Social Media Can’t Save You
We all know how great Social media is for your blog or business, and I’m a big SM believer and it is a big part of my success online.
But it’s not be all end all like some people think. There are many things social media can’t do for you.
Many people come into SM with unrealistic expectations that quickly lead to disappointment when those expectations aren’t met and walk away completely.
Knowing what social media can’t do will make it easier to harness the power of what it can do for you.
Here are my 6 Things Social Media Can’t Do For You.
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Be Your Only Marketing Method
Social media done right is a powerful tool. But it should be something you add to your marketing efforts, social media alone will not build your business or blog.
Deliver Quick Success
This is something I tell my social media management customers all the time. To expect to put up a Twitter and Facebook page today and expect big results in 2 weeks is ridiculous.
For me, I think your first 3 months on social media should be where you lay your foundation, don’t expect any results, focus on getting your name out there and being seen first. If you lay that foundation right, you will benefit from it for the long term.
Social media is like the turtle and the hare story. Best results come with daily consistent effort over time.
Succeed With A Half Ass Effort
To get the best long lasting results with social media, you have to be constant.
Popping in every few days for a couple hours won’t cut it. The people who follow you follow you for help, for information, if you are not there to share on a regular basis then there is no need for them to follow you.
You know that you need to update your blog weekly to keep your readers happy…Right? Treat social media updates the same way.
Promise A Following
Social media isn’t about you. It is about what you can do for your followers, customers, readers.
People don’t care about your or me, what they do care about is how you and me can help them. The more helpful and available you are the more they will see value in you and your business.
The sooner you realize that, the better your results will be.
Hide Who You Really Are
Social media is a great place to let your personality shine, people like to connect with “real” people.
On the other side, social media won’t make you someone your not. If you’re a fake or scammer, then you will be found out quickly.
Social media is the ultimate BS detector haha
Social Media Can’t Save You
If your business or product sucks then no amount of social media efforts will help. Social media is marketing, it is you trying to get people to come see your business or products.
But once they are there, your business has to be something they need or want, if it’s not, then will walk away.
Look at it like this…
Social media is the salesman getting his foot in the door, now you’re in and ready to pitch your product to your potential customer. You then try to sell them bags of ice, something they make for free themselves, no sale you leave.
No amount of social media will help you make that sale.
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I know it’s hard to believe social media can’t do everything for you with as much attention as it gets. But truth is, it’s just one tool of many you should be using to grow your brand and your business.
Social media is here to stay, you just need to learn how to use it in a way that helps your business.
Here is a screen grab from a social site I joined wayyyy before MySpace and wayyyy before they called it “Social Media” March 2001 man that makes me feel old 🙂
Point is, “social media” has always been here, it didn’t start with Twitter or Facebook, it was known as building relationships or great customer service.
It will always be here, it may change it’s name to a new Buzz word but the fundamentals of social media will never change.
John,
I like to think of online marketing like I do investing, “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.” If all one does is invest in the stock market and that tanks, there goes all your money. Online marketing is the same thing. Don’t just rely on Facebook, Twitter or commenting to get you traffic. Those methods should compliment your other methods, like SEO.
I have been blogging seriously for 5 months and I am just starting to see the true results of all my marketing efforts. Social media has been great for traffic but as soon as I stop for a few days, traffic slows a bit. ( Maybe that is because I am new.) It seems I need to remind people I exist constantly. But my SEO efforts provide more of a constant traffic feed to my site.
I hope people listen to you advices here because it is solid.
~Allie
Comment by AllieRambles — May 18, 2011 @ 1:10 pm
I agree. don’t put all your eggs into the social media basket lol
You have to have more then on traffic stream to be successful, that is just smart business.
In time you will see nice results even on the days your not there… but it will never be as good as the days you are actually there.. takes time.
Comment by John Paul — May 18, 2011 @ 1:36 pm
Hi John!
Good post!
You really gave me a swift kick in the pants. 🙂 Seriously, I have been slack with using Twitter and other social media sites. I think the main reason I slack off at times is because I don’t quite understand what I’m suppose to be doing.
The more I move around the net and read articles like yours, it helps me to understand things better and how I am to use these tools to build my blog.
Thanks for telling it like it is.
Take care,
Evelyn
Comment by Evelyn — May 18, 2011 @ 1:52 pm
I think the best way to learn how to use SM is to use SM haha The more you use it the faster you will find what works best for you. Social media is a powerful tool if you use it right., But it’s not the only tool out there.
Comment by John Paul — May 18, 2011 @ 2:43 pm
Thanks for this post John. You’ve really brought forward some great thoughts. This is certainly something I need to remind myself of often. I can’t always “just” use Twitter or another social media service – because it’s really not smart to focus so much on one product. You’ve got realize there’s more; and work on all angels. Web Marketing has so many aspects; and social media is just a piece of the puzzle.
Comment by Christian Hollingsworth — May 18, 2011 @ 8:38 pm
Exactly Christian… there are so many tools out there to build your biz.. social media is a GREAT tool.. but still just a tool.
Comment by John Paul — May 18, 2011 @ 9:05 pm
But your first aspect isn’t a good argument. What I mean is, NO Marketing technique should be done solely alone (that goes for SEO, banners ads, mass media ads, etc.) The key with Marketing is to strategically use different tools for your desired goals.
Comment by DerekL — May 18, 2011 @ 11:57 pm
Yes.. and the post is about social media so that is what we are talking about. So it’s a pretty good argument within this post haha
Comment by John Paul — May 19, 2011 @ 1:13 am
Hi JP,
Lol on the social media screen shot 😉
Social media is as effective as you make it. SM is a tool, you are the crafts person. Use it to spread value, engage, ask questions, provide answers, and people will gravitate to you. Use it as a 1 way broadcasting station, and people will become repelled by you.
Maintain an active presence, keep helping people with your content and keep engaging. You can’t help but to prosper.
Thanks for sharing JP.
Ryan
Comment by Ryan Biddulph — May 19, 2011 @ 2:50 am
Glad you liked that screen shot haha
Social media is not hard to use or learn.. but people seem to want to over think it and make it more complicated then it is.. it’s conversation people lol
Comment by John Paul — May 19, 2011 @ 12:54 pm
You pointed a lot of good points here John. Everything makes perfect sense. Social Media Marketing is just another way to enhance your sales given proper management and creative marketing campaigns. But it is never the only way to make your business grow bigger.
Plus, success in business does not happen overnight. Especially not with Social Media. It’s not like just saying “hey, I have a business here.. come see it.” It’s all about reaching out further and giving more of your efforts. Business is beyond Social Media but without a good sense of Social Media, a business can lie low.
I like your logic of Social Media as like that of the Turtle and the Hare story– matches perfectly with Social Media Marketing.. 🙂
Comment by Extreme John — May 18, 2011 @ 11:56 pm
That Turltle and Hare story fits many areas in life and business.. to bad it took me 35 years to learn that lol
Your right.. every business should be using SM.. if you don’t that gives your competition a step ahead of you.
SM is just another way to get you and your business and updates in front of customers and potential new customers, but def not the only way you should be bringing your message.
Comment by John Paul — May 19, 2011 @ 12:57 pm
First of all, I love this title. Secondly, “If your business or product sucks then no amount of social media efforts will help.” I personally have not considered this, but it was an eye opener. But when you run across a business or product that does suck, would you tell the person? If so, what is the best way to say it?
Comment by BillionDollarBlogger — May 19, 2011 @ 1:11 pm
Hi Marcie.. TY for your first comment 🙂
Glad you liked the title and that phrase… sadly it’s so true.
Not sure I would tell anyone their product or business sucks.. the truth is they already know. No sales is a good indicator of that.
The point was that if you product or service is not great.. social media won’t make it great.
ex: you like Coke and dislike Pepsi.. no amount of SM will make you want to drink Pepsi.
Oh can you ONLY use your name in the name field.. TY 🙂
Comment by John Paul — May 19, 2011 @ 6:58 pm
Another awesome article for big John! Awesome post, and as a business owner that utilizes social media every day I can tell you it’s made a huge difference in our marketing expense.
Comment by Extreme John — May 19, 2011 @ 11:51 am
haha Big John was a nick name when I was a kid.. wayyyy back man
You prove my point.. you use SM too boost your biz… but it’s not the ONLY way you market.. I know you do radio and I believe tv too.. no matter how great SM is and trust me,, Its been a BIG help for me.. it’s still not the only way to go.
Comment by John Paul — May 20, 2011 @ 12:08 am
Great story. This is something I tell people over and over! I plan to keep this post for my new client meetings!
Comment by Rachel Strella — May 21, 2011 @ 7:22 pm
TY for the comment Rachel.
I’m like you.. I tell people this too.. yet they don’t want to hear that SM takes time and work.
That’s great.. I hope the post helps your new clients see the light 🙂
Comment by John Paul — May 21, 2011 @ 9:25 pm
What?
You mean a hashtag cannot save the world.
D’OH!
Comment by Anonymous — May 22, 2011 @ 11:59 pm
lol I was just as surprised as you man
Comment by John Paul — May 23, 2011 @ 1:36 pm
Great post John. You’ve really got it spot on. That’s the great thing about social media. You really CANT fake it. Or if you try, it gets harder and harder to keep it up. Especially with testimonials. Social media testimonials are the best – because they are so real.
Comment by fionamceachran — May 23, 2011 @ 9:16 am
TY Fiona I agree that SM testamonials are the best and real..
Better then a test from someone you gave your product to.,. or is a friend.
A SM test from someone that doesn’t really know you yet, and is just being honest is awesome.. I actually am working on 2 ways to use those SM tests now lol
Comment by John Paul — May 23, 2011 @ 1:38 pm
This is a really interesting post, thanks John!
I would like to think that the myth of a couple of Tweets or likes on Facebook are the answer to a business marketing strategy must have been long exposed. I think long-term strategies need to be developed which of course requires effort – you can’t really create your knock-em-dead marketing idea in 140 characters or with a couple of thumbs up.
Maybe what scares people from blogging or taking a more comprehensive approach to online marketing is that anything more than token social media messaging actually entails hard work….
Comment by Thomas Chapman — June 8, 2011 @ 2:20 pm
Thomas.. TY for the comment.
I agree, when people see hard work, then run the other way. Then you have a million people mad that they cant make it online and believe there is some undercover secret to success. lol
Reality is, no matter what you want to succeed in, online or offline biz, a sport, shit even knitting.,,, only way to get good is to practice, work hard.. no secret.
Comment by John Paul — June 9, 2011 @ 3:42 pm
John Paul,
It is refreshing to read a down to earth, real life post about SM.
Thank you for expounding on one of my biggest pet peeves. Sometimes I feel like I am going to wretch when I read the latest post of how Social Media will put you on the road to riches. I’ve seen a whole cottage industry of social media “experts” who provide SM services, they will even compose and post updates for businesses who are too busy.
What is wrong with this picture?
Comment by Greg Traver — June 13, 2011 @ 1:48 pm
I hear you Greg. Social media is becoming as dirty as Internet Marketing. To many people faking the funk.
I luv when I see a SM “guru” that cant even get 5 RTs or FB share son his blog posts.. now to me, if you were a “guru” then getting shared is what SM is all about.
SM isnt that complicated, like I have said MANY times.. it takes work, but the steps are simple.. people try to over complicate shit, so they can justify charging big money for ebooks and courses.
Comment by John Paul — June 14, 2011 @ 3:11 pm
Excellent post, John!! You are seriously the social media king in my book! Look at all those shares! Geeeeeez! 🙂
Comment by Lisa Irby — October 15, 2011 @ 10:53 pm
haha TY Lisa.. I Appreciate that.. coming from you.. makes me happy happy 🙂
Comment by John Paul — October 17, 2011 @ 1:44 pm
John
Great article and I totally agree. At the beginning of every new client meeting I try to stress the importance of social media as a vehicle and not a destination. Consistency is key! Add in a little humor and things usual progress nicely, but it definitely takes time.
Comment by Shannon — December 12, 2011 @ 10:17 pm
Thanks Shannon.. all about be real, be consistant.
Comment by John Paul — December 13, 2011 @ 3:41 pm
This was excellent John. Reminds me of a client I had. Frankly I use to play him online. Grew his connection, grew exposure of his brand – online we were one pretty cool guy. Many connections converted to leads. And after that, nothing. Why? Social media made him and the company look good, but internally, the business itself needed a lot of fixing. Poor customer service, barely acceptable quality. When I first reviewed the project and company status, I turned the gig down. But promises were made that improvement was in the works. Never happened. In the end, I refused to renew our contract. Damage control was just taking up too much of my time. SM can make u seem like something ur not for only so long.
Comment by Vanita Cyril — March 21, 2012 @ 5:46 am
Exactly.. social media can help make you look better when you are good, and at some point it will revealed how bad you are.
Social media gets so much attention that I have clients come to me all the time expecting SM to bring miracles.. it’s just silly.
Comment by John Paul — March 21, 2012 @ 4:40 pm
This is a great post! I love how you point out that people
can see through to who you are. I’ve learned how many people use
social media to talk at you, but don’t take time to get to know
you, who essentially will be a potential customer, they spend no
time talking with you. I can’t wait to share this post with
my followers. Great tips. I’ll be back for more!
Comment by Nicole — May 17, 2012 @ 10:04 am
TY for your first comment Nicole 🙂 i agree, that many wanna be SM
experts have no idea what they are doing. SM is about them not you,
so you have to take the time to engage and get to know your
potential customers.
Comment by John Paul — May 17, 2012 @ 11:33 am
Hi John,
Another great topic you have here. Social media can be best utilized to build a strong brand. Exactly, social media can perform this work well if they learn how to used it correctly.
Comment by Maegan Anderson — December 5, 2012 @ 3:06 am
Social media can do a lot for you and your brand, but alone it won’t help that much. SM is a tool to be used with OTHER marketing to get the best results.
Comment by John Paul — December 5, 2012 @ 9:48 am
Couldn’t agree more. SM needs to be part of a holistic marketing solution, not the only part. Nice post.
Comment by kirbyshedd — December 19, 2012 @ 4:44 pm
Thanks Kirby, use it, but don’t spend all your focus on it.
Comment by John Paul — December 20, 2012 @ 11:11 am
Great article John Paul!
I think the first thing people need to know is what social media really stands for.
A lot of them think it is just Facebook and Twitter.
Comment by Cendrine Marrouat — January 5, 2013 @ 9:48 pm
Exactly..I think if more people understood what SM really was, they would get better results.
Hard to get results from something you don’t understand haha
Comment by John Paul — January 7, 2013 @ 8:16 am
Hi John,
Awesome article here. The growth of social media has opened a lot of business opportunities and it is making a mark in the world of marketing.
Comment by Anika Davis — May 14, 2013 @ 7:05 pm
I agree
Comment by John Paul — May 15, 2013 @ 10:35 am
Indeed, Social media is a powerful tool for generating leads yet I do agree that without enough knowledge in SM, it might hurt your business reputation. If necessary hire someone knowledgeable in field or consult to the expert. I do agree with you John, there’s no promising statement that SM is successful on the first day of your implementation. It’s matter of faith and action. 🙂
Comment by Christine Steffensen — May 14, 2013 @ 10:58 pm
Yes, and SM should not be your only marketing channel.. if it is, you will most likely fail.
Comment by John Paul — May 15, 2013 @ 10:36 am
The success of business is not depend in one tool alone. Companies are ought to use a different tool. Of course, social media tools are in the list of doing a lot of things for business. Sharing this example for us is a great help John.
Comment by Barbara Mckinney — May 28, 2013 @ 10:48 pm
Thanks for your comment Barbara.. and I agree 100% with you, if your business is relying on ONE tool to build it, you will fail fast.
Comment by John Paul — May 29, 2013 @ 5:00 am
Absolutely love this. Too many people think it’s about THEM and fail to see who their actual audience is (and it isn’t always who they expect/want).
Comment by Chris Barrows — October 20, 2013 @ 2:57 pm
Thanks Chris.. I agree.. sometimes what you think you want, doesn’t really work out for you.
Focus on others and you will get what you want.
Comment by John Paul — October 21, 2013 @ 9:24 am
Totally excellent advice John Paul!
And you’re main point is so well taken! While it’s extremely important to acknowledge and leverage the enormous potential power of social media!
It’s equally important to recognize the limits to the platform as well. And that incredibly important point is not stressed nearly enough.
Comment by Mark Newsome — November 13, 2014 @ 6:37 pm
Thanks for stopping by Mark. I agree, more people need to be “real” about SM and see it has limits and their are many many other things you can be doing to promote and drive traffic to your blog.
But do they say about bringing a horse to water? lol
Comment by John Paul — November 16, 2014 @ 7:44 am