 15% of users find/shop for products on Facebook while only 7% of users on Twitter do the same. What else are people doing on social media? Besides connecting with friends and relatives or checking for news, over 50% of users on Instagram use it to watch videos while 65% of users on Facebook use it to view photos.

Common Social Media Activities by Platform

The point is: while hundreds of millions of people are actively using social media, their primary purpose for using it is unlikely to be finding and connecting with businesses.

Your Customers Have Opinions of Social Media As Well

Social media platforms can often come with assumptions. Who do you picture when you think of the average Facebook and Pinterest user? What about the average Snapchat and TikTok user? Instagram? Twitter? LinkedIn?

Not only do some people feel "they don't fit in" on certain platforms and refuse to join, Statista also reports that a survey conducted in Q3 of 2019 showed that 52% of respondents listed Facebook, Instagram and Twitter as social media platforms they had considered leaving.

Users Who Considered Leaving Social Media

With news of a Twitter hack in July of 2020 and Facebook frequently making headlines regarding user data and privacy concerns, it's understandable why people are second guessing their continued use of large social platforms.

When It Comes to Social, You Need a Strategy

Still, social media is here to stay and, when managed properly, is a huge asset to businesses. But effectively running a social media account takes a lot of time and effort. A lot. A set-it-and-forget-it approach never works, so it's not enough to just sign up for an account and call it a day. Leaving any account dormant can have disastrous results for your business. Why? If your social media has been inactive for months/years, people are going to assume you're out of business. If they can't easily find the information they're looking for, they'll quickly give up and start searching for a competitor. If they don't see a website, phone number or hours of operation listed, they might question your legitimacy. It's as simple as that.

Even if you are actively updating your content, are you sure you're on the right platform(s), i.e. where your customers are? Are you reaching them effectively? How do you know? Unless you've gone viral or you're the only show in town, you need to do your research and study your metrics. Success takes work.

Keep In Mind: Not Everyone Uses Social Media

Statista reports that 82% of adults aged 30-49 and 90% of adults aged 18-29 in the United States use some form of social media.

Percent of Adults in the United States Who Use Social Media

That usage rate is incredible, but it also tells us that 18% (nearly 1 out of every 5) of 30-49-year-olds and 10% (1 out of every 10) of 18-29-year-olds don't use social media at all. Even for those who do, there is no guarantee that they are using your platform of choice (unless you choose all platforms, which is unlikely).

But not to worry, customers don't need a social media account to access your public profile, right?

There's a Cost to Admission

Even if your profile is public, it's still likely to be restricted for non-members of your platform.

There are plenty of businesses that overlook the importance of making their social media profiles "public." Those who don't create a cliquey "members only" experience, based not on their brand but on their social media platform. This can be very alienating to customers.

Those who do make their profiles public still limit the amount of information non-platform members are allowed to access.

Why should your customers need to create an account with an unaffiliated third party in order to hear your business' message?

All of This Highlights the Importance of Effective, Unrestricted Communications

The best part of social media is its ability to connect us to nearly everyone and everything. It's also the worst part. Newsfeeds, timelines, stories and moments can bury us in information, especially when throngs of people post content multiple times a day. How far in your post history do you expect people to scroll in order to find what they're looking for? How much information can you cram into a single, pinned post? How easy is it to get the attention of your customers when there are thousands of other posts competing for it? The obvious truth is that it's not, and many of your messages/content will likely go unnoticed by your audience.

So, How Do You Strike a Better Balance?

Whether you have a physical business location or not, you must establish a digital flagship location. This should be a website or blog that places you in full control of your content, messaging, presentation and interaction with your customers. With your flagship site in place, your social media profiles become satellite locations that help you extend and amplify your reach.

Websites and blogs need as much attention as social media profiles, so there's no "easy way out" when it comes to your marketing efforts. You still need to keep your content updated, engaging and current while simultaneously making use of other digital and traditional marketing methods: email marketing, mailers (when appropriate), in-person networking, content marketing, SEO, PPC, etc.

If you're looking to create a plan, we're here to help!