If you’ve ever attended social events to further your career, you understand the power of building and maintaining a friendly network of contacts. So it’s no surprise that you would be interested in trying the online equivalent of a networking party, by harnessing the enormous potential of social media.
Social media is indeed becoming one of the most powerful tools at your disposal. But a lot of advisors are making some pretty costly mistakes with social media, and they have felt underwhelmed with their results. The good news is that you can prevent these mistakes before you ever make them, or easily fix them if any of these apply to you.
Putting all of your eggs in one basket. A social media campaign is a great way to expand your existing online marketing strategy. But it isn’t a substitute for building a quality website, producing informative, engaging blogs, or contacting your audience via email. When used alone, social media is much less effective than when you use it in combination with the other tools at your disposal.
Forgetting about the needs of your audience. Sometimes advisors view social media as very public platform that they can use to loudly advertise their services. This is a huge mistake, because it violates the very principles of online marketing. Using social media as your microphone won’t win you any popularity points. Instead, ask yourself what your target audience wants to read, what type of questions they have, and where they get their information online. Then you can produce content that will truly capture their attention, and your ideal client will be drawn to you because you’re offering something they need or want.
Don’t neglect your relationships. Just as with any other human interaction, online relationships should be nurtured. Social media gives you the opportunity to make new contacts, but that’s just the beginning! Once you establish a fan base, the next step is to keep their interest. You should do this by posting links to your blogs on a regular basis, such as once per week. This keeps you at the forefront of your prospects’ minds, so that some other advisor doesn’t swoop in and steal their attention!
Don’t over-sell yourself. Remember that the Golden Rule of online marketing is to offer valuable content to your audience, so that you establish yourself as a trustworthy expert in their eyes. You should demonstrate your expertise by offering high-quality blogs or videos that answer your prospects’ questions.
Unfortunately, some advisors forget the art of subtlety, and dive straight into hard-sell tactics. In person, you might be able to persuade a captive audience this way. But online, control is in the hands of your audience. If they feel pressured or annoyed, the can click the “unlike” button on your page, and your audience will dwindle to depressing numbers.
Don’t have unrealistic expectations. Sometimes advisors make the mistake of viewing a social media strategy as a fast track to growing their practices. When their phones don’t ring off the hook the week after setting up a profile, they give up and quit.
Sorry to disappoint you, but it’s not that simple. The point of social media is to nurture and gradually deepen your relationships. The rewards are endless and will multiply over time, but it takes time and persistence to get there. Take a “slow and steady” approach to social media, and by this time next year you will be grateful for your efforts.
Don’t give up before you get started! Possibly the biggest mistake you can make with social media is never even trying it viagra generika rezeptfrei. It’s easy to dismiss social media as something only 20-somethings do, or as just another way for people to share photos of their babies or cats. But the reality is that more and more people are making important decisions based on their online interactions, and older Americans are the leading demographic joining social media sites! The worst mistake you can make is neglecting to include social media in your marketing strategy. Get started today, and you will thank yourself tomorrow.