Social Media has gained greater popularity after COVID‑19 pandemic set in and every business wants a piece of this delicious pie. Yet, there are downfalls and consequences if one uses Social Media recklessly. To save you some grief, we’ve put together a short but relevant list of things to avoid. Enjoy!

1. Half knowledge

Wendy’s decided to use ‘Pepe the frog’ to dress up like their mascot. Little did they know that the said meme had been linked to racism and white supremacy. Of course, they had to take it down. But the moral of the story is - Know your audience and definitely know your memes well. Need a little help? Visit KnowYourMeme and read up on the meme you plan on using.

2. Being insensitive

Being bold and funny is good, but you should know where to draw the line. To have a meaningful connection with consumers, one must practice empathy. Be human, while being cool.

3. Ignoring the Quality Control

It’s amazingly easy to miss this crucial step as demonstrated by this hilarious blooper by McDonald’s Black Friday tweet. Before it was taken down, the tweet was shared over 3400 times! So yes, please do not ignore the QC.

4. Not reading the comments

Every platform’s algorithm loves engagement, so reading and responding to your followers’ comments should be a top priority. Remember to:

• be friendly and professional, never insensitive
• actually read the comment and give an appropriate response - provide solution or fun

5. Shrugging off the negative comments

The mere act of responding to negativity can work in your favour and help your brand grow. The audience will respect you for not hiding behind a rock, and for being sensitive/helpful. If your responses are absent, delayed, templated, or hollow, it can shake customer confidence. And you don’t want that!

6. Putting social media on autopilot

Yes, you can schedule all your posts well in advance and then let the systems take care of it. Sounds grand, right? Caution! You still need a mindful human watching over, with a finger on the pulse of the world out there. Read more about that here

7. Ignoring relevant platforms

Facebook has over 2.7 Billion monthly active users. But that doesn’t mean you ignore other relevant platforms. LinkedIn - great for both B2B and B2C. Pinterest - ideal for artists, designers, lifestyle brands. SnapChat serves Gen Z well. Be tactful and put your energies on platforms best suited to your brand.

8. Being a robot

Social Media is all about connecting with human beings. So ensure your content is relatable and/or funny. Share your work, anecdotes, achievements. Post team pictures with witty captions like Taco Bell did. Don’t be a robot or sound impersonal. Instead, put up a human face because that’s what everybody loves. ;-)

9. No giveaways

Giveaways are a great way to boost engagement and reach! You don’t have to offer a small fortune, just make sure your giveaway is relevant to your audience. Take a look at what Taco Bell did.

Conclusion

So there you have it; 9 things you should avoid like the plague. Social Media is an amazingly effective marketing tool that requires planning, class and confidence. That said, mistakes will be made as we’re all humans; but catastrophe can be avoided if you play it smart. Bonus tip: don’t hesitate to apologize when you commit a blunder. After all, to err is human. ;-)

Enjoyed reading? Just so you know, we recently posted a fresh article on how to ace your Social Media game. Do check it out or bookmark it for the near future!