Five myths of social media
Posted by Patrick Murphy on Tue, May 04, 2010
We all hear about the benefits of social media but what are the myths of social media? Social media Marketing has great advantages over traditional marketing, whether for improving internal collaboration, communication and social learning, or for building and enhancing trust through more responsive communications with key stakeholders and clients. At SiliconCloud we work with many companies and brands on social media strategies, so over time we hear a lot of perceptions and views about social media. The following is only a selection of some of the myths of social media that I hear most often and my views on them.
First myth of social media: It is Free. This really can depend on your level of engagement in social media but regardless of how little or how much you engagement there is one thing element that social media does cost and that is time. The true hidden cost of social media is human resources.
Second myth of social media: It is easy. Part of social media can be easy, you may think it is a matter of joining twitter and away you go. But like most things in life you need a strategy of what is it you want to achieve from social media. Without any social media strategy it does make it very easy to deliver no results.
Third myth of social media: Can't be measured. Used correctly your social media impact can be measured but where some companies are struggling is trying to measure the impact of social media. To measure the success of your social media strategy look for an analytics package with social media integration, or figure out how to use your current analytics package to capture leads and conversions from social media.
Fourth myth of social media: It replaces your website. Social media is a great way to increase your brand awareness or make people aware of new products or content but it is not a replacement for your website. View social media as a means to direct people to your website as you still need a place to capture leads and draw attention to your company's products or services.
Last myth of social media: Is only for talking. Starting out and treating social media as a one-way communication channel is an approach that sets you up to fail. Check in with your fans and followers by asking for feedback, responding to questions and comments, and being personable to build relationships with your customers. Social media has moved traditional marketing away from a monologue into a dialogue, so be prepared to listen also.
These are you my myths of social media, what are yours?
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