• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Home
  • About Us
  • Coaching
  • Services
  • Testimonials
  • Contact Us
  • Shop
  • Nav Social Menu

    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • YouTube
Allison Lancaster

Allison Lancaster

Online Business Management & Virtual Assistant Coaching

5 Reasons Your Business Cannot Rely On Social Media For Sales

March 14, 2019 by Allisonrlancaster

Facebook is down! I can’t upload Instagram stories! Why can’t I see my Facebook messages?

All thoughts that I, along with many of you have had today. As you likely know by now, both Facebook and Instagram have been down for a good portion of the day. While I have had some time to detox from social media, it led me to think about what lessons we as entrepreneurs can take away from today’s outage. There are MANY of them, but below are a few key takeaways from the outage. Trust me, these are important and things to prepare for now. As you know, the online world is an ever changing place and nothing stays the same for very long. 


Key Takeaways From Today’s Facebook & Instagram Outage

  1. You NEED a Website. Now. Right. Now. If you already have a website, you still need to read this point. A website is the only thing that you really own. We don’t own Facebook or Instagram and therefore – they can go away at anytime. As we know by now, the algorithms change constantly, making it more and more difficult for businesses to gain traction without an in-depth strategy. By having your own website, you not only own your content, but you also have a place for all of your clients and sales to land. If you are relying on Facebook for sales or messenger to communicate with clients. Stop it. Right now. Your website doesn’t have to be complicated or bankrupt you (we offer website set up!), but it is something you MUST have! If you already have a website, make sure that it’s updated, secured, backed up and maintained properly. An unsafe website can leave you crippled with hours, days and months of lost content.
  2. If You Aren’t On Pinterest, You Need To Be! Of course, we know that Pinterest goes down sometimes, as well. However, Pinterest traffic is much more reliable than social media traffic. Pinterest is a search engine, and just like Google…if used properly, can drive a ton of traffic (and sales) to your site! By broadening your horizons and putting focus on Pinterest, you are adding more “search juice” (I know…that’s not a proper term, but you get the point) to your site. When Facebook & Instagram go down for a day, two or more, you will still see traffic from Pinterest! Another place you need to be? LinkedIn.
  3. Your Site Needs To Be Optimized For Search Engines. I know, again with the website. However, I cannot say this enough. Optimizing your site for search engines is highly important. The likely hood of social media platforms falling by the wayside is much more probable than the likely hood of search engines going away. By focusing on putting out high quality, search engine optimized content – you are investing in a long term strategy for your business.
  4. We All Need to Unplug From Time to Time. Honestly, I spend way too much time on social media. It’s my job. I love what I do, so I tend to spend a ton of time researching algorithms, trends, etc. to ensure that my clients’ accounts are ahead of the game with what is just around the corner for social media. That being said, today’s outage forced me to step away from the computer & phone for a bit. Guess what? I survived! I feel recharged and ready to get back to work. We all need to unplug from time to time, and it shouldn’t take a social media outage to make that happen.
  5. You NEED a Mailing List and you NEED to Nurture It! Again, something else that you own. You own your mailing list. Nurture that list. Stay in contact with the people on your list. Let them know how they can contact you outside of social media (because…outages).

When all is said and done, we are all trying to grow and nurture our businesses. Social media is a great way to do just that. However, I am a firm believer in making sure that you are ahead of the game and that you have a plan for when the tides change.

Don’t Forget To Sign Up For My Newsletter For the Latest Marketing Tips, Lessons in Entrepreneurship and More!

Filed Under: Blogging, Social Media

Sign Up for our FREE Resource Library For Business Owners

We've said it before and we will say it again...📣⁠
⁠
Delegating tasks within your business is vital to your productivity. ⁠
⁠
As a CEO, your main focus should be on how you can build + scale your business.  Let us handle the backend. ⁠
⁠
We've got you!! 🙌
Some of you may not know my entire story...⁠ ⁠ Some of you may not know my entire story...⁠
⁠
I'm not going to share it all (we'd be here for a few hours 😜), but I do want to get real for a second.⁠
⁠
Being a business owner, a mom, a wife, a daughter...and all of the other labels we take on as women, can feel overwhelming and sometimes lonely.⁠
⁠
In the last 7 years, I've sometimes wondered "why am I doing this?!" ⁠
⁠
It doesn't take me long to remember that I do this for my family.  For my incredible clients.  For myself.  For my team.⁠
⁠
Loving what you do and calling it work is a gift. 🥰⁠
⁠
Tell me your why below! ⬇️⁠
⁠
Happy Father’s Day to these men that we love so Happy Father’s Day to these men that we love so much!! 

Josh- you are an amazing dad to our babies and I am so thankful each day that we have you. You give all of you, every day to our family. We love you ♥️

Dad- you showed me the value of hard work, family and what’s truly important in life. I am so thankful each day for your love and guidance. We love you!

Chris- you are the best daddy to Colton! I’m so thankful to not only be your sister but now to get to see you be a daddy is such a blessing! We love you! 

And to all of the other dads out there, Happy Father’s Day!
#1 reason you should consider outsourcing...you ge #1 reason you should consider outsourcing...you get your time back!⁠
⁠
Our time is our most valuable asset and let's be honest...as a business owner it can feel like you never have enough of it.⁠
⁠
Let us help with the tasks that save you time and energy!  The link in our bio will take you to all the services we offer. :)
Load More Follow on Instagram
Allison Lancaster

Copyright Online Business Solutions by Allison R. Lancaster, LLC · 2022
Accessibility
Privacy Policy Terms of Use

This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish.Accept Privacy Policy
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
SAVE & ACCEPT