Why You Shouldn't Base Your Business Strategy Solely on Social Media Platforms

Table of Contents

  1. Introduction
  2. The Allure of Social Media as Borrowed Land
  3. The Risks of Relying Solely on Borrowed Land
  4. The Alternative: Building on Owned Land
  5. Strategies for Diversifying Your Business Land
  6. FAQs

Introduction

Imagine waking up one morning to find that your business's main marketing channel, a social media platform where you've amassed thousands of followers, has suddenly changed its algorithm. Your posts' reach plummets overnight, sales drop, and all that effort in building your audience seems wasted. This scenario illustrates the risk of "building your business on borrowed land." The term refers to relying heavily on platforms like Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and TikTok for marketing—a strategy fraught with uncertainties due to the lack of control over these external platforms. In this comprehensive guide, you'll explore the concept of borrowed vs. owned land in digital marketing, understand the risks involved, and learn strategies to mitigate these risks by diversifying your marketing efforts.

The Allure of Social Media as Borrowed Land

Social media platforms offer apparent advantages that make them attractive for marketing. Their ease of use, free access, and vast user bases make them seem like the perfect channels to promote a business. They're designed to be user-friendly, requiring no coding knowledge, hence accessible to a broad range of business owners, including those without a marketing background. Social media excels in building communities, allowing businesses to engage directly with their audience.

However, these benefits come with significant downsides due to the nature of these platforms being borrowed land.

The Risks of Relying Solely on Borrowed Land

  1. Lack of Control: You are at the mercy of the platform's rules and algorithm changes. Any modification in policies can severely impact your visibility and engagement rates.

  2. Algorithm Changes: Social media algorithms are notorious for being unpredictable. Your content's reach can diminish drastically with a single update, leaving you scrambling to adapt.

  3. Limited Tracking and Analytics: While social media platforms offer analytics, they often don't provide the depth of insight needed to measure ROI effectively.

  4. Restricted Visibility: The harsh reality is that a tiny fraction of your followers actually see your posts. This limitation significantly hampers relationship building and community nurturing efforts.

Given these disadvantages, it's clear that a business strategy heavily reliant on social media is precarious.

The Alternative: Building on Owned Land

Owned land in digital marketing refers to channels or digital properties under your full control. Examples include:

  • Company Websites: A domain you own, offering complete freedom in design, functionality, and content.

  • Business Blogs: Hosted on your domain, allowing you to shape the narrative and establish thought leadership in your industry.

  • Email Marketing Lists: Perhaps the most critical asset, an email list is a direct line to your audience, unaffected by external algorithm changes.

Advantages of Owned Land

  • Complete Control: You dictate every aspect, from design to content, ensuring your marketing aligns with your business goals.

  • Data Ownership: Direct access to analytics and user data enables you to make informed decisions and tailor your marketing strategies effectively.

  • Long-term Value: Investing in owned channels leads to sustained growth, with your digital assets gaining value over time.

Disadvantages of Owned Land

  • Upfront Costs: Unlike social media, creating and maintaining owned properties requires an initial investment.

  • Technical Skills: Setting up and managing these assets may require more technical expertise than navigating social media platforms.

  • Building Audience: Unlike the ready-made audience on social media, attracting visitors to your owned properties requires more effort.

Strategies for Diversifying Your Business Land

Recognizing the risks of borrowed land doesn't mean abandoning these platforms altogether. Instead, the goal is to balance between borrowed and owned land.

  1. Establish a Robust Online Presence: Creating a website should be your priority, starting with a few essential pages and expanding as your business grows.

  2. Build an Email List: This is crucial for direct engagement with your audience. Start collecting emails as soon as possible to develop a platform-independent communication channel.

  3. Use Social Media Wisely: Rather than the core of your marketing strategy, treat social media as a supplementary channel to direct traffic to your owned properties.

FAQs

Q: Can I solely rely on social media for marketing if my business is small? A: While tempting due to low costs, it's risky. Even small businesses should start building owned channels to secure their long-term presence.

Q: What's the first step towards moving off borrowed land? A: Invest in a website and start building an email list. These assets will serve as the foundation of your digital marketing strategy.

Q: How do I balance marketing between owned and borrowed land? A: Use social media to engage and attract your audience but focus on driving them to your website or signing up for your email list where you have more control.

In conclusion, while the allure of social media's vast audiences and ease of use is undeniable, the importance of building on owned land cannot be overstated. By diversifying your marketing strategy to include owned channels, you safeguard your business against the whims of borrowed platforms, ensuring stability and growth in the long term. This approach doesn't mean abandoning borrowed land altogether but strategically using it to enhance and support your presence on your owned properties.