Social Media is a Marathon, Not a Sprint

Although it has been a few years since businesses have created a budget line item for “online” many still wrestle with the idea that Social Media is a long term project and probably will not yield immediate results. In much the way that traditional media required repetition of messages to build a company's brand, social media marketing requires a business to engage with it's customers and itself (greater detail below) for a time before the business can make in-roads and generate new customers. If you as a business owner intends on being in business five years from now, the sooner you begin to create an online marketing strategy the greater the chance that you will stay in business.

It may not take five years for your business to build it brand online, and let's face it, if it did take five years, it's probably already too late. Planning now for the changing business environment will put you in better position to communicate with clients and build their trust online. When I speak with businesses, I suggest that they plan their online marketing efforts at least one to three years in advance. Even though the Internet changes daily and there is no telling what may come even three months from now, I think general goals for online marketing every 6 to 12 months are a good place to start.

Are you talking to yourself?

When a social media page is created for you business you may feel initially that communication is only flowing one way and it seems like you are talking to yourself online. Unless you are a brand that is somewhat established this is very normal. You may be getting new followers or fans everyday, but these new people want to feel you out first before they engage in communication with you let alone give you money for your services. The speed to which you start to receive feedback from potential customers online is almost always due to the content that you are publishing online. Content is the extension of your business online and if your content is poor or does not have a clear connection to your business or product these “new” followers will tune out your messages, or just pick up a leave altogether.

The key in running a Social Media campaign for your business is to stay in it for the lone haul, because like many things in business this industry is going to be about staying power and the value you will provide clients.