Is Social Media Marketing Worth All the Effort?
Social media marketing is one area of marketing that some organizations question, especially since the true impact of social media marketing can be elusive.
With all the changes to the way social media marketing takes place, businesses are reasonably concerned with whether or not social media marketing is worth the hassle?
To be fair, we all know social media can work. But is it worth the effort compared to other marketing methods, such as web banners or even more traditional approaches like postcards.
To answer this question for your website and business you have to take a long, hard look at your goals.
Social media does one thing better than any other marketing media: it generates word of mouth. If this is the best way for you to sell your company and the most efficient for driving traffic, then social media will be well worth the effort.
The Search Engine Effect
Social media marketing will have a positive impact on search engine rankings by default. This is a strong reason for many organizations to pursue social media marketing: you get the double-whammy. But what is the effect, exactly?
Prior to any social media campaign, measure where you stand in search engines.
One of the easiest ways to track how your social media efforts are affecting search engine rankings is to measure before, during, and after any campaigns.
Many tools are available for exploring how certain keywords appear in various search engines, with the holy grail being a first page result.
Prior to any social media campaign, measure where you stand in search engines. While the campaign is ongoing, re-measure to see if the impact is fast or lagging. Then after the campaign, monitor search engine results at least weekly for several months.
Remember search engines like up-to-date information and social media provides very current information. Also, keywords are the way you measure search engine results. So you need to define which keywords you want to track before, during, and after any social media marketing.
Referral Links
Another benefit that social media can provide is referral links that drive traffic to your site. Referral links are very easy to track using almost any freely available analytics software, like Google Analytics. This will help you quickly identify which social media efforts are working the best for you. For example, if Twitter drives lots of traffic, increasing Tweets may be a simple way to dramatically impact your site’s traffic.
Referral links are NOT as permanent as you might think in context of social media marketing. When was the last time you scrolled 30 pages down through your Facebook or Twitter feed to read old posts? Search engines are treating old updates with less and less weight for this very reason. So you have to continually keep your social media up-to-date for the best results.
Bottom Line
Ultimately, the bottom line is what helps you decide whether or not social media marketing is worth the effort. If you’re spending a lot of time and money and getting far less in return, then you may need to focus your efforts elsewhere. It’s simple — if you spend $1,000 and track $100 of sales, then it’s not working efficiently for you.
If you’re spending a lot of time and money and getting far less in return, then you may need to focus your efforts elsewhere.
It is important to understand the search engine and referral link effect that may not be so apparent. You might think you only have $100 in sales for your $1,000 spent and not realize that search engines and referrals are a significant part of your sales that got a benefit.
So measure carefully and make sure you understand, as best you can, just how much social media marketing is working for you.
Summing it Up…
Social media marketing has a lot of crossover into other areas of marketing, so you get added benefits. Tracking search engine rankings, referral links, and sales will help you determine if social media marketing is a good fit and if it’s working efficiently for you.
It’s not for everyone. Some organizations should stick with traditional, printed advertising only. With a little effort on the front-end, measuring the success…or failure…of social media marketing can help you make an objective decision later.
Illustration credit: Some rights reserved by themedia.
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I think it depends. I see people who are successful with this and some who are just wasting time. In my case, it’s the second option. As long as you are getting good results with this, keep on doing it. If you put time and effort and still don’t get good results, then look for something else. But at least you can say you tried
You may be right. I definitely agree that at least everyone should give it a try. But I would also add that given the right tools and tips, everyone has the potential to benefit from social media marketing.
Internet marketing, in my opinion can be very useful. It allows you to connect with people you, on a daily basis, would never come into contact with.
Exactly!
Social Media can be very useful once you know how to use it effectively. You should offer something that people wanted and needed, that is the most important thing and social media sites can help you in your campaign awareness.
Very true! But you also have to be careful to not “Tweet” or post too much or you risk annoying followers.
Another thing is to be patient. It’s very rare things go viral, so don’t be discouraged if it’s not an overnight success.
Exactly…it takes lots of time to build up a strong following online. Thanks for the advice!
I am trying to create a social media canvas through a company and is 800.00 a month too expensive to create content website and multiple avenues. While only blogging once a month?
Yes, this sounds too expensive for what you are getting in return, although I’d have to see details to really know for sure. Feel free to tweet me at @TaraHornor or connect with me on google+ if you want to discuss more.