Social media isn’t a sprint, it’s a marathon.

One of the biggest mistakes I have seen in social media use is visualizing the process as a sprint. Individuals or organizations open up a million accounts, follow or connection (friend) request hundreds of people and only use their timeline to blast information about their company, deals, sales or events that YOU need to attend. With a lack of a proper advertising budget – or strategy for that matter – social media is being used as a cheap advertising medium and not an engagement tool.

These are easy rookie mistakes to make but they are fogetting one important element to social media. The difference between social media and traditional advertising is that you have a selective audience. Your listeners have to choose to want to listen to what you have to say. They have to click “Follow” or “Become A Fan” (or “Like” now) to allow your messages to infiltrate their news feeds.

How is this permission granted?

It’s not something that can be achieved in a matter of a couple of weeks. Unless you are a very well established national brand you aren’t going to gain a huge following very quickly. It takes time to build relationships with people, establish trust and prove your credibility with a few. Eventually, provided you take the time to engage and not purely self promote, your network and audience will grow and your brand will prosper as a result.

I’m fond of saying that social media isn’t something you do — it’s something you are. Whatever analogy helps you to remember you’re in it for the long haul is the one you should grab on to…