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Think Social Media Is Hard? It Is.
This article has been updated on 5/26/2020 with the article entitled "We Used to Think Social Media Marketing Was Hard and It Still Is.”
Unless you are closely following internet marketing news – and how can you when you’re so busy running your own business? – you might have heard all the grumbling about the limitations of Facebook as a business marketing tool. You might even be faithfully applying what you learned at the most recent social media presentation and wondering why your results aren’t living up to the hype.
So let’s be brutally honest about what you are up against in the social media marketing arena. Here are a few facts that you may not have heard before or may not have given much thought to:
- Facebook uses an algorithm called EdgeRank (details) that decides which of your posts and how many of them your fans will actually see.
- Most folks don’t go back to a business or product page after that first "like."
- Your Facebook update has a lifespan of about 2 ½ hours. After that the chances a fan will see it dims considerably. (details)
- People spend an average of 30 minutes per day on Facebook. That makes it kinda hard to hit that 2 ½ hour window.
- Each of your posts reaches about 17% of your fans if you are an average poster of five to seven items a week. (details)
You can get around some of these limitations by using a new Facebook tool that allows you greater promotion of your posts according to the budget you set. For some businesses, paying for this kind of advertising will be a good addition to their marketing plan.
For others, these facts underline what they suspected all along: that social media is a total waste of their time.
The truth, as always, is somewhere in between, especially for those of us who have local businesses. If your clients are within a certain geographic area, rolling out a major, nation-wide social media campaign might not be a good use of resources.
Social media does have its place, but remember tools like Facebook can – and do – change constantly for their own benefit, not yours. Your website is the one place where you are in charge, making it the logical place to put your greatest effort.
Your success is what drives us. Contact us today to make us partners in your success. We’re always happy to help!
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Kate Gingold
I have been writing a blog with web marketing tips and techniques every other week since 2003. In addition to blogging and client content writing, I write books and a blog on local history.
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I have been writing a blog with web marketing tips and techniques every other week since 2003. In addition to blogging and client content writing, I write books and a blog on local history.
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