Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat and more – chances are you have an account on one or more of these social media platforms.
The rise of technology has brought with it a surge in people using social media to connect with people and businesses across the world.
Not only do we have an entire world of information at our fingertips thanks to mobile phones and tablet technology, we also have a way to speak to people that aren’t physically present and share ideas.
When done right, marketing on social media can be very effective. It allows you to generate and spread awareness, create a dialogue about your brand, increase conversions, drive offline actions and increase sales leads.
But for businesses, can a break from social media be a good thing?
Social Media helps us connect with customers around the globe and market products and services completely free.
Despite this, there are some aspects of social media and the reliance we can develop for it, that can be harmful to a business and its success.
Many businesses have been disappointed to realise their social media efforts are not paying off as well as expected, and that their hard work may be doomed to fail from the beginning.
Facebook creator Mark Zuckerburg announced in January that an algorithm update will favour content from friends and family over posts from brands and publications, and it sparked mass debate in the marketing world.
Brands big and small are now left with the challenge of trying to capture the attention of audiences and elevate their content above the noise of others.
But it’s not only unpredictable algorithms that are causing disruptions between businesses and social media.
Many changes to the way the platforms work, including the rule that influencers must now explicitly tell their following if they’ve been paid to post an ad, have caused many to ditch social media altogether.
This arguably provides a more authentic and fair view of products for an audience, as they are now aware if they are simply being told something is great because an influencer pays for it, but it proves problematic for businesses who garner the majority of their clientele through paid advertising.
Then there’s the content creation itself. Creating content needs to be done every day for your page to be successful and connect with audiences. You must then monitor the engagement and responding to Facebook comments and Twitter streams to make sure that what you’re posting is even working in the first place.
Making sure that the person responsible for responding to social platform feedback does it with the right tone and voice is never ending, and lacking in any of these facets can mean that your business suffers.
Social media is also a big platform for customers to complain about your products and services.
Not everyone will directly contact you for any issues, they may land on your social media company profiles and post complaints or negative feedback/reviews about your offerings, some of which may be ill-founded and beyond your control.
The more complaints you get, the more your brand will suffer. It is hard to get these comments removed, and even harder to rectify your credibility.
It seems that the world of social is becoming somewhat uncertain for marketers. While it keeps us connected, it also comes with it’s own set of hurdles for businesses of all sizes.
Despite the strain that social media changes have put on many businesses, however, there is no doubt that they’re not going anywhere for now