In this eBook we dive into some of the common misconceptions about social management software. We're busting myths about #SMMS tools so social media teams like yours can adopt the best platform for your needs.

2. In the grand scheme of communications,
social media is pretty new to the scene.
Along with social media emerged social
media management platforms designed
to help brands and agencies manage
their social media presences and
conversations with customers.

3. The space is moving fast –
and misconceptions abound.
With social media teams juggling
so much, it’s tough to keep up with
all the new technology available.
To make this process a little easier,
we’ve gathered 11 of the biggest
myths about enterprise social
media management platforms…

4. MYTH 1
THERE’S NOT THAT MUCH DIFFERENCE
BETWEEN USING EACH NETWORK NATIVELY
VERSUS USING A MANAGEMENT TOOL.

5. You have loads of free time, right?
One of the biggest pain points of social teams
is a lack of time. Saving time creating, planning,
scheduling, approving, and publishing posts
to multiple networks and promotions on
those networks means creating more valuable
time for your team. And when it comes to
responding to your community’s questions
and replies, a social management platform lets
you monitor posts from a variety of networks
in one place, tag comments for reference,
and assign team members tasks to respond.

6. MYTH 2
THERE ARE SO MANY SOCIAL
MANAGEMENT PLATFORMS OUT THERE.
BUT THEY’RE ALL THE SAME.

7. Not all social management tools are the same,
and no one platform makes sense for every
brand. The trick is to find the one that works
best for your team, your goals, and your hopes
for your social program. Your priorities will
determine which SMMS is best, with some
excelling in services and others with strong
product offerings. Building your personal
checklist for selecting the right SMMS for
you will ensure that among the available
tools on the market today, you’re finding
your brand’s perfect match.

8. MYTH 3
SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS ARE
ONLY FOR THE LARGEST GLOBAL BRANDS.

9. Social management platforms are an asset
to companies that aren’t in the Fortune 500
(although they work wonders for them, too).
Many smaller companies have equally engaged
social communities, which means responding
to replies and comments is just as important.
Community management for multiple networks,
response workflows, content calendars,
contests, and analytics are vital for all socially
active brands. Having this within one tool helps
mid-size to large brands scale their social efforts.

10. MYTH 4
YOU CAN TRACK SOCIAL MEDIA
JUST AS EASILY WITH FREE TOOLS
AND SPREADSHEETS.

11. Ah, the spreadsheet. It’s a necessary evil
sometimes, but for social media tracking it
doesn’t have to be. What if you could create
custom reports with just the metrics that
are important to you, across networks, and
share and export those results? Social media
management platforms make this possible.

12. MYTH 5
I CAN GET THE SAME ANALYTICS
FOR MY FACEBOOK PAGE THROUGH
FACEBOOK INSIGHTS.

13. Not so fast. It’s true that Facebook Insights
provide heaps of metrics for the Facebook
Page admin. But social management tools
take the most popular metrics a step further,
helping you visualize and analyze what that
data means – for your content, your posting
schedule, and your community.

14. MYTH 6
I CAN’T AFFORD TO PAY FOR DESIGN AND
DEVELOPMENT CHANGES WITH EVERY CAMPAIGN,
AND THAT’S WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU ADOPT
AN ENTERPRISE SOCIAL MEDIA TOOL. WE’RE
NOT EVEN SURE WE CAN AFFORD AN ENTERPRISE
SOCIAL MANAGEMENT PLATFORM.

15. We agree – paying for even the smallest changes
to your social designs is a drag, not just on your
deadlines, but on your budget as well. Social
marketing platforms that include usable, flexible
social design tools let your team create contests,
Facebook apps, web pages, and more – and let
you edit and update your live designs, whether
you’re running five or 5,000.
Today’s marketing budgets are being stretched
and changed to accommodate a fragmented
marketing landscape. It can be tricky to set
aside the expense for an enterprise tool.
What you will gain, however, adds real value
to your social media efforts.

16. MYTH 7
WE HAVE AN AGENCY THAT HELPS US
MANAGE SOCIAL MEDIA, SO WE DON’T NEED
A SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGEMENT PLATFORM.

17. That’s one of the beauties of the social
management platform – it makes it easier
for you and your agency to collaborate on
content. Everyone can log in, use design
tools for Facebook apps and contests, build
custom workflows, fill in editorial calendars
and create shareable, customizable reports.
Why not get social with your agency by
working together in the same platform?

18. MYTH 8
USING SOCIAL CUSTOMER DATA ISN’T
REALLY HAPPENING IN COMPANIES YET, SO
I DON’T NEED A TECHNOLOGY PLATFORM
TO HELP ME DO THAT QUITE YET.

19. Data is making the marketing world go ‘round
– and it’s happening now. 78% of marketers
planned to either further integrate social
customer data in 2013 or get started on that
integration.1
To be able to use social data,
you need a tool that will collect this information
across networks and initiatives (think: social
promotions and contests) and will allow
you filter that data to learn more about
your social customers.
1
Source: Infogroup Targeting Solutions and Yesmail Interactive via MarketingProfs:
“Marketers Upping the Ante on Big Data in 2013” link:
http://www.marketingprofs.com/charts/2013/9904/marketers-upping-the-ante-on-big-data-in-2013

20. MYTH 9
WE’RE DOING JUST FINE GETTING APPROVALS
FOR CONTENT THROUGH EMAIL, HAVING
FORMAL WORKFLOW SYSTEM WOULD JUST
COMPLICATE THINGS.

21. It’s tough to achieve zero inbox (and maintain
your sanity) when you’re flooded with threads
of edits to posts, tweets, art, and copy. If you’re
looking for a way to send the right people a
note to approve something, get feedback, and
have a lasting audit trail of the process, social
management systems provide this – without
the endless, inefficient back and forth of email.

22. MYTH 10
WE LET OUR FRANCHISES, LOCATION
MANAGERS, AND AGENTS DO THEIR OWN
SOCIAL MEDIA, SO WE DON’T NEED A
PLATFORM TO MANAGE EVERYTHING.

23. If your individual locations are active on social
media, bravo! But what if you could take it to the
next level? Social management platforms let you:
Establish workflow that helps prevent
social media gaffes.
Let you publish consistently branded social
designs across hundreds of presences.
Show you reports that help your location
learn what’s working for others and improve.
Easily funnel down creative content that
would otherwise take more resources and
time for franchises to duplicate on their own.

24. MYTH 11
IT TAKES A LONG TIME FOR AN
ENTERPRISE SOCIAL MANAGEMENT PLATFORM
TO GET IMPLEMENTED. WE’RE TOO BUSY
TO OVERSEE THIS CHANGE.

25. If you work in social media, there’s no
doubt you’re busy. But that shouldn’t stop
you from adopting technology that will help
make your efforts better. Implementation time
can be as little as 24 hours to turn on and
only two weeks for full implementation on
some platforms, especially independent
platforms that are IT agnostic.

26. Have questions about social
media management platforms?
We’re here to bust myths and give you
what your team needs to know. Contact us
to see if what you know is myth or fact.
sales@shoutlet.com | www.shoutlet.com
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