Which Way Is Up? Making Sense of Social Media Marketing

I was reading a post on Yahoo about healthy foods. Nutrition science is so frustrating to follow. One day chocolate is bad for you, the next day some dark chocolate is good for you; one day alcohol is bad, the next day a glass of red wine is helpful; new diets... new plans... the list goes on.

I have found internet marketing to be much the same way. The moment you read something and really get on board, you hear that it is yesterday's news. For example Facebook. Facebook is huge. There are courses on how to market on Facebook. There are Facebook consultants and more products than you can imagine relating to Facebook. But if you read a recent post by Social Media Examiner, they are saying that Facebook is no longer "it"; Facebook is a sinking ship. How frustrating is that? I just finished my Facebook marketing e-book! For many real estate agents, it takes a long time to build a Facebook audience. The good news is that if you are a real estate agent you can relax, since much of the audience that is going away is teenagers-people who are not buying homes anyway.

So here is my advice. It is great to read what all the experts have to say so you are up on industry trends, but the at the end of the day, the greatest experts are right in front of you. Your best consultant may even be the one in the mirror.

Many of us started a business or a blog because that topic was of interest to us and/or the people we care about. Very rarely do people dive into a business regarding something they have zero connection to. Sometimes you have to look at what advertising has turned you into a customer. Not when you were doing business research-just on a casual day. You must have purchased something this year. What got you there?

If the experts are saying Facebook is very "yesterday," but you use Facebook all the time, then keep on using Facebook to do your advertising. More often than not, your customers are a direct reflection of you and the ones you love.

Do a case study of what you and your loved ones use. When you are talking to clients, ask them about their internet habits. This can be done in a casual, conversational way. Combine that with educating yourself on the latest trends, and you will have a much more clear idea of the big picture for you. Because if you constantly read the experts on what is an ever-changing landscape, eventually you will not know which way is up.