Why is Social Media Not Working

Social media marketing is a powerful way for businesses of all sizes to reach potential customers. People discover, learn about, follow, and shop from brands on social media, so if you’re not on platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn, you’re missing out! 

Great marketing on social media can bring remarkable success to your business. While many factors contribute to social media success, this article will explore some of the most common reasons your social media marketing might not work.

Everyone can post on social media whenever they want, at any time, throughout the day, as many times as they wish. Of course, simply posting to your social media does not guarantee any engagement whatsoever, some people may see it but not interact with the post at all. This is why a strategy needs to be put in place. 

Posting without a strategy for scheduling, the time you post, what you post, who your posts are targeting, and how you plan to encourage users to interact with the post is practically pointless. This is because there is less chance of anyone interacting with the post, as well as no clear plan on how to follow up on the post if anyone were to engage with it. 

Most of us reckon that whenever we are on social media, it’s the right time to post, but that might not be the case! Timing your Instagram posts can be a game-changer for engagement and visibility. Sometimes, posts go viral at the "wrong” time, but that’s usually because someone shared it at the right moment with the right audience. 

When it comes to social media content, you need to give your audience what they want. You must have a thorough understanding of your audiences to connect with them on social media platforms and create content that they can relate to. Many social media algorithms reward users who participate with their content, particularly through comments and chats. To do this effectively, you need to understand your audience. This calls for using terminology conveying messages that they can relate to and delivering useful content in a way that appeals to them.

Consistency is key. This is a term we hear very often in life, and is also relevant when it comes to social media. An entrepreneur must not sit around and be lazy with content, posting the odd post in dribs and drabs without any consistency or thought behind why and when you post on social media. Keep in mind, however, that consistency does not mean high frequency. By this, we mean to remain consistent with your posts but do not put out a post every single day for the sake of it, as this will become too repetitive.

Graphics and visuals are key to drawing in that much-desired attention from audiences. You could create punchy and compelling visuals that captivate audiences, some of which may capture the attention of all users. However, you can post graphics that are designed to simply attract only the target audience you want to reach out to. 

Although social media is free to sign up and post unlimited content, many platforms offer paid advertising options for boosting or promoting your content, account, or page. So, if all else fails, paid advertising could be your best move. 

Of course, there are ways of getting the most from social media without having to spend a penny, but paid ads are certainly an effective way of promoting your business, even for just ten rand. This could be a profitable strategy for you.

To achieve the best from anything, you must take your time and be patient, trying and testing out several ways to approach your content strategy and engage with your audience. 

Social media marketers can help you determine what works best for your brand. Or, you could do this by analysing analytics and metrics to see what sort of content brings in the most interaction from users, both those who do and don’t follow you. 

Entrepreneurs who want to leverage social media marketing need to have a strategy on what they need to post, understand their audience, and analyse what is working, and go back to the drawing board if some social media aspects aren't working. By making changes, an entrepreneur can have effective social media marketing for their business and make their business grow immensely.