5 Reasons For Ineffective Social Media Promotion: Why SMM Doesn't Work?

The repeated comments of business owners concerning the inefficiency of social media marketing (SMM) was a negative trend in internet marketing in the 2010s. This is sometimes accompanied by impassioned remarks such as, We've invested so much money into these social media platforms! or SMM doesn't pay for itself.

When this phenomenon got widespread, it made sense to take this topic apart, to look at the causes, and separate the wheat from the chaff.

Is the performance of SMM in doubt?

If you look at the situation from the inside or even look from a different angle - from the side of those who sell SMM as an advertising promotion service, then major market players sell SMM in conjunction with other services of the company, or give it to the customer. Why is that?

We can suppose that not only customers but also marketers, consider that SMM is insufficiently productive for a single service and that they use it as a gesture of loyalty without charging extra for it.

But it was not always so. Profits poured into small and large enterprises gradually when SMM was still an unknown subject and all marketing measures in it were done on the spur of the moment. However, as time passed, this phenomenon began to fade. First, everyone went to social media, and second, SMM evolved from a casual and underground advertising format to more professional and forceful marketing.

Nevertheless, SMMs are stuck somewhere between professionals and amateurs. This professional blurring is caused by a variety of circumstances, none of which we will discuss today. Today, we'll look at the consequences of this trend, or, more particularly, five reasons why SMM might be unsuccessful.

Reasons for the failure of SMM efficiency

REASON # 1. SMM-SPECIALIST COMPETENCE

The competition for users' attention, the device for giving out messages, and the algorithms for rating them in the smart social networking feed - all of this forces us to trade quality for consistency. That is, you can frequently see pulled-out-by-the-ears posts, some of which are even stupid in content, but which are still posted by a careless administrator. Why is this the case? The answer is “just to be”.

The solution to this seemingly absurd problem should be sought in the level of professionalism of the SMM-specialist. In this case, his task is to find a balance between rules and common sense. That is, they must immerse themselves in the project, research the audience, and provide material that is relevant to them. Even if it's rare, it's of excellent quality.

REASON # 2. USEFUL CONTENT IS NOT A PRIORITY

Excessive and sugary glorification of the merits of a brand or company in the minds of the audience - this is the line where you can dramatically fail in the eyes of subscribers, resulting in unsubscribes and distrust.

The principle of the content's usefulness for people should guide you here. This is an excellent approach for presenting information that has no artificial meaning. People consume useful content and unwittingly become loyal to the brand.

REASON # 3. COMMERCIAL POSTS

Social media accounts of companies clogged with commercial posts are, as a rule, irrevocably “dead”. Nothing happens in their accounts. Call-to-buy posts are published on a daily basis, as scheduled. But even if it is food or daily hygiene items, this does not mean that people should buy them every day. Such content will only cause rejection and a desire to close yourself off from constant offers to spend money.

The solution should be found in the Reason 2 creative approach that was mentioned previously.

REASON # 4. SALES FUNNEL

Surely you yourself have more than once been lost in the new blog, but the clear desire to learn something about the company or to buy immediately disappeared instantly. In the language of advertisers, this is called a break in the sales chain. That is, the usability and design of the company's social media profile is either not developed at all, or is done incorrectly, leaving the user unsure of the next step in making a purchase. This understanding should occur automatically, i.e., the profile's visual and interactive features should guide a person to the desired action.

If a person doesn't understand where to click, he leaves. If this is not a one-time failure, then in fact the profile does not sell or sell mediocrely. This means that SMM, in the end, becomes unprofitable.

REASON # 5. LACK OF KNOWING THE PATTERNS OF AUDIENCE BEHAVIOR

It is impossible to eliminate the 4th reason without knowing how the average social network user behaves when he or she is in the target audience segment of a particular social media blog. Predicting this behavior will allow you to establish the appropriate design, develop a content strategy, select the appropriate language for connecting with the audience, and, eventually, build a community of individuals who are ready to buy. However, before this community can take off, you must first construct a user-friendly page. When using social networks, convenience is assumed in every way.

This is where the general marketing thinking of the SMM-specialist will play a role. How quickly a set of actions will be found to refine the SMM work on the project, which is understandable to the end user, depends on the practical experience of SMM-specialist and the ability to get used to the visitor to the page.

This is a basic set of reasons that should be worked out first if the project's social networks do not convert, as they say. It is recommended that you use not only your own subjective opinion, but also seek assistance from colleagues who are not familiar with Internet marketing. This will give you a sharper view and make it easier to notice flaws.

If these reasons are corrected, results will be visible immediately; however, if the situation does not improve or worsens within a few months, attention should be paid to the quality of the reason correction and the qualifications of the blog administrator.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is smm specialist meaning?

The SMM specialist is responsible for managing social networks, developing a content plan, analyzing pages and working with advertising. A profession that appeared with the advent of social networks, the emergence of organizations and brands on the Internet and the need to promote a product thanks to online tools.