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Social Media Won’t Fix Your Broken Business

Guest post by: Jessica Swanson

Article Overview: Discover why social media platforms such as Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn can't fix a broken small business.

Social Media Won’t Fix Your Broken Business

Social media marketing. Just seeing the phrase elicits a wide range of emotional responses from today's small business owner.

Probably the most common emotion is that social media marketing will SAVE your small business. You've heard time and time again that Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn can bring you loads of hot, new prospects ready to whip out their credit cards and do business with you.

Well, as they always say, "if it sounds too good to be true it probably is."

Here's the problem.

Whenever there's a new fad, technology or marketing tool, small business owners jump on the bandwagon hoping that this will finally be the answer to all their problems. This will be the marketing solution that they have been endlessly searching for. Not only that, it will cost less and bring in more sales. Hallelujah!

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but social media won't fix a broken business model. Social media is a tool that only works in combination with a strong business philosophy, foundation and plan of action.

The truth is that you need to have a solid small business foundation before your social media marketing will be effective. You need to have a unique selling proposition, landing page, free offer, sticky website and a blog. That's when Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn will work for you.

You can't expect Twitter alone to be the magic bullet for your business. You can't expect Facebook alone to be your savior. And, you probably guessed it, but LinkedIn, in and of itself, isn't going to be your knight in shining armor.

Now, here's the thing. I am the very first person to shout from the rooftops that social media is an awesome small business tool. I bring in dozens of leads every single day just from Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn alone.

But, you need to understand that there is never ONE marketing tool that will save your business. It's the effective combination of a solid marketing foundation, tools and consistency that will grow your small business.

If you don't have a solid business foundation, social media cannot help your business. In fact, it may even hurt your business. Social media can't fix a broken small business and it's certainly not a Band-Aid.

Social media is a tool. Nothing more, nothing less. And, if used in conjunction with a strong business philosophy, foundation and plan of action, that's when its power will be unleashed.

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Article Tags: shoestring marketing, small business marketing, social media marketing



Related Forum Posts
Re: Kevin needs "social glue" ideas - Hi, I like the idea of "10 items that could act as "social glue" because I am an internet marketer. But I agree with the rest that the 10 recent post is nice. Maybe we should open up a new section in the forums on Social Media...or Social Media Marketing. I will tell you that the world is about 1 1/2 behind when it comes to understanding social media. Building a section now will put EvanCarmichael.com is a great position a year down the road when people realize Social Media can produce more traffic than SEO. Jeff
Re: Kevin needs "social glue" ideas - [quote="WebBizIdeas.com":gvtxsu7g]Hi, I like the idea of "10 items that could act as "social glue" because I am an internet marketer. But I agree with the rest that the 10 recent post is nice. Maybe we should open up a new section in the forums on Social Media...or Social Media Marketing. I will tell you that the world is about 1 1/2 behind when it comes to understanding social media. Building a section now will put EvanCarmichael.com is a great position a year down the road when people realize Social Media can produce more traffic than SEO. Jeff[/quote:gvtxsu7g] Hi Jeff, Thanks for the suggestion. Why don't you start a new post (with a poll) to see if there's enough interest in your idea for a social media section?
Re: UPDATES: New Campaign! New Layout! New Ideas! - GT - thanks for the FYI - I'm not sure if we'll put a link back. Something to consider though! Trent - the new category is "Social Network and Media" which was put in to compliment the Online Businesses category that currently exists. Overall the new categories are: - Looking For, Networking and Events - Review My... - Social Network and Media - Brags and Rants These came as a result of Ringo doing research on other forums and thinking about what could be improved on ours to give a better experience for everyone. I hope you enjoy them! David, I'm looking forward to reading your Brag / Rant!
Re: Marketing 2.0 - What Are Your Thoughts - Hi Shri, Thanks for posting this. I also read it and I believe Social Media is here to stay, until the next best thing comes up. Social media proved to be useful for me many times and I think everyone should use it for their business.
Re: Social Media Marketing Ignorance - [quote="vbn411":7qciluxl]Social Media is space that you have to be in to succeed in our current climate. People are going to be discussing your brand / product whether you like it or not, so you might as well join the conversation and add value. [/quote:7qciluxl] I think that's probably one of the most realistic way to think about it. There's no real textbook way of understanding Social Media, it's the networks of people and their interactions that will exist with or without your input. As for Jennifer, You can always have 2 Facebook pages. Many people do. There is also LinkedIn, which is like a professional networking version of Facebook. The only way to know is to try it.


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