Social media marketing can be a tricky industry to apply rules. First, the industry changes rapidly and secondly being creative can mean the difference between success and failure. Except for things that violate the terms of service (which you’ve probably never read, but should!), you’re pretty much given free liberty to post a broad range of things with little to no restrictions. However, just because you can do something, doesn’t mean you should. Although it’s extremely tempting to duplicate content on Facebook for Twitter, especially considering the how convenient they’ve made it to synchronize the two, it’s one of those things you shouldn’t do. Here’s why:
1. It’s Boring
It’s probably safe to say that the people that are friends with you or like your page on Facebook follow you on Twitter, right? Well, here’s the thing. Even though different social media platforms can do the same things, like posting small blurbs of text and hosting photos, people perceive them differently, which we’ll get to in a minute. Because they’re perceived differently, your friends and followers want to see different things when they read your posts, otherwise it’s like repeating the same story twice to a person in one visit. And even though you enjoy telling the story, they probably don’t want to hear it.
2. They Actually Are Different Networks
You’re probably connected in some way with that one person on Facebook who seems to post novels in place of status updates. While this can get annoying, unless you have a deep interest in the poster, it happens because Facebook is an ideal platform for that. Whether you’re posting a story or posting a link to a story, Facebook allows room for expansion that gives your audience a glimpse at what they’re about to read, unlike Twitter whose limited texts posts are about as effective as newspaper headline – concise, to the point, and interesting. See the difference?
3. Each Audience Accepts Information Differently
In many cases, no matter how loved and popular a Facebook user is, friends and followers will probably not enjoy frequent posts that narrate every tiny life event that occurs. Twitter users, however, expect frequent updates, making it the ideal platform for live updates on progressive events such as debates and sports games. This goes for both businesses and personal accounts.
4. The Brevity of Twitter Posts Encourages a Different Type of Interaction Than Facebook
Although both social media platforms encourage responses from friends and followers, Twitter posts encourage responses from a body of voices not limited to those who connect to your page. Through the use of hashtags, Twitter members can tap into trending posts, so if you’re posting a witty response on Facebook to the latest it topic on Twitter, your audience probably won’t understand the punchline. However, Facebook posts can provide a more personal atmosphere if you’re promoting a business, as you have a lot more mediums to help spread your message.
5. Posting the Exact Same Thing Makes Two Platforms Pointless
The whole point of using two different social media platforms to promote or stay in touch with the people you direct your commentary to is to make sure they stay informed. By posting the same content on two different platforms, you’re robbing yourself of an extra step that can help boost your popularity. That’s not to say that similar posts aren’t beneficial. See, if you’re posting photos on Facebook of a product, you can tweet that link to your followers and caption it with a different, interesting comment that can be tagged with a trending topic. If you’re posting the exact same words in both places, your followers will begin to feel like you’re more robotic than human and if they still pay attention to your updates, they’ll likely unfollow you on one medium.
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