In today’s world, many rumors make you believe certain things. Especially in marketing, there are rules or tactics designed to make you purchase or believe ideas quickly, often without much caution. For example, you might notice urgency settings on sales pages or criticism of competitors, which can sway people to trust a particular source.
I don’t want you to fall into a rabbit hole of uncertainty about what is right or wrong.
So, here are 5 myths about social media marketing that many businesses overlook:
1. Going viral videos are necessary for generating leads
Many businesses are obsessed with the idea of going viral, believing that it will make their business flourish right after this type of video.
However, I want you to think about the moment you bought a lottery ticket hoping it would solve all your financial problems, or had something you thought would change your life, only to find it provided only temporary pleasure.
We all dream of shortcuts, but the hard truth is that going viral does not guarantee results. Viral content often follows trends, memes, or formulas that may not relate to your offer. While people might engage with your content through likes, comments, or shares, they may not follow you or engage with what you offer because it isn’t relevant enough.
For example, when I consulted for an 8-figure education company with over 500K followers on IG, they told me, “People engage with our content, but they rarely take actions that generate leads. What should we do?”
2. Low views and low engagement mean no conversions
We tend to get overwhelmed when we see low engagement on our content, wondering what went wrong.
But the truth is… low views and engagement at the start are common and don’t fully measure content performance. It can even take months to determine if content has generated proper leads or sales.
Before deciding your content failed, let’s consider these questions:
- Was there an actionable step for people to follow (e.g., how-tos)?
- Was the title and thumbnail optimized well?
- Was your hook/title/thumbnail related to your audience’s pain points?
If you answered YES to these questions, your content is on track—just give it some time.
For example, even a video with fewer than 100 views led to closing a deal with a 7-figure business for us.
3. Social media marketing is not for B2B
I often hear, “Social media marketing isn’t a priority for us; our sales come from direct sales.”
But the truth is, B2B companies should also use social media marketing as their lead generation tool.
Why? Because your audience is searching for solutions to their pain points through search engines or social media channels like YouTube or TikTok. For example, Rachel Pedersen, who is my mentor, was discovered by Dean Graziosi’s team on YouTube, leading to a consulting opportunity. Similarly, a B2B health company in India told me that their primary lead generation source is YouTube.
Don’t miss this opportunity—creating organic content is free!
4. Social media marketing should start only after a product/service launch
Stop this thinking now!
The truth is, people won’t engage with your product right away if you’re new online. Instead, use social media to build excitement and engage with your target audience months before the launch.
For example, you could start with some teasers months in advance. Host events or share content to engage with your target audience before the launch.
By the time you officially launch, they’ll already be interested in you and your product/offer. That’s the power of social media marketing.
5. Polished, highly branded content is necessary for a business
Many brands worry about harming their image, believing that a polished look is essential to appear professional and be a leader in the industry.
But in social media marketing, most people don’t want to see advertisements from businesses. Polished, highly branded content can actually harm your content marketing performance.
For example, a client running Facebook ads with high costs and low click-through rates saw improvements when we incorporated authenticity into their ads. We increased their conversion rate from 7% to 41% (for app downloads) and reduced ad costs by 53%.
Highly polished and branded content can kill performance. But there’s a way to maintain your brand’s look while achieving high engagement.
To learn more, watch this video: 7 Steps to Design a Professional IG Feed (Wish I Knew This Sooner!)
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Hyein
I’m an award-winning global marketing expert running HY Marketing in South Korea. We help businesses succeed in South Korea, Japan, and English-speaking markets through social media and Facebook ads.
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