Social Media Marketing Dos and Don’ts
Social Media Marketing Do – “Lurk” and Learn Your Surroundings
I know lurking sounds kinda weird but when used in social media context, “lurking” means to watch and observe without making any contributions to conversations.
Take a look at the rules as every social media site has different guidelines to obey. It is better that you learn them now before getting penalized or even worse yet…banned for good.
Social Media Marketing Do – Post Often
Just like your relationships offline, online relationships take effort on your part. You can’t expect to jump on and post once in a great while and have a ton of leads. This just isn’t realistic. Consistency and patience is key.
Social Media Marketing Do – Be Personable
You are building relationships with people so your conversation should have more of a casual tone than academic. Try to speak as if you were having lunch with a friend, not how you speak when you are in a meeting at work.
Social Media Marketing Do – Offer Free Information
One thing that will never change is that people like information, especially if it helps us do something better or get ahead somehow. Keep this in mind and remember to offer your followers something valuable. This doesn’t mean to post your trade secrets, it just means to offer helpful advice when possible.
On the other hand, you can learn a lot from your followers. Don’t be afraid to ask questions and engage them in conversation.
Social Media Marketing Don’t – Sell Too Heavy
A promotional message is alright here and there but don’t get carried away with commercials. If you don’t know how much selling is too much selling, remember to have mainly personable or informative messages and then toss in a few posts that are selling your company. Your promotional content should make up the smallest portion of your posts.
If you are still unsure about your social media manners, refer to your offline relationships as they are not that different. So for example if you took a potential client out to lunch, most of your conversation would be friendly and casual. You could talk about your company a little, but you wouldn’t sell your services throughout the whole meal.
Social Media Marketing -Don’t Email Without Permission
Just because social networking sites might list a user’s email address on their profile page does not mean that they will appreciate promotional emails from you. This comes across as presumptuous and disrespectful and you will more than likely do more harm than you would do good.
Need help with your social media marketing?
Russ Cuthrell is a Michigan SEO Expert and Internet Marketer with over 24 years of experience in the Information Technology space. He is the owner of Spyder Byte Media, Inc., a Michigan Website Design company located in Shelby Township, Michigan. He has helped hundreds small business owners in Michigan use make it to the top of the search engines and stay there.
