3 Things Not to do when Starting a Social Media Campaign

For all of you who are ready to hit the ground running, here are a few pointers to keep you from falling flat on your butt

1.  ITS ALL ABOUT ME: A philosophy I personally enjoyed in a former life!  This philosophy will not fly in social media .  People really don’t care about what you have to say until they know you are sincere in your desire to be helpful and offer something of value to them.  Do not talk about yourself and your products.  Do talk about the knowledge you have to help your audience improve their lives in a meaningful and engaging way.  If you are putting information out there, ask yourself first, “Is this to help someone else, or is this just promoting ME? ”  If the answer is to help yourself, try to hold off.  People don’t mind you promoting yourself once in a while, if they have found you to have their interests at heart first.

2. Don’t Bite Off More Than You Can Chew, Or Most Likely You Will Choke:  Common sense right?  The evolution of social media platforms are changing constantly.  Pick one or two that you feel will be beneficial to your business and master them.  Don’t feel that you need to be an expert in them right away.  Watch how people are engaging and listen and then when you feel you have the hang of it, enter the water yourself or hire a coach.

3.  If you are over 40 and on My Space you may be headed into hoochie momma territory: Okay, maybe not, but make sure you are going where is appropriate for what you are looking to accomplish.  Utilizing tools like search.twitter.com, www.socialmention.com, Google Trends,  and Google Pipes, can help you monitor where the conversations are taking place that you need to engage.  While MY SPACE once was a leading social network among the masses, it has now become known for keeping up with the music industry or hooking up with your next booty call.  Try more professional social networks or forums populated with the demographics that are going to take you and your business seriously.  Such as LinkedIn, Twitter, XING or Ning.

Most of all remember that it is all about sharing and learning.  Get involved, Share your knowledge to help others and Spread some positive Karma!