Promo Industry: 6 Habits That Need to Stop on Social

Guys, I’m sorry, but we need to talk. We all know social media can be a powerful tool – especially in the promotional products industry. With all of its perks, it can also be time-consuming, frustrating, unhealthy and sometimes cringe-y.

Now, I’ve broken my fair share of the following rules (inevitable, as an active social media user since I was 13). But lately, I’ve noticed many practices that actually detract from people’s – specifically those in our industry’s – use of the tool. With help from members in the Promotional Products Young Professionals Facebook group, here’s the condensed list of six habits to kick in order to be more approachable, efficient and successful on social media:

Getting political

Freedom of speech is not freedom of consequences. Yes, you are 10000% percent in your rights to share your opinion. Always consider that you could be alienating your customers, co-workers or prospects by posting too much about politics.

Using a profile picture that isn’t you

Really sorry if this one hits home for anyone, but if your primary use for your social media account is for business, it shouldn’t be a baby or dog (even though they’re probably adorable). It should be a nice photo of you (or you with your partner or friends, etc.) – If you’re messaging someone or commenting on a post, remember that your profile pic is the image representing “you”.

Being too “salesy”

Look at your content ratio – is it mostly flyers, static product images or graphics? Social media is social – your followers want content that feels personal. Before posting, ask yourself: “Am I creating a relationship with my followers?”

Many promo people subscribe to content services. There’s nothing wrong with doing so as long as you’re supplementing with interesting, personalized content along with it.

“People buy from people they like and social is the place to show that but don't be weird,” explains Jessica Gibbons-Rausch. Many people tend to underestimate the time, creativity and strategy it takes to maintain a company’s social presence. Gibbons-Rausch adds, “Also, the idea of ‘something is better than nothing’ is not true. Bad will break your brand.”

Lazy sourcing

 Facebook groups are an incredibly helpful tool – especially for those unique projects, but so often, a simple search in ESP, Sage or Distributor Central could immediately solve the problem.

Additionally, a far under-utilized tool in Facebook groups is the search function. This is extra helpful when you’re looking for a specific solution or name brands. (Tip: if you’re searching for a phrase, put quotes around it to get more accurate results. For example, searching “20oz Otterbox Tumbler” will yield much better results than 20oz Otterbox Tumbler.).

All this being said, default with kindness when you see these posts. We have many new people in the industry who are just trying to learn the ropes. Sometimes, inexperience can be mistaken for laziness.

Venting to the wrong audience

There is a time and place to vent, and social is a great place for that…in the right context. Direct message or put together a private group of trusted friends or co-workers if you just need to blow off some steam. If you are in a public or semi-public space, best practice is to act with empathy, humor and collaboration.

“Everyone is going through something, even if it's not COVID. Scroll past. Don't engage,” explains Andrea Pereira, Managing Director at Rocket Science Branding. “When you engage with negativity, you're just telling the algorithm to push that content more!”

Using a million hashtags

The reason hashtags exist is so that people can see your content when they follow or search that hashtag. Keep it limited to two or three and make sure that they’re relevant to what you’re talking about. Too many will make it look spam-y or desperate.

This is not a perfect list – nor is it complete. Yes, the “right” and “wrong” way to use social media will always be a subjective matter, especially as the “rules” continue to evolve. However, every one of us needs to be cognizant of social strategy, online identity (especially being in sales) and practices that might be undermining your true intentions.