Is social media really worth your time, money and effort though?

Most businesses are wasting their time on social media

Unfortunately, the majority of businesses get a very poor return on investment from their social media efforts. Social media is often free or cheap to use, but it can be very expensive in terms of time and effort required to get results.

For most businesses, this means that social media is costing them time, energy and money that would better be spent on serving customers or working on other marketing channels.

The vast majority of businesses ROI for social media are negative
Should you give on on Social media then?

Why your social media efforts aren’t paying off

First let’s see why your social media efforts are failing. Then we’ll see what you can do about it. Finally, we’ll talk about why you should continue learning about and working at Social Media, even though it isn’t paying off yet.

1. You don’t know what you are doing with social media –It takes time, effort and help to learn to use any new tool or skill. You didn’t know how to use other technology until someone taught you. Take some courses, read some books or get some coaching to learn how to use social media well.
2. No one knows what they are doing with social media –  There. I’ve said it. The secret of 99% of people in marketing and social media – this is a brand new world – the rules are constantly changing! Because social media is still very new – even most experts in the industry have been using for less than a decade.  New tools, networks, and strategies are appearing all the time. The top social media practitioners spend more time learning than they do working – they need to in order to keep up with the rate of change. Also, the strategies that work on social media are different to what has worked in other marketing channels. As a result, even experienced marketers are struggling to get the most out of their social media efforts.
3. You are trying to sell on social media – Social media is supposed to be social.
   Wikipedia defines social media like this:

   Social media refers to the means of interactions among people in which they create, share, and exchange information and ideas in virtual communities and networks.

   Think of social media like one big party – people are there meeting friends, having fun, making new connections, and exchanging great stories and funny photos. If someone walks in and starts trying to sell something (like Amway or used cars) you can guess what this does to the conversation and atmosphere. Chances are the interesting people will join a different conversation, and likely avoid that sales person in future.

   Social media is about creating visibility and likeability, then building on this to boost your credibility. None of this is going to make you money immediately (and that is how it is supposed to be).

4. You don’t have a sales funnel – This might sound funny after the last point, but if you are going to make money in your business, you need a sales funnel. This shouldn’t be on social media – it should be on your own website, physical business or other structure you control completely. Your sales funnel should be capable of capturing qualified leads and turning them into sales. Social media is one of the way your get new customers into your sales funnel, but if you try to sell on social media you will usually just kill the social aspect
5. You don’t mean business – Social media can be an enormous time suck. Its easy to spend hours on facebook and not complete anything really concrete.People who succeed on Social Media do so by having a strategy, and working their networks. This still means being fun, friendly and social, but it means having a plan. For example, rather than just randomly connecting and commenting, you can systematically work through connecting with a specific group of prospects.
6. You are too superficial –Don’t worry, there is a cure! The key to getting ROI from social media is building deeper, real relationships with key people in your circles. Just connecting with someone online the blasting them with your own stuff works about as well as a conversation where people don’t listen to what the other person is saying. Learn more about your network, find out how you can help each other, and start by giving and learning.
7. You aren’t generous enough – Gee, this is a tough list, isn’t it! Just like in real life, people respond best to those who listen, give, and offer to help. They aren’t so interested in people who are always needy or trying to get something from you. Stand out from the crowd of selfish sales people and be the one who goes the extra mile and thinks of others. Be positive, giving and generous and watch the rewards flow.
8. You are not consistent enough – A common mistake with social media is to get started and do heaps…. But then forget about it or not follow through.Its much better to spend a regular 15 minutes a day to growing and connecting your network than it is to spend 5 hours once a month. In particular, make sure you respond to comments and follow through with leads. An unattended social media account is worse than no account at all.
9. You aren’t leveraging your existing networks and strengths –Don’t make the mistake of trying to build a social network from scratch – be sure to connect with real life friends and colleagues, search out the people you inspire you, brands you love, and communities who share your passion. Remember, it is social! It’s much easier to figure social media out when you have a few friends to chat with both online and in real life. They can be great allies with any online project and let you know when you are missing the mark.
10. You don’t track your metrics, or you track the wrong metrics – At this early stage in social media, the metrics we use are still crude and unreliable. For a while, everyone was obsessed with Facebook Likes and follower counts, but it is clear that these aren’t reliable indicators of Social Media ROI. If you have a great sales funnel set up and your product or service is well marketed on Social media, you are much better tracking social leads, conversions and sales.For many businesses though, Social Media is about building good will. To a degree, this can still be measured as lifetime customer value and referral rates, but just like real-life relationships, not everything can be reduced to numbers.

In summary, It’s still early days. Don’t expect instant results – social media needs to be part of a holistic long term strategy to grow your business – it’s not a way to make a quick buck or get instant results.

Building a decent network, making online friends, figuring out your voice and your message: these things all take time.

Why you really should continue with social media (Even if you suck at it!)

Social media is the fastest growing communication phenomenon in human history. Invalid LeadPlayer video - ID not found!

It is changing every year, and rapidly becoming the preferred online communication tool for an entire generation (many young people no longer have email accounts).
The reason you should persist with social media is that communicating social is the new literacy.

Let’s face it – the first few years of your learning to speak were pretty unimpressive. The same goes for your first few years of writing.

For most of us, social media is another new medium – one which is complex, rich and constantly evolving.

It isn’t going anywhere – it is taking over how we socialise, communicate and do business.

Learning to use social media today is like learning to use a computer a generation ago. Like learning any new skill it can be a challenge, but one that will pay off for years to come.

The post Why your social media ROI sucks (but you should keep doing it anyway) appeared first on Influential.

Our world has changed dramatically in the last few years with the rise of the internet, social media, mobile computing and other technological developments. This online evolution is transforming business, careers, marketing, socialising, learning and practically every other aspect of life.

Democratization of media and publishing means that marketing yourself or your business has changed for ever.

Suddenly anyone, anywhere in the world has access to communication tools which are powerful, instant and free – and there are no limits on what they can achieve.

• Small up-and-coming brands can trump established major players simply by engaging with customers online (for free).
• Online merchants can set up shops which offer cheap, highly targeted products for a specific niche. Their low capital expenses mean they can make a profit on margins a bricks and mortar store couldn’t dream of.
• If a customer is happy – or unhappy – with a product or service they can tell 100’s of people about it at the press of a button.
• Celebrities, sports stars and politicians, and companies of all sizes are far more visible, accessible and accountable.We have moved from a world where big media and big companies had control of the conversation to one where individuals, smaller brands and large companies are on a more or less level playing field.You’ll pay less, but you gotta deliver moreBut while these online platforms are often cheap or even free they do take time, and having the right quality content for a given audience has become more important than ever before, because people have so many more options.Traditionally, you had to pay big bucks to access broadcast media and advertising, but in return you got direct access to your customers’ attention – you could interrupt their day and convince them to buy or believe something. Now, powerful multimedia publishing platforms with global reach are accessible and affordable for anyone, but your audience can tune in or turn off whenever they want.

Social media: handle with care

Before you attempt to develop and market your personal or business brand it’s essential that you get your message right.

It’s vital to remember that social media isn’t a new advertising platform. It’s all about human interaction, and if you approach it as an exercise in blatant self- promotion you are likely to fail – catastrophically. Social media, the internet and world wide connectivity means we can reach a vast audience – which can be amazingly powerful, but also means that if you don’t hit the right note you can do a huge amount of damage to your reputation almost instantly. That means both your brand and your messages need to be well thought out, meaningful, sharable and authentic. Sometimes this means you need to change your whole approach to business.

Become the one they listen to

To be influential online you need to have something worth saying, and have the right tools and strategy to achieve the results you want.

It comes down to being likeable, authentic and authoritative in the topics you talk about. Becoming educated and finding information is no longer a challenge, but expert opinions are still essential to help us make sense of the avalanche of information available online. And we don’t just want put our trust in a random ‘expert’ – we want personalised information, tailored to our needs and reflecting our world view. When we find someone who can provide this for us – on a topic that interests us – we identify with them and begin to value their opinion. These are the people and businesses we’ll listen to, talk about, and buy from:

• People we know, like and trust
• People like us
• People who understand and provide what we need
• People who know what they’re talking about on a specific topic.
• People who are memorable and stand outIn many cases, these people will be people we know via traditional media – such as journalists, celebrities and TV identities, or household name companies.But with the right brand, strategy and effort they could be you.

Download the "Creating an influential brand" Ebook

Enter your details below to download the Ebook

• First Name*
• Email*

The post Creating an Influential Brand appeared first on Influential.