Not All SMM Efforts Are Worthwhile

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In the high-tech and oft-changing world of social media marketing or SMM, keeping a campaign current, relevant and reactionary can take increasing amounts of time and effort. Social network or SocNet tools are available to aid the tracking, testing and research needed in any marketing environment, but when SocNet focus becomes overburdened, businesses of all sizes must reevaluate their approaches and priorities. Sometimes “more” becomes detrimental.

On the Internet, real estate becomes real e-state, but the saying, “location, location, location” still counts. If you want opportunity to expand your customer base, you must create credible presence where your customers are and can find you. Limiting your SMM to only a few sites will launch your business into the position of always playing catch-up.

Customers -slash- users are fickle. They are impatient. They are always looking for “more, new, different” on the Internet. They try new sites and old sites and still get bored. Only with additional “more, new, different” aspects or activity on those sites do they remain there at all, much less actively participate. Don’t base your SMM on just user numbers: Base it on user activity. You can cast an excellent line into the largest body of water around, but unless the fish are active, you’ll never get a nibble.

SEO experts will tell you that you are much better off competing for second- and even third-tier keywords than you are for first-tier keywords. Apply that concept to SocNet marketing as well as website rankings, and you will probably see noticeable results quickly. Cast reasonable lines in smaller but more active market ponds, and you’ll enjoy larger meals as a result.

However, that doesn’t mean that you should initiate your full SMM campaign in every SocNet platform on the Internet. At last count, there were over 300 of them, and that’s not including blogs, forums or chat rooms, the last two of which, by the way, are the original social networking platforms. Choose the level of your profiled presence to the quality of the potential market.

Take Digg, for example. This is a popular SocNet type that has lots of activity every day of the year. But have you actually read a fair percentage of the “articles” that are placed there for user popularity votes? Have you ever seen a Digg-placed article get any kind of SERP ranking? Sure, send things to Digg; if nothing else, you might get back link credit. However, considering that many users there are not out to buy anything but pester their friends and cohorts to vote for their articles to get them onto the first page, don’t invest a lot of time with it. Ignoring it could be a mistake, but don’t bet the house on it.

MySpace recently accepted its mistakes and has settled for its reduced importance. They are not, however, satisfied with the quality of the site. They are looking to slowly—slowly and carefully—improving the environment for users and may eventually start growing solidly again. If your business isn’t using MySpace in its SMM, grab another couple of poles and wet some line there.

In all instance, choose quality over quantity, but don’t neglect fish-rich ponds over glorious-looking lakes and oceans.

Post written by Sara Woods @ Coupon Croc, where you can save on all your business travel plans with Travelodge discounts and vouchers.

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