When companies consider making the leap into social media, it often strikes fear in the hearts of those who will be leading the charge as much as those who in charge. It’s easy to cite any number of concerns and barriers to overcome, but the truth is, these common fears need not paralyze us in our efforts. Whether you’re working within your company to convince your team of the necessity of social media or trying to weigh the benefits and risks of jumping in, the following discussion of the most common barriers will help guide you towards success in social media.

How do I build and maintain a social media presence?

The most important thing to remember when joining a social network is that it is an ongoing commitment, but in turn you’ll have exponentially more opportunities to communicate with your consumer base and provide value to them. As you grow your online presence, you’ll find that that certain approaches work better than others, so you’ll need to revisit your social media plan regularly. This doesn’t mean that your campaign isn’t working; it means it is merely getting streamlined and becoming more effective. Social media works in real-time, so we must respond likewise.

Social media is “nice to have” but not something we “need to have.”

This is perhaps the most common argument against breaking into social media. Many companies see it as something they think they should probably do and a thrifty means of communication, but many don’t recognize its potential, or the lost competitive opportunity if they decide not to leverage social media. These days, consumers are beginning to expect the choice to opt-in to this level of communication with brands they care about; if your competitor is open and available to conversations with their audience via social media, your audience is more likely to feel separated and alienated from you if you aren’t also there. And while it’s important to find your brand’s sweet spot and provide a value specific to your customers and the medium’s potential before just sticking up a Facebook fan page or getting on Twitter, not being there at all can take away from your brand value as a whole.

Social media is for a younger, hipper crowd than our consumer base.

It’s been discussed time and time again, and even though it may seem shocking, social networks are far more diverse than we may think, with the audience skewing more and more towards baby boomers and late-adopters of technology. Facebook has found a huge following among their original audience’s parent’s generation, making baby boomers the fastest growing segment of the total community; in fact, in February and March of this year, the number of users over 35 nearly doubled. Similarly, it has been well documented that Twitter users skew significantly older than other social media. As our lives become more saturated with technology that is increasingly intuitive, more people are finding it more accessible and are creating their own digital presence.

Next week, we’ll cover fears of inviting criticism, as well has how to both pay those who implement social media campaigns and how to determine success.

Claire Grinton is a brand strategist and writer based in San Francisco. Find more from Claire or contact her at claire[dot]grinton[at]gmail.com.

Tags: Blogging, community, discussion, Social Media, social network, Strategy, the right way, transparency, trust