Marketing on social media is a fickle business.

It’s one of the most beneficial methods your brand can leverage to engage an audience. Yet for every potential benefit, there’s a potential challenge to overcome.

It’s not always easy. To make sure your social media presence is hitting all the right notes, you’re going to want to be aware of what to do – and what not to do. Here’s seven common social media marketing mistakes to avoid.

You’re not adapting

Here’s the thing about social media. It’s constantly evolving.

Not only are the platforms themselves always changing, new platforms and opportunities will continue to show themselves. If someone told me a year ago that TikTok would be as big as it is today, I’m not sure I would have believed them. But lo and behold, we were one pandemic removed from the perfect storm for the video platform. Then it became the most downloaded app in the world.

You’re not engaging

Social media is about engagement.

You could have the best content in the entire world. But if you’re not engaging, you’re missing the whole point. Just like any relationship, it’s a two-way street. There needs to be a give and take.

Engaging with your followers means more than just responding to comments of course. You should create content that fuels engagement. That means posts that pose questions to followers, giving them incentive to like, comment, and share.

You’re not consistent

Want to succeed on social media? Get consistent.

Brands build successful social media presences by developing a plan and sticking to it. Don’t just dump your content and hope it pays off. Spread it out and make sure you keep to a schedule.

If you’re not sure how often to post, Hubspot reports that the average cadence that social media marketers use for publishing content is three-to-four times per week. Plan out your schedule and get to work.

You’re promoting too much

People don’t follow brands because they want their social media feeds to be filled with even more advertisements. (There’s enough of those already!)

People follow brands because they’re seeking interesting and relevant content. If you’re spending too much time promoting, you risk losing your followers. That doesn’t mean they don’t want to see the occasional deal or offer. They just don’t want to be inundated with promotion. Who would?

You’re posting too much

What’s worse than promoting too much? Posting too much.

When it comes to social media, adhering to quality over quantity is always a safe bet. Don’t spam your followers. Seriously. They’re not going to like it.

You’re not speaking to your audience

Who’s your audience?

Are they teenagers? Seniors? Moms? Dads?

Read the room.

Knowing who you’re speaking to will drastically alter how you’re speaking. If you’ve developed a brand voice that’s not consistent with your audience, you’re going to run into problems fueling engagement.

Knowing your audience won’t just help your social media flourish. It’ll help your brand flourish.

You’re not really there

And of course, one of the biggest mistakes you can make with social media is not really having a presence at all.

Maintaining your social media pages is like tending to a garden. It’s something you have to keep doing in order to get results.

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Have any social media tips to share? Sound off in the comments!