Is Social Media for Everyone?
In 2009, companies and the consuming public have been focused on the idea of social media and its increasing role in the evolution of business marketing. Great examples are being set by brands like GM, Whole Foods and possibly your local news station, which have led to businesses in every industry scrambling to get connected.
Whether it’s Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn or the large amounts of social sharing tools (e.g. digg, delicious, StumbleUpon and so on), businesses are starting to realize if they aren’t participating, then they will be left behind.
So should every company start “tweeting” on Twitter, “friending” on Facebook and “connecting” through LinkedIn all at once? Not necessarily. But that’s what a lot of businesses are doing, and without a strategy to support their efforts, many don’t realize they could be hurting their brand more than they are helping it.
Social media is not as simple as creating profiles on each social network site and making random posts. It is about listening, learning, building relationships and bringing value to the communities relevant to your organization.
Social media, when connected to search marketing, content marketing and public relations strategies, can help your organization boost search engine rankings, build relationships, manage and strengthen your brand, and enhance your positioning as a thought-leader and innovator. In other words, you need a strategy.
So, is social media right for your business?
Here are six questions to consider before launching your brand onto the social Web.
1. Have you defined your brand?
Every organization must differentiate and define itself. For starters, answer the question, “Who are we (in 140 characters or less, and without meaningless jargon)?” Until you can define who you are, you can’t expect anyone else to understand. For instance, PR 20/20’s Twitter bio reads that we are an, “inbound marketing agency, PR firm. Focused on content marketing, PR, social media, search engine marketing.”
2. Do you know your audiences?
Every business must understand its audiences’ needs and clearly define its buyer personas. Discover where your audiences congregate online, and what types of communications and content they value. With this information, create and implement a strategic social media campaign that will reach and influence all audiences relevant to your business.
3. Have you established a content strategy that will deliver value?
When sharing content and participating in social media, the most important question to ask is, “What value can I bring?” Consider your organization’s knowledge and capabilities, as well as the needs and goals of your audiences, then publish things that matter. This will help your brand connect in meaningful and personal ways. Zappos.com’s CEO, Tony Hsieh, does an awesome job at delivering content to his followers on Twitter.
4. Do you know where your audiences are and how to connect with them?
Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube and Facebook are the obvious starting points, but do your homework and discover where your audiences are congregating and connecting. Start by researching forums, blogs and niche social networks for opportunities to engage with your core audiences. Learn about where they want to receive information and how your business can bring value to their experience on the social Web.
5. Do you have the internal resources needed?
You can’t outsource social media participation. Like any relationship, it requires time and a commitment to authenticity. Make sure you have the people, permissions (i.e. management support) and policies in place within your organization to make social media an integral, ongoing part of your marketing and communications efforts.
6. Do you know how to measure and monitor your success?
The network platforms previously mentioned come equipped with the elements needed to track the growth of your success, or reach. Start by benchmarking your social network profiles (i.e. number of followers, fans, subscribers, comments and so on) and continually track these figures monthly. There are also a number of free tools you can employ, such as HubSpot Twitter Grader, Google Feedburner and more. It’s also important to connect these metrics to your business acquisition and retention goals.
One size does not fit all businesses
There are endless opportunities for organizations in social media. However, it’s not about doing it ALL, but rather it’s about deciding on the RIGHT combination for your business, and doing it WELL.
Related PR 20/20 Social Media Posts:
- Why You Actually Need to PARTICIPATE in Social Media
- Twitter Strategy: An Incomplete Guide for Beginners
- Getting Started on Facebook: Five Tips to Maximizing your Company’s Page
- Six Tips for Maximizing Your LinkedIn Profile
Dia Dalsky is an associate consultant at PR 20/20, a Cleveland-based inbound marketing agency and PR firm. Follow Dia on Twitter @DiaDalsky.
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Reader Comments
Christian
November 14, 2009 8:19 PM | Permalink
While I agree these are important elements to effective marketing, I disagree you should have all these details worked out prior to beginning. It's important to develop your voice and define your brand for example, but I've found these elements to be constantly in flux anyway. If you brand is static, you're gonna lose anyway. And if it's dynamic, as it needs to be, then the best solution is to just dive in. Don't get your act together and then start, just start.Paul Roetzer
November 15, 2009 5:46 PM | Permalink
Great point, Christian. Sometimes organizations and professionals just need to start participating, listening and learning.However, there also are many instances within larger, more traditional organizations, that it makes sense (or is mandated) to take a more strategic approach in order to gain buy-in and support from the executive level.
I think it's important that every organization consider its unique circumstances to determine the best course of action. But I agree, getting active is often better than standing still.
Thanks.
Mark W Schaefer
November 18, 2009 12:48 PM | Permalink
I think this is a nice summary, Dia, and a good place to start the discussion.When I think about writing a list like this, I tend to have a picture in my head of extreme situations and then think about the relevance of the list in those terms. For example: somebody selling fertilizer to farmers in Lake County WI. Would this list be relevant and useful to them? Would they be thinking about their content strategy? Is Twitter always an "obvious starting point?"
By suggesting that it this, you are implying that social media IS a necessary part of everybody's strategy. I'm an advocate of the channel but do not think it's necessarily the answer for everyone.
Yet the people who are selling fertilizer and oil changes and child care services make up MOST of the economy. When we think in terms of marketing advice, I try to challenge everyone to think about real world business needs and not necessarily jump right to solutions. I think that is the core issue you're trying to make here, so thanks!
Dia Dalsky
November 18, 2009 1:30 PM | Permalink
Thank you for the thoughtful comments.Mark, I understand you're reference to core economic industries. I do think this list of questions works as a starting point for your example.
Once it has established its brand identity, every business can create content for their target audiences that focuses on company news, tips, FAQs,industry trends and more. With great content, and the resources to create it, a company can utilize new marketing efforts with the assistance of social media.
Specifically for people selling fertilizer, the traditional farming population is growing older and a younger generation (who is increasingly more savvy with online platforms) is beginning to make the farm's purchasing decisions.
For the seller, I think social media is an essential component to their strategy for targeting this audience and will provide them with a new opportunity to grow their business.
Thanks for your insight!
R. Devin Hughes
November 22, 2009 1:47 PM | Permalink
Completely agree. With our student-run PR firm here at Ohio University, accounts were quick to jump into social media for their clients, because all we've heard in our journalism classes is how important social media is. However, it really was as I described it--"jumping in," with no real plan or reasoning for WHY we were doing so. You have to have a plan and a reason, truly define what the goal of the social media tactic will be. It has to make sense, not just be used for the sake of using it.I actually wrote up a similar post about it at http://rdevinhughes.blogspot.com/2009/07/when-to-just-say-no-to-social-media.html We appear to agree on the questions to consider.
Dia Dalsky
November 23, 2009 3:08 PM | Permalink
Thanks for your feedback and the link to your blog post. Our ideas are very similar, and it's always nice to hear from a fellow Bobcat.I look forward to reading more from you!
search engine optimisation
March 19, 2010 1:52 AM | Permalink
Great article. I think that social media definitely is not the end-all be-all at this point in time. Although it is a good way to reach some of your customer base/audience, it won't reach all of them. Depending upon your product it might not even reach most of them. People who are over 35 and have busy workdays don't always have time to be messing around with Facebook and Twitter.Leave a Comment