Connect with us

Success Advice

5 Marketing Tactics That You Should Stop Wasting Your Time On

Published

on

marketing tactics you should stop using
Image Credit: Unsplash

Marketing is part & parcel of an everyday business. We have arrived at an arena where digital marketing has become really important for building brands and generating sales. There are new technologies, options, resources, and tools that have been recently introduced and all of them seem like an untapped goldmine to a marketer. 

In such circumstances, it has become extremely crucial for a marketer to follow a sound marketing strategy and cut down on frivolous time-wasters. Time wasted is money lost. To grow a business, a marketer needs to identify the feasibility of the time that they are investing in their marketing efforts.

So here are 5 time-consuming marketing tactics that you should leave behind:

1. Trying to be active on every social media network

Social media has proven to be one of the most useful tools for marketing. Companies have started the practice of hiring personnel just to handle their social media presence and most companies have huge social media marketing budgets as well. And, why not? It is an astounding tool to generate brand awareness not only for well known, big-scale operations but also for local, small businesses.

Now, you might be thinking, “Where is the problem?” There are a couple of them. For example, companies tend to get on every social media bandwagon without researching if their target demographic is following suit. Growing your community on social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram can take up a lot of resources and time. If you keep adding on to it, you are inevitably going to end up wasting a lot of time.

It’s better to identify one engaging community and invest in it. For example, if you are a strictly corporate business, well-maintained Facebook and LinkedIn profiles will serve you well. If, however, you are a small business that makes furniture, growing your business via Instagram will be your best bet.

It is up to you to understand the habits of your target audience and focus your time and energy on the platforms that are creating the most impact for you. So if you’re mindlessly spending a lot of your time and energy on each and every social media platform, take a step back and breathe. Focus your efforts on platforms that are viable for you and your business.

2. Creating multiple accounts for a single social media

If you are not as large a brand as Apple, you don’t need 10 distinct social media accounts on the same network. Let’s say you have 3 different accounts for three departments each on 3 of the basic social networks. This means you have to maintain an engaging presence on 9 different accounts. At the end of the day, it’s not even worth it.

However, having one account each for every social media will not only be easier to pull off but it will also help you utilize your time on tried and tested tactics to grow your business. If need be, you can give administrative access to people from different departments, eliminating the need for multiple accounts.

“If you make customers unhappy in the physical world, they might each tell 6 friends. If you make customers unhappy on the Internet, they can each tell 6,000 friends.” – Jeff Bezos

3. Going only after numbers when procuring backlinks

Inbound links are required if you want to feature anywhere near the top of the search engine result pages (SERPs). This is one of the aspects by which Google ranks websites. If that’s the case, shouldn’t every website try to rack up as many backlinks as they can? The answer is no.

It doesn’t matter how many inbound links your website enjoys if the websites that are linking to your website are irrelevant with a poor website ranking. The fact is that quality speaks over quantity which is determined by the Domain Authority (DA) of the site linking to you.

You can use Moz to check the DA of websites. Knowing the DA of websites would help you approach only those websites that are authoritative and relevant to your target industry and demographic.

For example, if you are running a business blog, a single backlink from a website like Forbes with an almost perfect DA will serve you far better than many backlinks from small, unknown websites. This means that rather than wasting time on increasing the number of backlinks, focus on getting fewer but higher quality backlinks. You can achieve this by using tactics like guest posting and creating quality shareable content.

4. Playing the number game with blogs

Seeing that content marketing has become extremely prominent, marketers have started putting out blogs at the speed of light. Statistically, more blogs have proven to get more traffic to websites. Does this mean that posting more content is rewarding? Not really! 

Companies have been spreading their resources thin and compromising on the quality of their content in hopes of higher traffic without realizing that Google might penalize their content. So, rather than writing posts stuffed with keywords that don’t actually resonate with the content you are posting about, focus on delivering quality content to the reader. Aim for the numbers only when you have the resources to maintain the quality.

In short, create quality content that delivers value. Doing this will help you enhance your website visibility and traffic organically over time and it will also help you build authority in your functional industry. If you’re working with a small team or do not have the bandwidth, you can always hire expert content writers to create high quality content for your blog.

“Content Doesn’t Win. Optimized Content Wins.” – Liana Evans

5. Engaging with every message and comment

When you begin a blog or launch your website, traffic would trickle in slowly and the number of comments or messages would be minuscule. Engaging with everyone at this time will help build up your community and develop a core following. However, when you have achieved a good amount of followers, replying to everyone might prove to be counter-productive.

Find a balance between being actively engaging and wasting time. There’s a thin line between the two, and at times, it might get hard to distinguish between them. At the end of the day, marketing should not be too time-consuming if all it does is waste your time without giving you profitable dividends. If you engage with your audience, it should be worth it.

So here’s a word of advice: Find the interactions that will be worth your time and engage in those. 

Conclusion

Time is the most valuable currency for a marketer. It is important that you keep track of your activities, optimize processes, and eliminate those engagements which are yielding no results. You have to evolve and adapt to new trends.

Iterations to technologies and new marketing tactics land in the market every few days. To make it in the cut-throat world of digital media, you have to catch the momentum or you might be left behind. You can’t afford to waste time interacting with trolls or pushing out average content. Rather, keep your focus on effective strategies that will return your investment.

What’s the biggest key take away you got from this article? Share it with us below!

On a quest to help professionals across the world land their dream jobs, Aditya lives and breathes Hiration — an AI-powered online resume builder and platform to help job-seekers find their way in the treacherous job market — where he’s a Co-Founder and the unofficial CPO (Chief Problem-solving Officer). He likes to code away his days and nights when he’s not busy disrupting the career space.

Advertisement
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Success Advice

Why One-Size-Fits-All Leadership Will Always Fail (and What Works Instead)

The surprising truth about leadership styles that can make or break your team’s success.

Published

on

Why one-size-fits-all leadership doesn’t work
Image Credit: Midjourney

Leadership has always been as much about people as it is about performance. Ken Blanchard, in his influential book, “The One Minute Manager”, put it simply: different strokes for different folks. (more…)

Continue Reading

Success Advice

What Every New CEO Must Do in Their First 100 Days (or Risk Failure)

Your first 100 days as CEO could define your entire legacy, here’s how to make every move count

Published

on

leadership tips for new CEO
Image Credit: Midjourney

When Tim Cook took over from Steve Jobs at Apple, the world watched with bated breath. Jobs wasn’t just a CEO; he was a visionary, an icon, and a legend of innovative leadership. (more…)

Continue Reading

Entrepreneurs

The Leadership Shift Every Company Needs in 2025

Struggling to keep your team engaged? Here’s how leaders can turn frustrated employees into loyal advocates.

Published

on

Bridging the gap between employees and employers
Image Credit: Midjourney

In workplaces around the world, there’s a growing gap between employers and employees and between superiors and their teams. It’s a common refrain: “People don’t leave companies, they leave bad bosses.”

While there are, of course, cases where management could do better, this isn’t just a “bad boss” problem. The relationship between leaders and employees is complex. Instead of assigning blame, we should explore practical solutions to build stronger, healthier workplaces where everyone thrives.

Why This Gap Exists

Every workplace needs someone to guide, supervise, and provide feedback. That’s essential for productivity and performance. But because there are usually far more employees than managers, dissatisfaction, fair or not, spreads quickly.

What if, instead of focusing on blame, we focused on building trust, empathy, and communication? This is where modern leadership and human-centered management can make a difference.

Tools and Techniques to Bridge the Gap

Here are proven strategies leaders and employees can use to foster stronger relationships and create a workplace where people actually want to stay.

1. Practice Mutual Empathy

Both managers and employees need to recognize they are ultimately on the same team. Leaders have to balance people and performance, and often face intense pressure to hit targets. Employees who understand this reality are more likely to cooperate and problem-solve collaboratively.

2. Maintain Professional Boundaries

Superiors should separate personal issues from professional decision-making. Consistency, fairness, and integrity build trust, and trust is the foundation of a motivated team.

3. Follow the Golden Rule

Treat people how you would like to be treated. This simple principle encourages compassion and respect, two qualities every effective leader must demonstrate.

4. Avoid Micromanagement

Micromanaging stifles creativity and damages morale. Great leaders see themselves as partners, not just bosses, and treat their teams as collaborators working toward a shared goal.

5. Empower Employees to Grow

Empowerment means giving employees responsibility that matches their capacity, and then trusting them to deliver. Encourage them to take calculated risks, learn from mistakes, and problem-solve independently. If something goes wrong, turn it into a learning opportunity, not a reprimand.

6. Communicate in All Directions

Communication shouldn’t just be top-down. Invite feedback, create open channels for suggestions, and genuinely listen to what your people have to say. Healthy upward communication closes gaps before they become conflicts.

7. Overcome Insecurities

Many leaders secretly fear being outshone by younger, more tech-savvy employees. Instead of resisting, embrace the chance to learn from them. Humility earns respect and helps the team innovate faster.

8. Invest in Coaching and Mentorship

True leaders grow other leaders. Provide mentorship, career guidance, and stretch opportunities so employees can develop new skills. Leadership is learned through experience, but guided experience is even more powerful.

9. Eliminate Favoritism

Avoid cliques and office politics. Decisions should be based on facts and fairness, not gossip. Objective, transparent decision-making builds credibility.

10. Recognize Efforts Promptly

Recognition often matters more than rewards. Publicly appreciate employees’ contributions and do so consistently and fairly. A timely “thank you” can be more motivating than a quarterly bonus.

11. Conduct Thoughtful Exit Interviews

When employees leave, treat it as an opportunity to learn. Keep interviews confidential and use the insights to improve management practices and culture.

12. Provide Leadership Development

Train managers to lead, not just supervise. Leadership development programs help shift mindsets from “command and control” to “coach and empower.” This transformation has a direct impact on morale and retention.

13. Adopt Soft Leadership Principles

Today’s workforce, largely millennials and Gen Z, value collaboration over hierarchy. Soft leadership focuses on partnership, mutual respect, and shared purpose, rather than rigid top-down control.

The Bigger Picture: HR’s Role

Mercer’s global research highlights five key priorities for organizations:

  • Build diverse talent pipelines

  • Embrace flexible work models

  • Design compelling career paths

  • Simplify HR processes

  • Redefine the value HR brings

The challenge? Employers and employees often view these priorities differently. Bridging that perception gap is just as important as bridging the relational gap between leaders and staff.

Treat Employees Like Associates, Not Just Staff

When you treat employees like partners, they bring their best selves to work. HR leaders must develop strategies to keep talent engaged, empowered, and prepared for the future.

Organizational success starts with people, always. Build the relationship with your team first, and the results will follow.

Continue Reading

Entrepreneurs

What Makes an Entrepreneurial Leader? Traits of the World’s Best Innovators

Inside the mindset of entrepreneurial leaders who transform risk, passion, and vision into world-changing results.

Published

on

entrepreneurial leadership skills and traits
Image Credit: Midjourney

When you think of Richard Branson (Virgin Group), Bill Gates (Microsoft), Steve Jobs (Apple), Rupert Murdoch (News Corporation), and Ted Turner (CNN), one thing becomes clear: they are not just entrepreneurs, they are entrepreneurial leaders. (more…)

Continue Reading

Trending