Why Social Media Is Here To Stay

The funny thing about social media is that, unlike traditional marketing campaigns, there is no beginning and there is definitely no end. Campaigns are limited because, at some point, the postcards will stop being delivered and the commercials will stop airing. There is a sunset on campaigns if you will, while social media provides endless opportunities to get your brand out there.

Here are a few reasons why social media marketing is here to stay:

1) Social Media Is a Function, Not a Campaign

Too many freelancers think of social media as a campaign, something that will be turned on then turned off at a later point. Social media needs to become another department in your organization—whether you develop it in-house or contract it out.
 
2) You Wouldn’t Just Stop Doing Accounting

If you think of social media in these terms, then you already get it. Platforms may come and go (remember Myspace?), but the act of social media marketing is here to stay.
Many consumers use social media to evaluate your entire business. Have less followers than your competition? There must be something wrong with you. Don’t have as many likes as the company down the street? You must not be worth doing business with.
 
3) Timing Is Everything 

 The problem with social media and your business is this: The longer you wait, the longer you think that social media is just a fad—the sooner your business is going to go under.
Let’s jump into our time machine and go back 10 years. You put off the idea of getting a website because you thought the Internet was a fad. You assumed that your clients or customers weren’t online. You were wrong.
Once you stop measuring the impact of social media in days or weeks or months, and start appreciating what it can do for you in the years to come, the better positioned your business will be to survive. 

What challenges and opportunities do social media present for your organization? Share your thoughts with me in comments.