Recent Common Social Media Marketing Misconceptions I've Heard (And Banishing Right Here)

I was scrolling through my old articles, trying to find one where I- swear- I had written about misconceptions around social media marketing, but couldn't find one. I know I’ve written posts about this topic before, but I thought I would deep dive into misconceptions I’ve recently heard, read, or seen that need banishing. At the very least, believing them is unhelpful and at worst, hampering your account’s full-fledged ability to reach and mindfully interact with your audience. Let’s start with:

?? "People will notice and get annoyed if I repeat the same thing again."

Posting the exact same reel multiple times? Yes. Making different reels but selling the same product or service every single post? Yes. Making a reel announcing your new product, a Story the next day to talk about the inspiration behind it, and a carousel post the next week on the best use case scenarios for it? No. It’s completely fine and I actually recommend sharing a new product, art piece, or project multiple times after one post. Just not every single day, or through the exact same content.

I feel like many of us are under the impression that we are camping out on each other’s accounts, ready to point out, “Wait, didn’t they post about that SAME THING 7 posts ago? UNFOLLOW.” Or less dramatically, people will notice and be turned off by me talking about this product again so I shouldn’t bring it up. The truth is:

1. You don’t see all the content of everyone you follow on social media. I’m not checking social media, let alone all social media platforms, everyday. Are you? I certainly don’t see all the posts of probably even half the people I follow on social media. This is kind of bad news for brand awareness, but the takeaway is that because your followers don’t always see the content that you post, you do have to re-introduce your products, lines, or services.
2. We don’t always act the first time. When I see a fragrance come out, I might not immediately buy it. I might need to save, maybe I want to get it as a gift for someone, but I’m not going to place it into the checkout cart at this exact moment. This means it will escape my mind, until you remind me with another post! And then I might forget again because I’m not ready to buy, but will be in third time you make a Story!
3. No one cares that much. If someone notices and calls you out, they might be spending a little too much time on your account.

Going back to the second point, I talked about my open strategic consulting session spots at least four or fives times on Instagram before I filled them all. In the final Story, where I mentioned there was a single spot left, I received multiple direct messages, and even some where they said they were eye-ing it but had forgotten to or were busy to initially fill out the submission form. Reminders, and repeating yourself, is totally okay on social media as long as you deliver in the end. I mean, if you keep posting about a service but never end up following through, well then, there will be a good reason for your audience to be frustrated.

?? "Make me go 'viral' by X time and date."

I recently saw a job posting that I’ll tweak a little so as not to put them on blast but asked a social media coordinator to:

??By the end of 2024 (I saw this a month ago), help us reach 10,000 followers

and

??By the end of 2024, make us have one viral video with 1,000,000 views

Social media marketing doesn’t work this way. There is no way to guarantee a minimum number of views, followers, or engagement— and if a contractor, vendor, or freelancer does guarantee— then beware, it’s not legitimate. Sure, there are trends that you can jump on to jumpstart brand awareness and could rapidly accumulate followers that can turn into customers, but we’re real people on social media. You can’t predict where, when, and what actions your audience of humans will make, though what you can do is consistently show up to provide value.

It’s absolutely acceptable to have a general expectation of growth through social media marketing, as long as you look at the numbers within your control. For example, you can control the kind of content that you create, having a mix of trendy and educational content that your audience relates to and wants to engage with. You should always monitor and respond to comments, messages, and fan reactions so the audience feels closer to you. You can poll your audience or ask them what they are interested in seeing. Track what the engagement rate looks like at the beginning all the way to the end, with the hope that it is higher after at least 3-6 months.

I know, I know— this answer isn’t fun, but it’s real. I mean, if it were just a matter of posting everyday for an entire business quarter to get you to 10,000 followers then we would all post for 90 days to get the same result. Building real relationships takes time, work, persistence, and a good amount of luck. And of course, having a strategy is the best route to take, instead of throwing posts on your feed to see what sticks. Partner up with a good social media strategist to help you get there.

?? "I can just spontaneously go Live on Facebook/X/LinkedIn in a Town Hall/Q&A/[Insert Live Interaction] and people will show up and participate."

This (kind of) works. You may have folks just show up last minute, but will they interact or stay tuned in? Again, it’s important to have promotional plan leading up to the event. This type of online event will not simply happen on the day of— it requires putting the event on your audience’s radar ahead of time. At least a few weeks at minimum before the live show there needs to be:

• A post that serves as a “Save The Date” type of post
• A Q&A post where attendees can submit questions
• A reminder post for the upcoming event
• A reminder to submit questions
• A day-before or day-of post to remind attendees that it's happening

All in all, you’re looking at at least 5 posts before the actual event even begins, maybe 3 if it’s a much smaller live event. Regardless, for a good turnout and meaningful participation, you have to do a little promotional campaign to make it a valuable event worth attending. What I want to ultimately point out is that social media can seem like it’s always casual and you can just do it last minute, but that’s not the case for all aspects of it.

Having a runway until the event also gets your audience excited, giving them time to share and invite their community. This could work well for a product launch, a political campaign, or other major business news.

There’s no need to feel ashamed if you did think these were all true-- that’s why I’m here to help set the record straight ?? I quite enjoyed writing this article so look forward to me “banishing” more misconceptions in the future within social media marketing.

Happy Content Creating!

Leah

Hey, my name is Leah! I own and run Jar of Stars Creative, my social media marketing business. I've crafted this newsletter guide to equip:

?? Small business owners

?? Social media content creators

???? ?? Digital content marketers

...to develop dazzling yet authentic digital content strategies to attain their business goals and beyond?

??CapCut allows me to edit clips directly on my phone to create social-first videos ready to upload onto various platforms. They make creating a thumbnail a breeze, and have an excellent library of text templates and transitions-- no more tinkering with keyframes (unless you want to ??)

??? Notion is my go-to planning and organizational tool for my life and social media. I create marketing strategies, organizing and thoroughly enjoying all the ways I can visually present the data I feed in. It doubles as a workspace where I can collaborate exclusively with clients.

?? My favorite all-around social media content scheduler is Loomly to customize posts per platform and ensure photo and video posts go out on time

?? Midjourney speeds up the time it takes for me to create visuals that get my ideas across

I use AI to help create the cover image but I write the entire article without the help of AI.