In January, I gave a presentation on social media at the Knoxville Chamber of Commerce. Due to the response I got, I thought I would share it on the Fletcher blog. This is part 2; if you missed part 1, be sure to check it out.
- They’re all business all the time.
Companies don’t usually do social just for fun. Most of the time they want to utilize social media to advertise their products and services or to build brand awareness. However, constantly spouting off the corporate mantras on social media is bad form. People want to interact with other people, not this abstract concept of “brands.” Post funny content, or share some images from the company picnic. Do something to show that your business is a collection of people and not just a robot posting on Facebook.
- They don’t create interesting, shareable content.
Before posting something, you should ask yourself “If I saw this on Facebook, would I like it?” If the answer is “no” then you might want to think twice about sharing it. Nobody cares about the Contact Us page of your website, and, as mentioned above, spammy brand messages are not funny, interesting, informative nor shareable. It’s better to post interesting articles, funny images or thought-provoking questions than the Contact Us page.
- They try to be everywhere.
There are a lot of different social networks out there, and every year there seems to be a new one that catches fire. The biggest investment social media requires is time, and for most businesses, particularly small businesses, there’s just not enough time to devote to all of them. It’s better to do a few networks well than a lot poorly. Also, if you can’t create good content, then there’s not much of a point on being there. Be sure to evaluate which social media sites make the most sense for your business and which ones you can devote time toward.
Stay tuned for the third and final installment.