There are 330 million people on Twitter and over 2 billion people on Facebook. With numbers like that, it’s no surprise that modern companies are eager to have social media accounts. However, large audiences come with their own risks - and if you mess up on social media, you’ve messed up in front of a very large audience indeed.
Most brands who mess up on social media make the same set of preventable errors. Whether you have 50 followers or 50,000, make sure that you know how to avoid the following mistakes.
Straying from Your Brand Message
Every brand has a message and a philosophy. When used correctly, social media is an incredibly powerful way to communicate your message and strengthen the identity of your brand. But if your posts don't align with your brand identity, you'll cloud your message and confuse anyone who visits your profile.
Damaging social media posts can be made either in the wrong tone or on the wrong topics. Tone problems occur when businesses speak unprofessionally or forget to post from the correct perspective. If you’re posting for an entire company, first person singular simply doesn’t make sense.
Similarly, topic problems occur when a company forgets the focus of their brand. Generally, a branded social media account should stick to subjects adjacent to their industry. Many small businesses also post about local events and charities. Politics should almost always be avoided unless the message coincides particularly well with your brand.
Failing to Engage with Your Audience
As a business, the main benefit of maintaining a social media account is the ability to interact directly with your followers. There are few other mediums that allow such a direct connection between business and customer, and the advantages are simply too great to ignore.
Interacting with your customers helps your social media account feel alive. Engaging with your audience can be as simple as replying to comments, liking other pages, and sharing posts from the people you follow. These simple steps show that you have an active presence and aren’t just posting without actually reading your feed.
When companies don’t interact, their accounts seem stilted and cold. It doesn’t matter how often you post - if you don’t respond, your audience will notice, and you’ll eventually start to lose followers.
Making Promises You Can't Keep
In the old world of advertising, companies could make wild and unsubstantiated claims about their brands. Miracle products and false guarantees abounded, and customers had almost no way to separate the legitimate sellers from the fakes.
Social media has completely changed the advertising atmosphere. In the digital era, false advertisement will result in a flood of bad reviews and call-outs on your profile. This is an excellent form of buyer protection, but it also serves as a warning for the modern marketing professional. If you’re going to make promises, you should be prepared to keep them every time.
Social Media with Precision
Posting on social media is like speaking in front of a large crowd. Your tone matters just as much as your topics, and every post should be made with plenty of brand awareness. The team at Precision Creative can help you navigate the world of social media and develop a truly positive image for your brand. Get in touch with us to start working on a comprehensive social media plan.