We’ve all seen “self-destructive marketing.” It’s those half-hearted attempts that are so cringe-worthy that they actually hurt the company. It could be a website that uses blurry images or graphics from the 1990s or a Facebook page that hasn’t been updated since last Halloween. It could also be much more subtle, but just as detrimental. Either way, it puts the business in such a bad light that customers wouldn’t touch the brand with a ten-foot poll, let alone purchase from them.

In the age of social media, a brand has a responsibility to represent itself on the most used platforms on the web. Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn have become standards and depending on your industry, Instagram, Snapchat, Pinterest and other platforms can expand your reach. But what happens if you make these accounts and sully your brand with self-destructive marketing?

In short, your business will suffer. It’s easier to sabotage your marketing efforts than you may think. Self-destructive marketing can include the following:

– Offensive,  politically biased, or vulgar content

– Low-quality imagery

– Poorly written copy

– Broken links

– Slow or non-existent responses to customer communications

– Inconsistent publishing

– Only promotions

– Using false or outdated material

When companies do the above blunders, it’s not only noticeable, but it’s unprofessional. If your company sends content out, it’s out, plain and simple. With a poor strategy and lackluster content, your marketing will backfire by making your whole brand seem unprofessional, illegitimate, and unreliable.

Social media can help a brand reach new heights of online visibility and have access to an audience they wouldn’t have otherwise. However, if you send out poor quality content, you’ll have the same type of results. Engagement will go down, customer satisfaction will drop, and you will lose a very powerful tool.

How can you stop this from happening? Strategize! Craft compelling copy and professional-grade visuals. Most importantly, take social media seriously and devote the time required to post consistently and create an approachable avenue for customer communication.

Interested in doing social media right? There’s no better way to do it than contacting the pros. We have the expertise to help your brand tackle the online marketing world and look good doing it!