6 Myths of Social Media Marketing

 

Opportunities abound in the world of Social Media Marketing. With the advent of such websites as LinkedIn, Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, etc. there are now more ways than ever to build your brand, reach out and "touch" customers and prospects, drive traffic to your business and of course, increase sales.

 

The problem? Many companies have preconceived notions about social networking that is preventing them from taking advantage of what could make a huge difference to their bottom line. It's time to demystify Social Media Marketing

 

Social Media Myth #1 - Social Sites Are Just For Teenagers

 

Nothing could be further from the truth. While there are some sites like MySpace and others that were originally created to cater exclusively to teenagers, many of them are now attracting older participants.

 

And although there are literally thousands of social sites out there today, once you determine the goals and objectives of your social media efforts, you'll be able to narrow down the list to a select few that will concentrate on your target market.

 

Social Media Myth #2 - Social Media is Just a Fad

 

When the Internet first arrived on the scene, it was all about providing information and selling "stuff". And while that is still a large part, Web 2.0 is all about users interacting with each other and consumer generated content.

 

When 6 out the top 10 websites in the world are social sites and they are getting 1 billion visitors a month and growing, I guarantee this is not a fad. This is Web 2.0, the future! And the best part is, that you have the opportunity to learn about it and get involved in it while it is still relatively new.

 

Social Media Myth #3 - Social Strategies Are Just for Big Companies

 

The Internet is the great equalizer. You are what your customers and prospects see, hear and read on line. If you make great products or provide great services and you can reach the right audience through a compelling social media strategy, then your company will benefit with more exposure, higher brand awareness and of course increased sales.

 

My advice is not to worry about what the big boys are doing, do what you need to do to grow your business and believe me you need to be doing social media marketing. Social media is a great "guerrilla marketing" tool that you can take advantage of and start reaping the benefits from very quickly.

 

Social Media Myth #4 - Social Media Marketing Will Cost a Lot of Money to Implement

 

The good news is that creating and implementing a social media-marketing plan does not have to cost a lot of money. As a matter of fact most social media websites cost nothing to join.

 

Now don't get me wrong, as with anything, you'll certainly have to devote an adequate amount of time and resources to be effective, but in actual hard dollars and cents, your investment can be quite minimal.

 

Social Media Myth #5 - Social Media Marketing is Primarily Used for Finding Friends and Sharing Video and Photos

 

While YouTube, Flickr, Facebook, and other similar sites are indeed used to find friends and share experiences, photos and videos, many savvy marketers are finding that they can connect with groups, users, fans and enthusiasts.

 

How? By providing free information that members might find useful or enhance their experiences. These types of sites should not be overlooked as a way to open 2-way dialogs with your target market

 

Social Media Myth #6 - You Have to be a Marketing Whiz or Computer Geek to Effectively Use Social Media

 

Once again, not true. If you can surf the Internet, buy a book on Amazon and read blogs, you have the skills needed to benefit from social media. Frankly, the most important thing you need to help your company get involved in social media marketing is the desire to learn and the time to implement some very basic ideas and strategies.

 

Now, are there more advanced features on some of these sites? Sure, but even those can be applied by just asking current users or reading instructions that many of the sites themselves provide. I'm telling you, this is not rocket science!

 

My advice to all reading this article:  Learn, Baby, Learn!

 

by David Carleton