5 Social Media Mistakes

I’ve been thinking a lot about great examples of social media.  The most successful companies are usually the most creative and often use their pages to provide value and interact with consumers.  On the flip side, companies who lack good social media interaction usually commit one (or several) of the same mistakes.

Those mistakes are:

1. Not branding the page.

Social media is more than online information about your company.  It’s an extension of your company’s brand, and it must be handled as such.  Not only does a well-designed page improve appeal and usability, it creates the online image of your business.  Use your company’s colors, prominently feature your logo, and include your slogan.  For more tips on how to brand your page, visit Hubspot’s blog on branding your business on Twitter.

2. Not linking pages together.

Social media outlets rely on each other.  Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare, blogs, and any other social media you may use work together to represent your business online.  These pages should be easy to navigate and jump between.  Does your Facebook say “Find us on Twitter at @_____”?  Does your Twitter page link to your homepage?  Does your homepage feature “Find us on Facebook” and “Find us on Twitter” buttons?  These simple yet effective tricks will unify your company’s online image.

3. Not actively engaging followers.

I’ve said time and time again that interaction must be utilized on social media.  After all, that’s what social media is for!  Ask questions, host contests, and answer customer inquires.   Through social media you can create a personal relationship with your consumer, and they will show their love by buying your product.

4. Not providing valuable content.

This goes hand-in-hand with #3.  Users won’t come to your social media page to “actively engage” if you don’t provide a reason for them to visit.  Offer incentives, post printable coupons, give discount codes—provide your consumer with something he can’t find on another company’s social media site.

5. Not Responding to Users.

It doesn’t matter what your customer says; not replying shows consumers that you don’t care they are participating.  If they praise your product, thank them for the comment and encourage them to come back to the site.  If comments are less than positive, evaluate the situation and try to resolve it.  An unpleased-but-helped-customer is more likely to purchase again than an unpleased-and-ignored-customer.  For a more specific example, check out last week’s blog on how the airlines used social media during the volcano crisis.