5 Reasons Your Small Biz or Startup Should STOP Doing Social Media
If you are a business owner, you are most likely aware that your business MUST have a social profile on each of the gazillion social media sites……or at least that’s what you’ve been told.
The purpose of social media is to take advantage of these amazing, no-cost promotional tools to get your business noticed by the billions of social media users. Don’t forget to encourage visitors of your website to like and follow your business along the way. Oh, yeah, make sure your social profiles are all listed on your business cards……or, at least that’s what you’ve been told.
Make sure to do everything you can to increase your followers, increase your likes, promote your products, run a contest….oh, and while you’re doing this for each platform, don’t forget to start a blog or two.
Do all these things and watch your leads and/or sales increase 10 fold. At least…..that’s what you’ve been told.
Well, if you are like millions of small business owners and startups, you dove in head first to do all the things that you have been told to do with social media, and rightly so, you expect the benefits of social media to come easy……like they keep telling you. I want to share with you what most of you haven’t been told about social media.
- You Have too Many Social Accounts
The experts say that you need to be on every social media channel, and they overexaggerate the benefits of most of them. However, what they don’t tell you is how each one should be used, and the purpose of each one. If you do not currently have at least one person other than yourself dedicated to managing your social media posts, and you have more than 2 or 3 accounts……….please stop! You’re probably doing more harm than good.
- Your Posting Frequency is Inconsistent
Posting everyday for a month, and then suddenly dissappearing will cause your followers to forget about you. If you only post when you feel inspired to post, wake up on the right side of the bed, have one too many drinks at happy hour………..please stop! Your fans and followers are most likely no more interested in your business than you are.
- Your Postings are Inconsistent with Your Brand
Don’t post photos of you getting drunk at a recent party, unless you represent the drunk party brand. Don’t post photos of your newborn, unless your brand has some clear connection with babies, new mothers, or hospitals. Simply put, leave your personal preferences, goals and dreams at the door if they do not represent your brand or your business in any way.
- All Your Posts are an Attempt to Sell Something
Stop treating your social media accounts like a virtual vendor booth at the local farmers market. If you only post information about your latest product or service offering, and you are forever thinking that you are clever for creating your own Black Friday special (every Friday during the year)……..please stop!
- You’re Not Measuring Anything
You now have reached 1,000 fans/followers…..now what!? Quick…..what’s your social media acquisition cost? conversion %? Social ROI? Better yet, if the majority of your fans and followers are a combination of family and friends that have never actually purchased anything from you related to your business………please stop!
You’re Not Alone…….but please stop.
Believe it or not, most small businesses and startups are in the same boat as you. This is just a short list of reasons among tons more, as to why you should consider closing your social media accounts IMMEDIATELY. It’s most likely not worth the time, energy and resources that you may be spending on it, and you may possibly be doing more harm than good for the sake of your brand.
Seriously, some may argue, something is better than nothing. However, if your social media efforts are only good for random likes from family and friends that have never purchased from you, or you aren’t converting previous one-time purchasers into repeat spenders, then you my friend, are simply looking for attention…….not sales revenue or brand loyalty.
