There’s so much information available to us now on the subject of marketing, that it’s almost impossible to keep up. So we thought of simplifying things for you by pointing out the top 5 marketing myths that you need to avoid.

Myth #1 – Effective marketing means you need to be involved in every single social media network

Social media platforms are great tools for marketers. It allows businesses to really get to know their audience, interact and engage with them, as well as provide them with an easy way to promote products and services.

Keep in mind however that, social media isn’t about volume. You don’t necessarily have to be on every single platform available out there. Instead, you should focus on understanding where your audience is, what your followers want, and figuring out the best ways to get your message out there.

Here’s an example: Pinterest may be one of the biggest social media platforms available today, but apart from being a largely visual platform, almost 85 percent of its users are female. So if your audience is largely male who prefers reading informative reviews about a product, it really doesn’t make sense for you to use Pinterest as a way to boost engagement.

To find what social network will work best for you—

• Get to know your audience—who are they and where do they search for information?
• Do try to test out different platforms and posting styles to see which works best for you business.
• Be sure to track and monitor the progress that you’re making on social sites to understand what works best.

Myth #2 – Email marketing is not effective.

Contrary to the myth that email marketing is dead and well past its prime, research regarding its effectiveness shows that it can still help generate a significant amount of revenue. It all depends on the level of personalization that goes into its creation, and how relevant it is for your audience.

It’s all about tailoring content so that it engages your audience. It doesn’t matter if you’re sending a welcome email, or a follow-up, or even cart recovery emails—all these are still effective.

According to statistics—

• 55 percent of companies are able to generate over 10 percent of their sales through email marketing campaigns.
• 89 percent of marketers continue to use email as their primary source of lead generation.
• Cart abandonment follow up emails have a 40.5 percent open rate.

Myth #3 – Personalizing isn’t necessary at all.

This could perhaps be the worst marketing advice that you could ever follow.

In brick-and-mortar shops, customers love and appreciate it when their shopping experience is tailored to their needs. Take your favourite coffee shop for instance—don’t you love it when the barista immediately knows your order and has your favourite cup of coffee ready for you when you swing by?

A one size fits all approach to marketing isn’t advisable in this day and age, when you have at your disposal all the tools to help you create customized content and messages.

Try—

• Geotargeting based on your user’s location or traffic source to provide more relevant information.
• Suggesting products based on your customer’s previous purchases to boost engagement.
• Addressing your customers by their first names when you send out your regular emailers and newsletters.

Myth #4 – A/B testing is unnecessary

When in doubt, test it.

Again, this is something that can be easily done through the use of automation tools.  There’s no excuse as to why you can’t set one up to make sure that you’re able to determine what kind of content works best to elicit a response from your users.

Focus on—

• Testing your subject line for emails—this is a vital factor that could determine whether or not your email gets opened.
• Experimenting different ways of presenting your call to action.
• Placement of images—this will help you see what formats prompt the most engagement.

Myth #5 – Don’t worry about SEO

Think about how many people go on search engines daily to learn about a particular product or service. Then think about how many websites are able to answer and address their needs. To get noticed among a sea of competitors, you need to stand out from the rest. And the best way to do that still is by optimizing for search engines.

Consider the following—

• Whenever someone searches for a particular keyword, the top three results will get 60 percent of the clicks, making SEO a critical part of marketing strategies.
• Search will drive ten times more traffic to shopping sites versus social media.
• 66 percent of marketers say SEO is vital to their online presence.

Steer clear of these marketing myths and you’ll put yourself ahead of the game, easily. And if you know of any more worth mentioning, make sure that you tell us all about it and leave us a comment below.

And if you’d like to know how our services can help give your business a boost, get in touch with us today.