Overnight Sensation: Not with Social Media

November 2, 2009 at 3:10 pm 1 comment

Social media can make you a star. You can get millions of views on YouTube, hundreds of fans on Facebook, or thousands of followers on Twitter. But it will not likely happen over night. Just like you need to go to the gym every day to get fit, you also need to invest time and research into developing your social media marketing campaign(s).

To better understand what you want out of using any social media platform, you need to develop a strategic plan first. Creating and implementing a strategic plan will help you focus on specific goals and tasks to get you ahead.

The pitfalls in using social media:
1. The BIG one to understand is that Social Media (SM) takes time! Research shows that it can take over 1 year before smb’s even gain traction. It is much like traditional forms of marketing. Repetition is key.

2. DAILY maintenance is required. Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn all require daily babysitting. You must feed and nurture all your relationships in order to get anywhere.

3. Social Media will not make you success over night. Much like point #1, you need to invest time into prospecting people (LinkedIn), creating discussions and events (Facebook and Meetup) and generating buzz (Twitter).

Now, to think that was a mouthful, but it shouldn’t discourage you. Social Media/Social media marketing is also very good for promoting your small business. But you need to take some time to really hone in on your needs and start to work backwards to get started. Do this by digging deep into your needs for Social media. Is it to increase membership by 10% this quarter, is it to sell 20% more of your product or service, or is it to be understood as an expert in your field. Decide what it is EXACTLY that you are trying to achieve and work backwards from there.