It can be frustrating when you’re not seeing results from social media. It seems like everyone else is growing a following and you’re stuck getting maybe a follower a day and not seeing any change to your bottom line.
Social media gives us access to unlimited customers all over the world but that doesn’t mean instant money.
Logging onto social media to post a picture or like a comment under the guise of “working” can take the place of doing the activities that actually generate income. Here are signs it may be time to put your effort elsewhere:
You’re Not Focusing on ROI
You have to measure which social media platform you’re getting the most return on your investment. For me, it’s Pinterest. Pinterest has a high concentration of people who are interested in my site, products, and newsletter.
I’ve recently devoted some time to Facebook and Instagram. While I see some results, the results pale in comparison to the results from Pinterest so I’m now reassessing.
You also have to have a purpose for your social media traffic. Are they funneling somewhere? Are you getting them on your email list? What’s the specific goal you have with your social strategy?
If you’re not seeing an ROI for the time or money you’re putting into a social media platform, it may be time to cut it loose or to hire someone else to manage it. Your time will likely be better served focusing in areas that do make your business money.
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You Have Shiny Object Syndrome
This is a big reason why I’m currently limiting my time on social media. Shiny object syndrome is when you pivot or constantly change your business model because a brand new strategy pops up on the scene. You’re always chasing after the next big thing that’ll bring you income.
Changing the approach to running your business over and over again does everyone a disservice. It confuses you and your customers.
Instead of helping your business, digesting a lot of social media can make you inclined to listen to every business “expert” who has a genius new marketing approach. Not every idea will be good for your business and making changes to your strategy constantly can get you away from your core mission.
It’s Making You Unhappy
Social media serves a purpose—connecting us with the world—but it can also have a negative impact. It can cause you to lose sleep and it can mess with your self esteem.
Business owners need sleep to do good work. You need confidence and a high self esteem to keep going day in and day out as well. If you’re finding that you feel confused about your business, stressed, or distracted after looking at social media, give it a break. See how you feel going a few weeks without it.
Hire an assistant to manage it for you. You don’t need to be checking your social media feeds every 30 minutes to see what’s going on. Once or twice a day should be enough. Same with email. Set certain hours each day that you interrupt your work to check email.
Final Word
I’m a huge sufferer of shiny object syndrome. It pains me to think about the progress I could have made on different projects if I had focused instead of moving on to the next thing. Social media for me plays a big role in my pivots to new ideas. Limiting this is helping me stay focused.