Why social networks?
In the last 6 months or so, people ask me “what is social media?”, “how do you use it?”, “why do you do it?”, “what exactly is your job?”. I’ll try (hopefully) to give you a brief introduction to social media, some tips, and why businesses, from large conglomerates to small businesses, should use it.
Social networks are online conversations. It’s the ‘new word of mouth’: conversations that used to take place offline now take place online in ‘viral ecosystem’ type communities. Viral is the key word here, as if a topic was provocative/interesting enough to spread online like small-town gossip; this is what we call digital interaction. Surely all of you have heard of Twitter, Facebook, Linked IN, Flickr, YouTube, etc., and if not… WHERE ARE YOU??? In social terms, these communities allow us to interact with friends, catch up on the latest news, see who’s flying high, who’s not, and generally have fun interacting online. In marketing terms, these are all potential gold mines.
If you put it in perspective; Facebook, for example, now has a user base that, if it were a country, would be the fourth most populous place in the world! Just this week it was announced that Facebook has now surpassed 300 million users across all demographics AND is now making enough money to cover its costs. These are stats that you can no longer choose to ignore. So what would you say to a company whose competitor is doing a lot of social media but see it as a waste of time as they are lucky enough these days to have a big budget for conventional advertising?
I would say break with the old school advertising model ‘scream our loudest message’ and do it. Consider that the average person is exposed to more than 3,000 advertising messages every day. 1. Consider that messaging and interaction are no longer one-way, but multi-way between all stakeholders. So why invest all that surplus cash, when most people will ignore your message, your message will be too conventional and you will be able to reach a much more targeted audience DIRECTLY online through conversations at a much cheaper cost and in real time? The ROI is high with social media as the only cost is human capital.
Social Media has evolved marketing, with a new ‘communication model’. Today customers want more; They don’t just want a source of information, they want interaction and brand recognition. When they buy products they like to buy the whole brand, this is particularly true among our future generations, the millennials, of which 96% have joined a social network.
2. Don’t abandon traditional methods entirely, as social media is a compliment, not a replacement, and compliment is really the key word here. There is a need to use social media to support existing messages, not replace them entirely.
Using it is about being smart. Once you join, you must realize that you are no longer in control; you must relinquish control. Now this is where people freak out, but it works. There is usually much more respect for brands that are on social media than for those that are not.
But first you need to listen, only then should you engage and interact and then engage your customers. You can’t just use social media to spread your messages, you have to talk to them about what they want to talk about and be honest. You can of course use social media to sway the conversation but you need to realize that honesty is the ONLY policy on social media and if you are too corporate or pushy you will turn people off.
Some brands have official communities and accounts, as this can be a good way to try to tie all the conversations together, keep them on track, and avoid profanity.
“But how can it really benefit my business?” I hear you ask….
o Facilitates conversations between all stakeholders, providing direct connections
o Targets those consumers who have moved away from traditional media
o Provides behavioral insights and innovation through connections
o Multiple profiles – leads to organic growth among search page rankings
o Increases brand profile/reach
How have we benefited from social networks?
Social media has opened up many new opportunities for us that we might not have thought possible before. We have had interest from new markets and have started dialogues with people who are potential partners. We set up our own Twitter page about five months ago and were amazed at the amount of engagement almost immediately. Today, Twitter is one of our main go-to sites, not only for our own website, but also for the campaigns we’ve worked on. By maintaining engagement levels, you consistently keep your customers/target audience engaged, bringing you ever closer to your customers first-hand.
It’s early days though, and right now we’re looking at ways to try and quantify social media into real ROI for our corporate clients, as we constantly hear ‘the conversation is great, but where’s the value?’ – This is where, as marketers, we need to tangibly see and demonstrate gray – it’s not just black and white anymore.
So… it’s here to stay, it’s not a passing fad, it’s a fundamental and undeniable change in the way we communicate with current and potential customers, so don’t be left behind! Even the government is on Twitter and if Barack Obama used social media to get to the White House3, we can all use social media to reach customers.
Footnotes
1. Shenk, David. Data smog – Surviving information overload. Harper Edge, 1997.
2. The National Association of School Boards. Simply speaking.blogspot.com. http://simply-speaking.blogspot.com/2007/08/social-networking-in-education.html
3. Brooks, rich. What businesses can learn from Barack Obama’s social media strategy. Jan. 30, 2009. http://www.fastcompany.com/blog/rich-brooks/social-media-strategies-small-business/what-businesses-can-learn-barack-obamas-soci