Social media is a major tool for any business. But it can also play havoc with your finances. Believe it or not, social media does influence your financial decision making. You might not even know it, but you can easily find yourself in a tricky situation as a result of something you’ve seen or someone you’ve spoken to.
Let’s take a look at some of the situations where social media may cause you to make a bad financial decision.
Envy and Jealousy
Social media only shows us the best part of people’s lives. If you’re friends with people throwing money into their companies and (apparently) it’s paying off you might be tempted to do the same.
This is a simple case of envy and jealousy. It happens more often than people would like to think. When this happens, you’re concentrating on potential rewards whilst ignoring the risk.
What’s Popular Now?
As a business, you have to tap into the trends across the world. Not all trends are going to lead to successful products and services. You have to make an informed decision about whether something is popular for a day or whether it indicates a major shift in thinking across your customer base.
With social media, it’s easy to get excited, and that’s why so many business owners make bad decisions.
Easy Financing
If there’s one sector that’s gained incredible success it’s the payday loans companies. These companies offer unfair terms and fail to tell customers about the risks of borrowing large amounts coupled with high interest rates.
Their ads are all over social media, and it’s easier than you thin to become exposed to their chatter.
Genuine personal loan providers caution against using these providers. They don’t offer good deals to business owners and homeowners. Instead, seek out companies that look to provide favourable terms to borrowers, especially for those with bad credit. For example, choose bad credit loans very carefully, rather than rushing in with the first offer you receive.
Bad News
The news doesn’t always tell the truth. Sometimes they genuinely get it wrong and sometimes they make up sensationalist titles in order to grab people’s interest.
If you knew a story was a lie and it appeared in the newspaper, you wouldn’t buy into it. But if the same story appeared on your friend’s timeline, you may start to wonder whether it’s true or not. This is simply because the source has changed to someone we trust
Regular newshounds are more prone to making bad financial decisions because they’re more likely to take stories to heart if it comes from the right sources.
Down to You
Ultimately, social media can influence bad decisions, but the final choice is entirely down to you. You have nobody to blame but yourself if that Facebook advice turns out to be untrue. If you’re not capable of switching off from social media’s influence, you should switch it off entirely.
Whether you’re running a big business or you’re simply trying to make the best investment decision for your retirement, social media can cause a lot of damage. Sometimes you need to forget about it and approach a professional who knows what they’re doing.
