Debunked: 8 social media marketing myths
Whether you’re promoting flowers on Facebook, ice cream on Instagram, or trainers on TikTok, a strong social media presence is a must for any online store!
However, there are a lot of myths about social media out there. Many people say it’s just for young people or that it’s purely a numbers game. And that can mean eCommerce stores don’t get off to the right start when planning their social media strategy.
We’ve put this guide together to debunk eight common myths about social media. Read through, and you’ll understand more about how social media works and how to use it to increase brand awareness and sales.
Article topics
- Social media is just for kids
- You need to be on every single social media platform
- Hashtags are essential if you want to get noticed
- Social media is great because it’s free
- Social media is just for broadcasting your messages
- All your social media posts must be polished and professional
- The more followers you have, the better
- You have to ‘pay to play’ to get noticed on social media these days
1. Social media is just for kids
As an eCommerce agency, one of the most common myths we hear about social media is that it’s only meant for young people.
TikTok is frequently talked about as being a platform for Gen Z, while teenagers say they use Instagram and Snapchat on a daily basis.
The reality
People of all ages use social media, meaning no matter who your target audience is, there’s a platform that’s right for your needs.
If you want to target an older audience, Facebook is a great starting point, with 72% of adults aged 50+ on there. However, 16% of older people use TikTok and 8% use Snapchat too, meaning these platforms aren’t exclusively for teens and young adults!
The best approach is to ask your target audience which platforms they frequently use. You can then create high-quality content that grabs their attention.
Take Cotswold Collections, a clothing brand for mature women. It’s got a bright and engaging Instagram presence, not only showing off its latest collections, but also stunning countryside photos.
2. You need to be on every single social media platform
X, Pinterest, Facebook, YouTube, Bluesky… There are a lot of popular social media platforms out there!
Not only this, but there are also plenty of lesser-known ones like Nextdoor, Mastodon, Lemon8, and Kick.
When you want to increase brand awareness and promote your business to new audiences, it makes sense to be on as many different platforms as possible.
However, this strategy can be counterproductive.
The reality
When you’re on too many social media platforms, you run the risk of spreading yourself too thin. You may not post regularly enough to appeal to customers and stand out in the social media algorithm, or you may give up and end up not posting at all.
37% of people say that the content that brands post on social is the number one reason that impacts their trust in a business. So if you don’t post or post inconsistently, it can affect how prospective customers see you.
It’s far better to post regularly on one or two platforms than to hardly ever post on nine or ten.
Which platforms should you choose? The best approach is to ask your ideal customers which social media platforms they spend the most time on. Alternatively, you can see which social media platforms your competitors get the most engagement on.
3. Choose the right field type for your questions
This myth is slightly different from the rest in this article. In the past, it was a ‘truth’ – using hashtags did help you amplify your reach.
However, hashtags have become less relevant over the years.
The reality
Social media algorithms have become smarter over the last few years. In the past, you’d use hashtags to promote your posts to people who weren’t following you. Now the platforms have curated ‘for you’ and ‘discovery’ pages that do the same thing.
Platforms have actively taken measures to throttle hashtags. Threads only allows one per post, while Instagram recently reduced the number you can use from thirty to five.
Hashtags still serve a purpose. You can use them to curate your branded content, run social media competitions, and gather user-generated content. But they’re not the brand-discovery tool they used to be.
4. Social media is great because it’s free
Google Ads, influencer posts… When you’re an eCommerce business, marketing costs can quickly add up!
Many businesses love social media as they can sign up for free, making it an effective way to reach customers when they’re on a budget.
However… is this entirely true, especially in 2026?
The reality
While most social media platforms are free at the point of use, there are hidden costs.
If you use an agency to handle your social media presence, there’s an upfront cost. Even if you manage your social media in-house, you need to consider your marketing team’s time and resources.
There may also be costs for scheduling software, graphic design tools, and video editing software, as well as paid social ads if you choose to use them.
Some social media platforms now have a two-tier system of account management.
X and Meta both offer premium subscriptions with extra features, while on LinkedIn, companies can pay for premium company pages. This means additional costs you may need to factor into your social media marketing budget.
5. Social media is just for broadcasting your messages
Back in the day, social media was a one-way street. eCommerce businesses could use it to tell customers about what products were on offer, how to take advantage of special offers, and how to style the products they bought.
However, people now spend an increasing amount of time on social media. In 2012, people spent 90 minutes a day on social media. Now, this time has increased to 141 minutes. As a result, people’s relationships with social media have changed too.
The reality
People now expect businesses on social media to do more. They want businesses to answer their questions, solve their complaints, and listen to their thoughts and ideas.
One in two people say they have used social media to complain, with people in the UAE the most likely to use social media to make their voice heard.
Businesses need to invest time in not only posting, but also responding to comments on posts. This not only stops frustrated customers from walking away but helps to build strong, long-term customer relationships.
6. All your social media posts must be polished and professional
When it comes to marketing, many businesses understand that every single piece of content that they make must be high-quality.
Blogs must be checked for spelling and grammar, emails must be checked for broken links, and any call-to-actions need to be thoroughly tested.
While your social media presence must be error-free, unproduced, organic content is seeing a huge surge in popularity.
The reality
Customers want honesty and authenticity from the brands they interact with online, with 81% saying they need to trust a brand before they can buy from it.
Spontaneous, unplanned social media content, whether that’s responding to memes, talking about what’s in the news, or organising an impromptu livestream, is great for showing customers your human side.
(Some larger companies are taking things even further by hiring content creators to run their social media channels.)
7. The more followers you have, the better
There’s nothing more exciting than seeing that you have a new follower on social media.
And the truth is, many businesses include how many followers they’ve gained in their monthly and quarterly reports to stakeholders.
However, with the rise of bots and paid followers, is this metric that important?
The reality
Follower counts are what are known as a ‘vanity metric’ – while the number of followers you have looks good on paper, it doesn’t tell you anything about your business.
Some successful eCommerce stores have a small, yet highly engaged number of followers, while others have lots of followers that don’t engage at all.
In fact, some social media platforms are starting to downplay follower counts. Instagram has started to test displaying mutual friends over the number of followers.
8. You have to ‘pay to play’ to get noticed on social media these days
Is social media ‘pay to play’? By this, we mean do you have to pay for advertising to make sure your content gets seen?
Unfortunately yes. Social media is free at the point of use, so social media platforms have to do what they can to encourage additional revenue.
This may mean your organic content doesn’t get the reach you hoped for.
In 2012, Facebook’s organic reach was 16%, meaning for every 100 people who followed your company page, 16 saw your posts in their newsfeed. Now it’s believed reach ranges from 2% to 1.5%.
The reality
While reduced reach is annoying, there are still ways you can make your content stand out without paying for ads. 70% of SMEs don’t pay for social advertising at all.
The trick is to create content that people want to engage with, whether that’s likes, comments, shares, or saves.
It’s also important to bear in mind that good reach isn’t always the end goal. Your post may only reach 100 people, but if all those people are interested in your brand, you’re good to go.
Level up your social media with Xigen
Social media can be one of the easiest marketing platforms to get started with, but it can also be one of the hardest to master.
You need to know who your target audience is, create content that encourages them to engage, and track the right metrics to understand what works. Not a lot to ask, we know!
If you need a little extra help getting your social media marketing in line, we’re here to support you. Our team of eCommerce experts will create high-quality images and videos that stop the scroll and help you build paid social campaigns that spread the word about your business.
Get in touch today and let’s get your social media sorted!
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