Social Media: The Magic Pill – NOT!

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Magic Pill?
 
Some “experts” will tell you the reason to use social media marketing is it’s: 1) free, 2) cheap and 3) easy. They will say newspaper and magazine and television ads are expensive and completely ineffective. Social media is the new elixir that cure your marketing woes. Nothing is further from the truth. 

In the early 19th century, con artists sold people magic pills and liquids that would cure “whatever ailed them.” Everything from hang nails to headaches to internal bleeding could be fixed with the liquid in a small brown bottle. Charlatans! Some would have us believe social media is a similar quick fix.

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Building muscle or losing weight involves real work. These both require a disciplined approach and execution of a plan. Effective marketing, social or traditional, employ a similar approach. What are the components?

Time

Using social media will involve a time commitment. It may not be 8 hours / day, but you (or someone you hire) must invest time in posting, researching, learning, commenting, “Liking”, etc. A best practice is to carve out sections of time in the day: 30 minutes in the morning and evening;  1 hour before breakfast and after dinner; 3 times per day. Whenever it is, insure some time is allocated. It will be necessary for success.

Education

Just because your 13 year old daughter knows Instagram, doesn’t mean you automatically know Instagram. Invest in your own professional education and training. Many community centers and small companies (like SciSpeak) offer “boot camps” that will get you started.

Money

You do not have to hire a full time video production crew, but you will need to spend something. A computer. A smart phone. A camera. Wifi. Your time is worth money. As a business owner, your social media pages are like your business cards. They should look professional and well designed. If they look like a high school student created them between classes, other businesses will not work with you. Invest in the marketing of your brand.

Outside the Box

“If you always do what you’ve always done, you will always get what you always got.” Social media is a chance to get creative and do things not done by the marketing team of a conservative Fortune 100 company. The Dollar Shave Club understood that. Every option is on the table. Make your messages memorable and funny and your audience will come back for more.

Social media is not a magic pill any more than castor oil cures every sickness. Invest in a solid strategy and it’s execution and your marketing success is one the right track.

Scientifically Speaking, of course.

Next Week: Pinterest for Business