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How to Avoid the Most Common Social Media Marketing Mistakes

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Did you know that negative news spreads more quickly on Twitter than positive news? Yikes!

The majority of the time, the virality of a piece of content is largely due to how it’s been marketed—be it positive or negative. That’s why marketing is such an essential element for every business, whether the company leaders realize it or not.

But if you’re new to the world of marketing, where do you start? And how do you avoid marketing mistakes as a small business owner?

We’re here to fill you in. Keep reading below to learn about a few ways to avoid making some of the most common marketing fumbles out there.

Use Stock Images and Real Photos

Stock images and videos can be an invaluable tool when creating social media content. However, it’s important to know where to draw the line.

When showcasing your services or staff, make sure you use real photos of your company. Your followers will be able to tell if you post stock photos of random employees, and the post will come across as disingenuous. By contrast, real photos and videos give viewers an idea of the faces behind the business and what your services or products really look like.

Don’t Just Monitor—Listen Too

As a small business owner, it’s not always easy to dig around and listen to what people are saying about your company. However, it’s the only surefire way to better your marketing efforts and improve your business.

This resource best explains the difference between social monitoring and social listening. In short, social monitoring is when you observe direct customer interactions and feedback. Social listening, instead, takes a much broader view and examines how these interactions fit into other dialog and what trends they produce.

Be Consistent Across the Board

One of the biggest mistakes new marketers make is lacking consistency. Sure, your moods and manner of speech may change depending on the time of day or who you’re with, but when you’re speaking on behalf of a brand, you have to keep a consistent tone.

The same can be said for visuals on platforms like Instagram and Facebook, along with longform content for your website. The more consistent you are, the easier it is to create killer content.

You can avoid marketing mistakes like this by breaking down exactly how you want your brand to sound before you begin applying even a sliver of your marketing ideas. This will give you a baseline to refer back to if you feel the brand’s tone straying as you create content.

Avoid Marketing Mistakes Like a Pro

The marketing world is constantly changing, and new trends pop up faster than you can blink. That’s why it’s so important to avoid marketing mistakes, whether you’re a marketing novice or an expert.

One tiny slip-up can kill an entire campaign, so be delicate when creating content and keep in mind who exactly you’re creating it for in the first place. With the tips above, you’ll know which common mistakes to avoid when marketing.

Explore the rest of Middle Class Dad for even more tips on creating content and starting a blog for your business!

Jeff Campbell