In today’s world, where the Internet is everywhere, it seems like a no-brainer to set up your business with a variety of social media accounts. Between Facebook, Twitter and Google+, there are many ways to promote yourself on the web. But is it really free and is it the right choice for you and your business? Below I’ve outlined some of the pros and cons of using social media to help you make the best decision for you and your business.
Let’s start by looking at some of the pros.
free publicity
One of the biggest advantages of social networking sites is that they are free to use. Unlike print ads, TV commercials, and radio ads, these community hubs give you the opportunity to reach a wide audience without paying a dime. Just set up your site and create your virtual presence.
create conversations
Another benefit of sites like Facebook is that it allows you to create a conversation with your customers. You can ask questions, share images, and engage your audience in a dialogue in a way that traditional marketing and advertising can’t. In this way, social networks are like the missing link between traditional advertising and face-to-face interaction.
Quick access to new clients
Another benefit is that it’s easy for your business to expand quickly. If you share a couple of images on your business page and a couple of your customers share the image with their friends and so on, you can create a viral campaign without even meaning to. It can really be a great way to find more customers and get the word out about your business.
share your personality
With sites like Twitter and Facebook, we encourage you to share more than just professional information. These sites are designed to allow people to share their personal lives. So it’s in your best interest to share a little bit about yourself or maybe even something behind the scenes. Sharing this type of information can also help attract more people to your business.
Now that we’ve covered some of the pros, let’s look at some of the cons.
Waste of time
One of the biggest drawbacks of social networking sites is that they can be very time consuming quickly. Setting them up alone can be time consuming, especially if you take the time to style them to reflect your brand. Plus, it’s easy to get sucked in. You jump in for a quick minute to update your status, and before you know it, you’ve spent half an hour perusing the site.
Negativity will spread quickly
While news about your business can spread quickly via Google+ and Facebook, negative comments about your business can spread even faster. People are much more likely to tell others about a bad experience than a good one. And social networking sites give people an easy way to share their comments, good or bad.
May be less professional
While these community-based sites are great for building customer relationships, they can also set up your business to look less professional. For most small businesses, this isn’t usually a problem, but it’s definitely something to consider when determining how to best represent yourself in all forms of marketing.
Not ideal for customer acquisition
Of course, the other downside to social media is that there isn’t really a call to action. People can visit your site and chat and interact as much as they want, but there is no guarantee that you will ever get a client from them. Also, you can’t really narrow down your target market through these sites, as they are broad and all-encompassing. Basically you and your business are sending yourself to the web-o-sphere and hoping to reach the right people and they will pick up the phone and call.
As you can see, there are pros and cons to using social media to market your business. Sure, it’s free and an easy way to reach a large audience while also connecting with them on a more personal level, but it can also be time consuming, unprofessional, and negativity can spread quickly. Not to mention, you have no way of specifying who your social sites reach. In truth, social media is a great way to market yourself for free, but it’s not something you can really count on to attract new customers.