Social media pros and cons
In the last few years, Social Media has grown from being a simple channel for keeping up with your buddies, into a powerful digital marketing tool. It proves to be a very cost-effective way for promotion and advertising in a new and very personal way, and businesses are responding by increasing their social media marketing budgets.
However, this can be a double edged sword. One promises profitable success, particularly if it is done properly and effectively. The other side, could possibly prove detrimental to your brand, bringing in results that might be opposite from what you expected.
The Pros of Social Media Marketing (SMM)
Low Cost
One of the main advantages of SMM over traditional media advertising and other digital marketing channels is the considerably lower cost that makes it a very appealing platform. The most popular social media networks are practically free to join, as are the tools for interacting with other people.
Mind you, to get more marketing bang for your SMM bucks, you may want to invest in a full SMM campaign strategy that includes content generation, page/group setups, digital design, and a maintenance programme.
A Big Audience
One of the main advantages SMM has over traditional media marketing is that it has the potential of reaching out to a global audience that is truly unlimited in scope and reach.
You can capture a wide demographic regardless of sex, age, and social status. Currently, a massive proportion of all internet users are participating in social media activities. That’s a huge market; on top of that, your SMM reach can go beyond your targets, if they share with friends, relatives and networks, opening still more channels for leads or sales.
Speed
If you have something to promote or have some news or fresh information that you would like to share or inform to your target markets, you can rely on Social Media Marketing for fast action and fast results. You can even synchronize your website with your social network channels, so automatic or fresh updates are immediately out there once you have something new available.
Generates Interaction
One of the problems many businesses have with traditional means of sales and marketing is maintaining a good, long-term relationship with their existing customers. The beauty of Social Media Marketing is that it is based and is powered by social interaction, which in the long run develops trust between you and your audience.
Encouraging regular interactions shows that you care, thus generating a meaningful and long term relationship, while nurturing a healthy brand loyalty and profitable online existence.
Customer Service Advantage
Many social media users, if they have something to say to a brand or a company, tend to go through their social media page, voicing praises, suggestions or complaints. Through these channels you have a highly interactive and very personal means of providing good customer services by listening and responding to these valuable observations.
The Cons
Just like anything else in this world, nothing is perfect, while there are considerable benefits with the use of SMM, there are also pitfalls that can result in a detrimental impact to your business.
Time Consuming
It can be relatively time consuming to get the results you want from SMM. The problem is; if it not done accurately, all your efforts and the time spent on the campaign could deliver totally ineffective results, or traffic that will not convert into leads or sales.
May Generate Negative Users
One of the problems with Social Media is that it attracts a broad spectrum of characters, including negative and malicious types. This destructive element includes spammers, scammers, trolls and other individuals all out to do harm to your online reputation. Damaging comments, which sometimes could be truly valid feedback, could simply be intended to spread animosity against your brand.
Hard to Control
What you publish online, especially through social media channels, can go viral and spread like wildfire. This could prove beneficial if it generates positive results. As everything is available for anyone to access, it is difficult to monitor, leaving you open to the spread inaccurate information that could damage your online reputation.
ROI can be Hard to Define
Will you be able to measure the results of your SMM, and are you measuring ROI properly. Make sure you are aware of the tools and algorithms available that will produce the precise figures your campaign generates.
Do one thing well
With so many social media networks available, which do you turn to? Each social media platform has its own nuances and focuses. If you are trying to streamline your presence and activity for the best return, do a little research to determine which single site is best for your business based on their individual attributes.
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