Here is a terrific article regarding how to spend smart money on Social Media – not chase after “vanity” metrics like fans and likes.  Remember, social media should be about building relationships and engagement – and you can do that with email marketing directly and for a much lower cost.

The 3 Worst Ways Companies Waste Money in Social Media

The article was written by Brad Smith on Social Media Today.  Click here for the full version.

Brad covers:

1) Money Waster #1: Squandering Your Offline Resources

He highlights how many businesses (not just small mom and pop shops but the big guys too) post signs and posters for Facebook or Yelp or insert social media outlet here – but don’t have a clear call to action.  If you want someone to write a good review for you on Yelp 1) ask and 2) give them an incentive to do so – like offer them a coupon to come into the store and show the review and get the discount.

2) Money Waster #2: Community Management Free-for-All

The reality is too many businesses try to jump on all the latest social media crazes then fail to execute well on any one channel.  Pick one and do it really, really well.  Then build on that.  Back to our mantra – social media is about building relationships not shouting from every social media mountain top!

3) Money Waster #3: Facebook Double Taxation

This is the best point of the article.  Brad reminds us that Facebook is a “closed” system.  They have all the control over your fans and followers.  What happens when you’ve spent all this money building that community and then Facebook decides to change their terms of service and force you to pay to reach your own fans (yeah, they just did exactly that).  Don’t let this happen to you.  Build those great relationships and make sure you have all the info you need to stay connected to your fans wherever they happen to be (at a minimum you better have their email address).

Facebook is starting to double-tax you to reach your own fans. According to the NY Observer,

“Facebook acknowledged it as recently as last week: messages now reach, on average, just 15 percent of an account’s fans. In a wonderful coincidence, Facebook has rolled out a solution for this problem: Pay them for better access.” “As their advertising head, Gokul Rajaram, explained, if you want to speak to the other 80 to 85 percent of people who signed up to hear from you, “sponsoring posts is important.”