Five mistakes social media newbies make

It’s a new a world that us business owners live in now. . You realized what needs to be done and you’re ready to embrace social media marketing full force. You stayed up two nights ago and built a business Facebook Fan page, signed up for Twitter and recorded your first YouTube video. In the last 24 hours, you have posted everything from the gas you bought, to the breakfast you ate.

Social media can be overwhelming and exciting at the same time. It is also extremely easy to get lost in it. It’s time to call a “timeout” and review some of the mistakes other social media newbies have made.

1. Not “Branding” ALL YOUR Social Media the Same.

On of the first great benefits of social media is how it helps get your brand name discovered online. The secret trick to this SEO boost requires your social media pieces to be branded the same. For example: If you are the business owner of ABC Flowers in DFW aka ABCFlowersDFW.com, your Twitter handle should be? @ABCFlowersDFW Your Business Facebook fan page? facebook.com/ABCFlowersDFW Your YouTube channel? youtube.com/ABCFlowersDFW Newbies tend to enter social media without thought to consistency or purpose. Is your social media branded the same?

2. Not Having a Social Media Plan or Purpose.

Newbies tend to jump in without giving much thought to their long range business goals for social media. I covered this in detail in my previous post “Your Five 2012 Social Media Goal Questions” so I won’t repeat myself here. Do you have a clear social media plan and purpose?

3. Not Practicing the 90/10 Rule.

Most people engage social media to socially connect with others. In regards to building a business social media campaign, you need to stay on topic 90% of the time by educating your followers on your industry, products and services. 90% of the time, you are not SELLING but informing with useful information, re-posts, re-tweets, and engaging your followers, customers and clients. Then and only then, can you have a subtle “Call to Action” for more information about your products and services. Are your posts, tweets, updates, and blogs in the 90/10 balance?

4. Not Establishing a Frequency Pattern.

Newbies are very excited to jump and pour as much information, time and effort into their newly discovered marketing campaigns. Social media followers require a consistent and predictable pattern for them to stay engaged. What I see most newbies do is start with a frequency they cannot maintain. They try to blog everyday, create a YouTube video every week or tweet 10 times a day. Quickly they learn that they cannot sustain the initial pattern they started. With the end in mind, consider a constant frequency. A new YouTube video once a quarter is far better than throwing three out there on the same day. Do you have a consistent social media frequency? Is there a predictable and consistent time to receive your information?

5. Not Staying on Message.

Newbies tend to pour their entire life story into their social media initially. Unless YOU are the brand and your life is interesting 24/7, don’t do this. If your social media campaign is to promote ABC Flowers, don’t post about your kid’s soccer game (unless your giving the team flowers). No bathroom posts, or FourSquare check-in on that account as it doesn’t serve your business purpose. I suggest that if you do want to talk about personal stuff, you do it on a personal social media account.

Social media is exciting and a profitable marketing tool when done in balance. What other mistakes would you add to this list?