Social media sin bin

We’ve spent plenty of time advocating the benefits of social media, but there are ways that you might be able to negatively impact your business through your social media as well. Make sure you read our posts about how to maximise social media benefits, but make sure you avoid these social media sin bin traits.

• Don’t get the spelling wrong. Or the grammar for that matter. For some reason everyone seems to be an English teacher on social media and they will pull you up on it. Or make it go viral, either doesn’t create a great professional image for your business.
• Eye for eye, tooth for tooth. . . doesn’t really work in the social media-sphere. If someone leaves you a negative comment or feedback, don’t lose your rag and retaliate. It doesn’t make you look good and it doesn’t really help the customer, but if you help to resolve their issue then they might become a repeat customer.
• Don’t post too often. It rubs people up the wrong way if you fill up their timeline. But not posting often enough is apparently just as annoying to consumers. Keep your posts relevant or useful, if you plan your content correctly then this shouldn’t be a problem.
• Don’t schedule everything. Whilst scheduling is useful, social media should be reactive and current so make sure you make some time for this, or if you read something interesting, just share it straight away.
• Don’t self-promote all the time. Whilst social media can provide a useful sales platform, that’s not what it’s all about, there are some popular ratios for social media content.
• And finally, don’t forget about your social media channels. Consumers won’t trust you if all of your content is out of date, and you’re not maximising the benefits that social media can bring. If you’re struggling to find the time, check out our best Management Tips .

Hopefully that should help you avoid some social media pitfalls. Remember to stay true to your brand identity and work to a social media marketing plan and you shouldn’t stray off path too often. But also, the internet provides a great anonymous place for people to criticise so try not to take it to heart if you do get it wrong.