Posts Tagged ‘time management’

Thanks for returning to Social Media Myths Week, where the misconceptions are as plentiful as rumors of Bigfoot.  Today’s myth is a pervasive one:  The Myth Of No Time.  That’s right…that rumor you’ve heard that social media will take your schedule hostage, ruin your life, and beat up your mom in the process.

From whence this myth?  Part of it is pure overwhelm:  the streaming, 24/7 nature of social media can be a big intimidator (and big turn-off) to people used to safe, static emails or voice mailboxes.  And while, like any other business or marketing function, social media is useless unless firmly put in its place, it’s not a time-suck by default.  In fact, social media can SAVE you time (isn’t it easier to put out a query in 140 characters than to make 40 phone calls?  not to mention the time saved with invited, not interruptive, marketing that goes directly to your audience by choice instead of praying they’ll see it).  Part of the time-waster myth comes from the misconception that social media is the realm of gum-popping, Justin Bieber-obsessed MySpace tots (it’s not:  in fact, 55+ is the fastest-growing social media demographic, and users over 30 are becoming more savvy and more connected every day).  But far too many use the excuse of time to mask their fear of operating in a space that’s all about grassroots, real-time transparency…and miss out on a great low-cost marketing tool in the process.

Myth busted:  Just because social media is streaming doesn’t mean you need to get sucked down the river on a consistent basis. There are ways to keep boundaries and use social media effectively without spending hours and days browsing and chattering.  It’s all about goals and balance:  asking yourself what your goal for any tool is and devoting the appropriate amount of time to its use.  After all, consistency and conversation are the only rules of social media…and you aren’t going to die if you let the river of content flow by every once in a while.  For some tips on approaching social media with strategy and preventing the dreaded time-suck, visit my post on social media sanity at FolkMedia.  And put things into perspective:  when viewed as a tool like any other, it becomes easier to put social media in its place in your calendar and in your life.  Choose to devote your social media time to quality interactions and the consistent building of seductive, relevant content and it will be time well spent.

I frequent many Yahoo! groups and bulletin boards frequented by writers and small business owners.  Lately, among the laments about the demise of newspapers and the perils of a shaky economy, I’ve been hearing an interesting war cry:  “Social media is a huge waste of time!!! It will distract you!!! Don’t listen to its siren song…it will destroy your marketing, your career…everything you’ve worked so hard to establish!”

I personally think that you can’t afford not to participate in some form of social media, especially in a world that’s ever more populated by Net-savvy, time-crunched people.  However, it’s a tool like anything else in your marketing arsenal…only worthwhile if you use it wisely.  Here are three ways to know when to rein in your social media use in favor of more traditional marketing means:

You are unable to manage your time.  Some people are able to resist the call of a blinking Tweetdeck and a buzzing iPhone.  Others, sadly, are not.  If you’re unable to manage the amount of time you spend using social media, consider limiting it to a certain amount of time per day (timed, with a timer) and pledging to spend an equal amount of time on the marketing messages you used before you converted to Twitter or Facebook.  Yes, this may involve picking up (gasp!) the phone.

You are undercutting your existing marketing.  If your many profiles are not customized and integrated in with your existing brand, you’re wasting your time.  Sure, you may be able to better interface with long-lost-childhood-friend X, but you’re spinning your wheels in terms of your marketing.  Don’t have time to brand your social media or give thought into how it might integrate with your existing marketing strategy?  Then don’t do it.

You are uninterested or undercommitted to the marketing you did before adopting SM.  Yes, social media is slick, instantaneous, pretty, and even inexpensive.  But if your social media activities have replaced the marketing you did before you logged on, be honest with yourself.  Have they really yielded the return on investment they should?  Have you abandoned sucky marketing in favor of micro-efforts that won’t ever pay off? If the answer is yes, it’s time to reassess.  Social media should be part of a marketing plan…not the entire plan.

Simply put, social media without strategy might just be a waste of time.  Interested in figuring out how to use it to your advantage without losing your mind?  We’re giving a seminar in Denver on April 20 that will help you with jus that.  Click here for more information on Social Media for Mere Mortals.

Photo courtesy of bogenfreund