4 Common Social Media Myths Debunked

We’ve all seen them. The Facebook or Instagram channels that seem to get tens of thousands of followers overnight. The followers are raving fans of the business, and not only buy again and again, but influence their friends to be customers too. If only you could unlock that secret, it would change everything in your business. Does that sound about right? Then you’re in the right place.

So how is it that you can never seem to follow in their footsteps?

Let me guess…

• You don’t really use social media personally OR you do, but you’re not sure how to translate what you know to a business.
• You think you’ve got a lot of value to offer your audience, but you just don’t know how to share it without coming across salesy or boring.
• You don’t know how you’ll find the time to do everything you need to do to make your social media a success.

I’m a busy business owner myself, so I totally understand how important your time is. It can be so frustrating when you pour more and more time (and even money) down the rabbit hole without having any idea if it is going to pay off.

After years managing social media pages for clients, I’ve found four social media myths that are largely to blame for holding businesses back, and I’d love to debunk those and get you feeling excited and optimistic about social media again. Let’s dive in.

Myth 1#: I need specialist training to succeed on social.

So not true. Most the successful brands you admire on social media got there through trial and error. They got it wrong, often.

You might think they were an overnight success, but in reality it probably took months or years, and lots of awkward cringe-worthy mistakes, to get to where they are.

That is not to say having a blueprint for success doesn’t make the whole process, a lot easier. As someone who has been in the trenches for the past five years, I would have killed for a guide that showed me how to avoid the pitfalls. Knowing exactly what (and what not) to do saves you a lot of time and money.

I highly recommend monitoring the social media pages of people you admire, and emulating their successful tactics.   Also read widely. Check out Social Media Examiner and Mashable, as great resources for information.

Myth 2#: I’m not tech-savvy enough to use social media

While you need some basic technology skills to use social media, you certainly don’t need to be a computer programmer (otherwise I wouldn’t be able to do it)!

If you can use a smart phone, browse the internet, download some apps and send an email, you have most the tech skills you need already.

There are also some great tools out there you can use to automate a lot of social media tasks. In my business I have a great suite of tools and systems I use to succeed on social media in less time, without having a great deal of technical knowledge. Check out apps like HootSuite, Sprout Social and Buffer.

Myth 3#: I don’t have anything interesting to share

I have yet to meet a business that doesn’t have anything interesting to say on social media. If you know where to look, there are stories all around you. Here are some prompts to get you started.

• Why did we start the business? Chances are you’ve never told your ‘origin’ story. This can range from the values behind you starting the business to mistakes you’ve made, milestones to wonderful photos from the good old days.
• What do we value? Make people understand your values. If they align with your values or beliefs, they will make fantastic customers and advocates for your brand.
• Who are we? Let people see the real people behind the business. Share stories and interesting facts about your team, partners and clients.
• What is my audience interested in? It doesn’t matter if it is relevant to the product you sell or not. If you’re entire audience are mad keen basketball fans, you should be joining in on the hot conversations.

The more questions you ask, the more you’re going to see stories all around you.

Myth 4#: It’s too late to launch social media now

I particularly love this one. So many people tell me they think they’ve already missed the social media boat. There may already be social media channels in your industry with thousands of followers, but they all started in the same place – with zero.

It is never too late to get started. The only way to get your business playing at the same level is to start. Today.

In actual fact, you have a chance to grow your social media channels faster than your competitors did without making the same mistakes.