According to the IBM Institute for Business Value, 60-65% of business leaders think users follow them on social media because they want to be part of a community. But that isn't true: the primary reason users follow companies on sites like Facebook or Twitter is because they want discounts—which isn't really something businesses want to hear.

Worse than that, marketers are often faulted by users for trying too hard to engage them and pushing out way too much information at them, says Patrick Spenner, in an article at Forbes. The result? Customers overthinking their purchasing decisions.

So what is a creative social marketer to do? According to the Corporate Executive Board, the answer is simple—literally.

Simplify the decision-making process so buyers don't dwell too long on the choices they're making, the CEB advises.

"Decision Simplicity" is the top driver of likelihood to buy, Spenner reports, based on the CEB's findings.

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