7 Social Media Misconceptions

Despite the fact that social media is rising in popularity and sophistication, most businesses still have some common misconceptions about the basics of social media marketing. Social media isn’t right for all organizations, but those that aren’t taking part because they have the wrong idea about certain aspects may be selling their online marketing short. So—here are our top misconceptions we come across when helping businesses get started with social media:

1. Social media is simple. In theory, social media is simple. At the most fundamental level it’s all about having conversations, which is what we do on a daily basis. However, there’s a lot more to social media than just having someone join in discussions in their spare time.
2. Social media is free. This is one of the biggest misconceptions surrounding social media. While many of the tools you need for social media ARE free, taking part is a time-consuming initiative and that isn’t cheap. Allotting the appropriate time and resources for social media requires both time and money, and many organizations don’t understand that when they decide to implement social media. 
3. Social media gives immediate results. Social media can have some quick results, but realistically it’s the kind of initiative that should be viewed as an investment. The relationships which are developed through social media will help you have better results in the future. 
4. Social media isn’t measurable. While social media may not have the same kind of metrics as other campaigns or tactics, it is definitely measurable. Measure your social media through engagement metrics like number of comments, value of conversations, page views, links and number of comments. Avoid metrics like number of followers or fans though, that can be misleading. 
5. Social media is just a “trend”. Social media have been around for a long time. Some tools like Twitter are newer (2006) but blogging and forums have been around for a long time. Calling social media a trend or a fad is just incorrect. 
6. Social media is only for B2C. Every business has customers that they want to communicate with. 
7. Social media is only for a young demographic. Studies have shown that some of the largest users of social networks like Facebook are in the 35+ age range. Social media is definitely not just for youth. Do your research and see if you’re target audience is using social media, if it is, you may be missing out!

Posted by Amberlie Denny at January 11, 2011 8:00 AM

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