I had an interesting conversation this week on LinkedIn with a Virtual Assistant about the value of social media marketing for business. It appeared that she had ticked all the boxes: a good website; profiles on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn; regular blog posts that add value and demonstrate her expertise, but none of this was generating new business leads, and the VA was frustrated. Having heard about social media and its many benefits, she couldn’t understand why it wasn’t working for her. This conversation led me to think about two of the biggest, most frustrating misconceptions surrounding social media marketing that I’m going to share with you right now!

Firstly, social media is not a magic elixir. Many small business owners hear that they should be using social media from other users, a view backed up by an abundance of vocal internet marketeers (hmm, I wonder why!). They think that by having a Twitter profile and writing the occasional blog post is the answer to a good marketing strategy. There’s an expectation to see new leads and business opportunities flood in with little effort but unfortunately, that’s not the case. It takes time, effort and commitment. It’s not magic but simply another marketing channel and should be treated as such. To get the best results you have to be consistent, interesting, helpful, interested in others and build relationships over time because people buy from people they know and like.

Another misconception is that it’s totally free. Guess what? It’s not!! Yes, signing up to Twitter and Facebook costs nothing, setting up a blog on Blogger or WordPress.com is also free, posting articles with EZineArticles is free. But, you may choose to pay someone to develop and manage your presence for you to ensure you’re utilising it effectively, or so you can spend your time on developing other areas of your business. Alternatively, by doing it all yourself it will cost you time – and that can be a considerable amount especially in the beginning when you’re developing your profile and building your community.

But it is ALL worth it. Your effort will be repaid in new clients, joint ventures, business opportunities, and increased learning that will benefit you and your business. Like most things in life, what you put in will determine what you get out of it.

So, what about you? What social media myths and misconceptions have you come across that frustrate you? Let me know by adding your views in the comment section below.