In the last year, social media has become very popular. Everybody is talking about it and many online marketers have used it.
However, many of them have failed at it. Why? They just don’t get the way it works.
To help you avert the mistakes commonly made by online marketers when getting into Social Media Marketing for the first time, here are a number of success tips gleaned from 80 actual social media implementations.
Don’t Steal Other People’s Work
I see this all the time. Someone takes the time to create a group, sends them great information and builds a relationship with his followers. Then someone else wants to take advantage of this group that took the owner so much work to put together and starts posting promotional comments about his own company. Needless to say, these comments are always removed and the poster ends up looking like a spammer. If you want to succeed in Social Media Marketing, create your own group and post your own content, and don’t try to cash in on someone else’s efforts.
Avoid Self-Promotion
Don’t talk about yourself and your company all the time. People don’t care about that. Give them something of value, build relationships and get people to trust you. Let them know what you do but don’t try to sell them anything. They will call you when they are ready to buy.
First Give, Then Ask
Don’t you just hate it when someone sends you an email every other day asking you to do something (check out a website or register to get their free ebook) but they don’t do anything for you? Instead, see how you can help others. For example, join lead groups, and proactively send leads to other members. Then these members will most likely start sending leads your way. That’s how it works. The majority of the people take, take and take. They never give. Do things the other way around (the real spirit of social media) and you’ll be noticed.
Use Your Real Name
I get about 10 friend requests per day on Facebook and LinkedIn from companies. I ignore all of them. If you want to network with me, tell me who you are and show me your face.
Do It Only If You Enjoy It
I love meeting people and networking. I love having conversations with strangers and exchange ideas. I am not always thinking about how I can make money out of the person I am talking to. If you don’t enjoy the process, you are not likely to be successful at it. People can read between lines, and they can tell if all you care about is their money.
Don’t Annoy Your Followers
In implementing your Social Media Marketing, send your followers a message or a request only if it will be useful to them. And don’t do it ten times per week. I immediately unsubscribe from lists that send me more than 3 messages per week. This guy sent me 15 emails per day last week! That’s not the way to get others to buy your stuff. Monitor the number of people that unsubscribe from your lists. If that number is too high, revise your strategy.
Eager for more? Check out Zeke’s three podcasts below for more great online marketing information and tips!
- 6 Steps to Succeeding in Social Media
- Twitter for Business Explained
- Facebook’s Got Its Business Game-Face On
