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7 Common Mistakes Made On Social Media

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Starting your tweets with the “@” symbol.

Many people don’t realize that starting your tweet with the “@” symbol makes your message invisible to followers who are not following both you and the person that you @’ed.

For example, only people following both @pamcastillovega and @idigu2 will get to see the tweets below.

pam

idig

Too many words, not enough pictures.

We are inherently visual creatures with shortening attention spans. The more images, videos and design – the better. You need to capture your audience’s attention and hold on to it for dear life.

That’s why posts with photos get 104% more comments and 120% more engagement than strictly text-based posts*.

Trying too hard to start a trend on Twitter.

Screen Shot 2014-02-06 at 4.34.52 PM

Starting a trend on Twitter isn’t easy. You need the right topic, at the right time, with the right people paying attention. That being said if you can’t start one, join one. Search already trending hashtags and jump into the conversation.

Using the same language on all social media platforms. 

Facebook, Twitter, Instagram – every social network has it’s own lingo and style. Twitter is more casual; tweets can consist of whatever happens to be on your mind. On the other hand, Facebook let’s you get a bit more descriptive.

A rookie mistake is to copy and paste your text to all of your networks – believe us, people can tell the difference. Put the effort into personalizing each post for each network.

Not responding to questions, comments. 

There is nothing more frustrating than asking a question on a company’s website, only to receive a response several days later. Ask Rachel:

CSR-Tweet

Social media is essentially an ongoing conversation, a two-way street where you give and get information. That’s why taking part in conversations is so important – and it’s a great way to gain followers/likes.

Companies should look at social media as a “casual” extension of their customer service. Not responding to comments, particularly complaints, will create bad blood between you and your followers.

Never posting on your networks.

Digital tumbleweeds could be rolling through your networks at this point.

You have to post consistently! If you don’t, then you might as well get rid of your networks… it’s that simple.

Different networks require different posting frequency. Twitter for example, has a fast moving newsfeed so you must post several times a day to make any sort of an imprint. Facebook is a lot less time consuming, a post every other day could be enough depending on your program.

Sell, sell, sell.

How to lose a follower in 2 days? Keep posting about your brand, that’s how.

Social Media is not, we repeat, is not a sales centre. It’s all about creating long-lasting mutually beneficial relationships between you and your customers/potential customers. Posts can stay “on brand” and still be light-hearted, conversational and informative.

If sales are all you’re after, then social media is not for you.

 

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