Arguably the most positive wave to hit the technology industry in the 21st century, social media has come to stay. It has impacted individuals and businesses so much that nearly everyone is on one platform or the other. Market your product or service on social media and be assured of getting so much visibility and interaction from customers. With social media, many businesses grow, profit margins hit astronomical figures and there is a great relationship between business entities and their customers. However, as with everything in life, there are a few disadvantages or downsides to social media. The effects of negativity are also usually so profound that, if not carefully managed, they can be a disaster to your business. Jovago, Africa’s leading online hotel booking website takes a look at a few social media activities that can ruin your business.
Taking Advantage of Human Tragedy – It is often too easy for businesses and individuals to immediately jump on news of a tragedy. When news break that a famous person, politician, actor, actress or sportsman has died or experienced something terrible, social media managers usually think it is a good idea to be the first to spill the news or show sympathy. When national disasters occur, it is somewhat very necessary to show sympathy and solidarity as a brand. However, it has to be very tactically and meticulously done. Do it with every ounce of sincerity and honesty but not because you want to get the interest of customers. The moment these same customers begin to feel all your company’s sympathy is just a “facade’’ to gain public trust, is the very moment you lose their trust. This can ruin your business gradually.
Posting inappropriate information – When you establish your brand as a reliable source of great information, news and advice on product and services, all it takes is one bad tweet or post and then everything goes down. Always ensure that everything you post out there is the correct unadulterated information. Whether it’s about your company or about other brands or people. Always get consent before if you have to post about other people because not everyone appreciates the use of images and names in certain contexts. Also, ensure that what you post are things that can be recognized with the brands, industry, product or service that your company represents. Posting irrelevant and unnecessary things reduces the level of credibility that your fans have for you. Avoid profanity, nudity, violence and chaotic posts as much as possible. Let your fans come to love and understand what you do and what you are selling to them.
Taking sides – For great engagement, social media managers usually post questions, polls and other form of mind boggling questions to get people talking. Also, they tend to discuss public issues and share their thoughts on pertinent topics. The danger here is that, because everyone has his /her own opinion on every subject matter, you may be tempted to take sides on some issues unconsciously. The best way out is to sit on the fence and give an objective analysis of both sides. A little support for both sides doesn’t hurt but leaning too much on one side incurs the displeasure of the supporters of the other side. Social media fans are usually passionate to the extent that your stand on one particular issue can leave them dissatisfied and uninterested in your brand, product or service forever. Be careful what you say and never take sides!
Bad timing – Time is always considered as mankind’s greatest enemy. Although this is supported by millions around the world because there is usually limited time to completely exhaust all activities leading to the achievement of certain goals, it is mostly not the lack of time that negatively affects businesses on social media. The greatest challenge is “when to post what.’’ Often we post or tweet about current issues as they happen but it is very important to assess the general mood of your customers and social media fans before putting certain things out there. A careful analysis of the type of fans and customers you have, clearly helps you to know ‘’what time’’ is best to post ‘’what’’ on social media. When the mood is jubilant, a congratulatory message or a happy meme wouldn’t be bad to post. However, when the mood is sober or calm especially after a tragic incident, you dare not post happy memes or pictures. You will lose your fans love, trust and respect.
Assuming that social media does all the marketing you need – This is virtually the number one killer of many startup businesses and indeed even some established business entities in the world. The moment you become over-reliant on social media to market your product or service is the moment you begin to kill the business. Social media has an outrageously huge impact when it comes to marketing these days because nearly everyone is online. Traditional offline marketing techniques may have been drastically reduced over the past few years but remember, we cannot do away with it. Over-relying on social media means that, the moment a server is down and you don’t have internet, business comes to a halt. Social media helps you reach more people but you need other channels and techniques to heavily breakthrough.
It is incredible how easy it is to do business online and interact with people from all walks of life through the use of this magnificent tool called social media. However, if not properly managed, this same tool can become a weapon of great destruction to your business.
Credit : Jovago
