I frequently bemoan the state of online marketing today. We have such a great opportunity as small businesses to really connect with our customers to make them more than just anonymous one time consumers of our wares and make them part of our families.

Unfortunately the way most social media streams are managed, we seem more like carnival barkers inviting people to the freak show.

“You won’t believe what happens next!”

“Like and Share to wish this poor kitty good luck as he’s stuck in  a well!”

It makes my head hurt.

The beauty of social media as a platform isn’t the ability to get large numbers of followers, but to create depth with smaller numbers. The spray and pray of mass media doesn’t execute gracefully online, but creating quality content and interacting with followers will win in the long run because it creates strong connections with customers. That is the place where you will find social media the most successful.

Further Reading: Why Attention Is No Longer Our Scarcest Resource
Photo Credit: Flickr Commons