The Social Media mavens tell you that you have to maximize your presence on Twitter… and Facebook… and Pinterest… and Google+… and LinkedIn… and…

I mean, they’re free, right?  Why wouldn’t you?

Of course, these are the same gurus who used to be in traditional advertising and told you to make sure you had your message on TV, Radio, Newsprint and Billboards so that you would reach everyone in multiple ways which would make the messages sink in better (it doesn’t – read page 3)

And guess what?  They are both wrong!

You don’t have to do all the social media.  You don’t really have to do any of them.  Sure, they all work in one way or another.  Sure, they all can help your business.  Sure, they all cost time instead of money.  Sure, you can still go broke investing all your time into them.

Advertising and marketing are and have always been about maximizing your ROI – return on investment.  The difference between the social media and regular advertising (besides that they are used completely differently – but you already knew that) is that one costs time, the other costs money.

But you still need to make sure you are not spending too much capital.  Your time is more valuable than you think.

The advice I give for social media is the same advice I give for regular advertising.  Pick one medium and do it to the absolute best of your ability.  Don’t worry about the other media.  You only have time/money for one, so pick one and do it better than everyone else.

It really is that simple.

-Phil Wrzesinski
www.PhilsForum.com

PS  For Toy House I picked Facebook.  I like FB for pictures and videos and conversations.  For Phils Forum I primarily use this blog.  I like the framework.  It gives me enough room to make my point.  Yes, I use Twitter, but only as a means for delivering my blog.