15 Nov Top five reasons your social media sucks1
Are you disappointed in your business’ social media performance? Are your follower numbers stagnating, or your engagement levels low? In this blog, we take a look at some of the biggest mistakes you might be making that could be negatively impacting your social media performance, and how to rectify them.
1. You’re posting too often
When it comes to social media, it’s important to focus on quality over quantity. Nowadays, very few social media channels display posts chronologically, which means you don’t need to worry about your audience only seeing them if they’re online at the time they are posted.
In most cases, how often your posts are seen is now determined by an algorithm, which considers users’ past behaviour, the relevance of the content to their interests, and the popularity of the post. This means the best way to ensure your audience sees your posts isn’t by posting every day, but by only posting relevant and engaging content that people are likely to interact with.
2. You’re posting in the wrong places
When setting up social media, many businesses make the mistake of thinking they need to use every channel available. The truth is, some social media channels will always be more effective for your business than others, due to the demographics of their users.
If your product is aimed at an older age group, there’s probably not much point in posting on TikTok, which is primarily used by 18-to-24-year-olds. Similarly, if you’re a business whose clients are other businesses (b2b), LinkedIn is likely to be a more effective marketing tool for you than Facebook.
It is much better to spend your time and energy focusing on channels that get results, than spreading yourself too thin by posting on all the channels, when some are not working for you.
3. Your posts aren’t on brand
We know customers form an instant impression of your company based on what they see on your website, and the same can be said of your social media. It’s vital all your social media channels are branded consistently, not only to appear professional, but also to reassure visitors they are on the right pages (especially if there are multiple companies with the same name).
Your social media posts should also be on brand. This doesn’t mean every post needs to have the same design or template – actually, we recommend not taking that approach as it can make every post look the same. Instead, you want your social media to look professional and visually appealing. And it’s not just about the look of your posts, they should also be on-brand in terms of the tone of voice.
4. You’re not maximising your reach
Constantly changing social media algorithms mean getting your posts seen by people outside of your existing followers can be tricky. The best and most effective way of doing this is through paid social media advertising, which serves your posts to a defined target audience based on demographics such as age, gender, location and interests.
However, if you want to increase your reach organically there are some steps you can take. The first is to mention and tag other people, businesses, and publications. This encourages the user who has been tagged to interact with your post by liking or sharing it. When they do, it will be shown to their followers too.
You can also utilise hashtags to increase your organic reach. While hashtags were once confined to X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram, they’ve made their way into other social media channels in recent years, including LinkedIn and Facebook. In fact, LinkedIn will now let users follow specific hashtags, which helps your posts be seen by those with an interest in the topic.
5. You’re ignoring your audience
Social media is designed for interaction and many customers now use it as a primary method of communicating with businesses. It is vital your social media channels are monitored regularly and you respond to comments and questions quickly and politely, as this is an indicator of your customer service levels to other customers and potential customers. Responding to comments on your social media posts also counts as further engagement and will help boost their reach and performance.
Need help with your social media? Our team of experts can help – get in touch.
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