09/26/2016
Social media marketing is a digital bridge that humanizes the brand online with offline benefits.
However, before your brand can build that social media digital bridge you must first confront the fears that I call ~ the elephant in the room.
I've been working in the social media space for over 12-years. In terms of digital that has to be at least 4 lifetimes! During that time there's been a new generation of business managers and entrepreneurs who have 'grown-up' using social media for fun and personal use.
However, the leap in understanding social media as a business tool often remains a frightening mystery for many.
Recently I was chatting with a smart, young - aka a Millennium, woman who launched a food venture. She had a new, pretty website complete with eCommerce features. However there was not a social icon to be found.
Toby: Why?
Food Entrepreneur: It frightens me.
Toby: Why?
Food Entrepreneur: People are mean online. I'm working very hard to build a brand and I don't want people to hijack a social channel.
What I've come to realize, from working with thousands of people in my consulting and training roles, is --
social media education is both emotional and logical.
The lens of how social media marketing is perceived differs for each person and within each company culture. Addressing fears/concerns, or facing the elephant in the room, should be one of the first steps in creating consensus regarding developing a social media roadmap.
5 Common Media Fears: Trolls. Sales. Technology. Track. Time.
Sorry to say, there are no canned or simple answers. However, here are a few ideas to get you started in how to evaluate the elephant in the room.
Trolls. For some like my friend the food entrepreneur, fear of trolls that might sabotage your brand is at the top of the list.
Tips: Listen for negative reviews or trolls sabotaging your brand. Watch your channels. Set up Google Alerts or Talk Walker Alerts. Create a reputation management plan. Each situation must be reviewed and action taken based on its merits.
Sales. Other people might have a concern if their financial investment (note: social media marketing is never free) will produce direct sales results.
Tips: Tricky depending on your product or service. For eCommerce and sales made face-to-face including telephone - include a "what influenced your purchase decision" question. Track direct orders from Facebook and Pinterest. Track website conversions. Add tracking codes. Consider additional forms of Return on Investment e.g. reach, awareness, amplification, relationships.
Technology. Call it technology or call it tools new platforms continuously emerge and the try and true e.g. Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Linkedin, Pinterest update and change terms at a drop of the hat. How do you keep current?!
Tips: Determine which channels you receive the most success from in terms of your goals (see Track below). Spend the majority of your time on these networks.
Identify a channel or two that is interesting to you to sandbox. Your focus is to learn and play. Perhaps you see a growth in your customers beginning to explore that platform like SnapChat. Or maybe the technology is a new feature of a platform you currently use like Facebook Live.
Subscribe to newsletters or blogs. Follow the network on Twitter and Facebook. Create Google Alert or Talk Walker Alerts. Attend conferences. Read books. Search out webinars.
Track.What to track, how to track and how to make sense of the mountain of data is another valid concern.
Tips: This is should be an easy fix. Go back to your roadmap and review what you wrote that determines success. Return on Investment e.g. reach, awareness, amplification, relationships. Often less is more.
Time. Of course, the one on so many people's list is T-I-M-E. Even if you subcontract the execution there are reports to read, content decisions to make and results to evaluate.
Tips: Another tricky one. Of course it's dependent on your content direction and the number of social channels. Begin with developing a simple, topic driven content calendar. Lucky you if there are people who will support you in content development.
Keep in mind content can be text, video, photos, graphics. You can modify content to fit different channel but please don't take the lazy route of dumping the exact same words in each channel. Play to the strengths of the channel.
Build time for engagement, listening, analytic review. Blog posts take longer than a tweet. What's the sweet spot ~ perhaps 3-hours a week???
For those who would like a PDF of the tips ---
Love to learn how you combat these challenges!
03/18/2015
What is your best advice for a local small business that wants to leverage the web for marketing purposes? was the question my friend Paul Chaney, Editor of Web Marketing Today asked me and a few other "in the know" marketers.
Thought you might enjoy my response!
Great question Paul and one that many people will take from the strategy point of view: know your goals, how to measure them and your audience. Let’s look at this from a slightly different point of view: content consistency.
I look at content consistency from two perspectives. The first direction includes tonality, topics, and touch. The second direction is time.
Tonality is the voice you’ll use through out the web from your website and to social media channels For example, if you’re managing a rap group the tonality will be different than if you’re selling financial products to corporate accounts.
Topics quite simply are what you want chat about to your digital community. However, the format might be a blog, video, podcast or photos/images. The most successful topics are those that your audience cares about .. I call that ‘now I care content.’ Content that is so compelling it is shared.
Touch is how you’ll engage with your audience. It’s often neglected but can be the most powerful piece of your web marketing. What will you say when someone shares your content on Twitter or drops a comment on Facebook?
Time is well … time! Especially for small business owners, who wear multiple hats, we have to come to terms that we can’t do it all or all at once. Identify which web marketing tactic will give you the most return for time spent. That may not always be direct revenue but branding or extended reach. As an example, for a B2B service or product it may be diving deeply into LinkedIn. For a food media company it may be Twitter that best drives audience for you.
Take into consideration that all four Ts must work in harmony which leads us full circle to your goals, how to measure and your audience.
Note: For Food Businesses including chefs, cookbook authors, FoodTV media companies & contestants, foodpreneurs check out Diva Foodies where we're serving up social to the food industry plus offering delicious content!
08/04/2014
When BBF Yvonne DiVita, author/founder of Lipsticking and BlogPaws, asked me to play along on an 'old fashion' blog meme or blog hop, I immediately said yes.
Blog memes were popular before blogs were social media. So this post is not only fun but a bit nostalgia.
I've always wanted to be a "Writer." However, I never really knew I was until I started Diva Marketing. Funny because I wrote all the time. I've always had/and have a little note book with me to jot ideas, impressions, thoughts. I write in coffee shops, on planes, on trains, in parks, in a car. I write most everywhere. With my little note books I am never alone.
Why do I write .. to tell stories; you might have noticed that most of the posts on diva marketing wrap around a story.
Why do I write .. to clear my thoughts; writing is a way to capture ideas that sometimes seem allusive.
Why do I write .. to share and to teach; writing provides a tangible way to help others learn.
Why do I write .. because I have to.
Why do I write .. to play with words; so many choices to make when you write; it's fun to paint with the rainbow of words.
Why do I write .. this may sound odd but I write to read what I wrote.
Why do I write? Perhaps the next question is what do I want to write next?
Part of a meme is to tap a few friends who will take the concept and put their own spin on it. I am excited that three of my favorite bloggers will be joining the meme parade. Please meet ...
Paul Chaney - Paul and I share a special bond. You see, Paul was the first 'real blogger' I met offline. You always hold a special spot in your heart for your first. His four (yes count them 4!) books on blogs and social media are examples of his love of writing and teaching. He has a special gift of taking complex topics and making them understandable .. and fun. Oh and he's an awesome piano player! Drop by to read Paul's post on 8/25. Blog Twitter
Nettie Reynolds - Nettie once said to me that if you can't laugh with a person, question if that person should be in your life. Nettie not only makes me laugh but she makes me smile. Nettie's diverse career runs from working with authors & creatives to create digital awareness and even performing stand up comedy and she's a playwright. Drop by to read Nettie's post on 8/18 Blog Twitter
Des Walsh - I often say, blogs/social media give back more than they take. It's unlikely that my path would have cross with this wise and smart man from Australia without the benefit of the digital world and blogs. Although Des is based on the other side of my world, through Skype, G+ Hangouts and social media his coaching, LinkIn mentoring and social media business has no geographical boundaries. Drop by to read Des' post on 8/11. Blog Twitter
Toss of a pink boa or perhaps I should say, pink notebook, to Susan Foster for starting this blog hop.
07/28/2014
The U.S.A. won against Belgium in the World Cup game.
Well .. not really .. but sort of.
The Waffle House, an American, iconic, southern, restaurant company, walked away with the social media trophy.
Paying not one of the 75k dollar sponsorship fees, the Waffle House's followers organically helped score them the win via a social media waffle battle: sweet versus Belgium waffles.
Many saw the battle unfold on Twitter but I wondered ... what was the back-story? How did it begin and what course of action did the Waffle House plan? Meghan Irwin, Waffle House, agreed to tell us what it was like during the heat of the Belgium Waffle Battle. Some of her answers might surprise you.
About Meghan Irwin - Our story teller, Meghan, has been working for the Waffle House, Inc. for almost three years.
She is part of the Communications Department where her role focuses on social media management and event execution.
About Waffle House® Restaurants - Headquartered in Norcross, GA, Waffle House restaurants has been serving Good Food Fast® since 1955. Today the Waffle House system operates more than 1,700 restaurants in 25 states and is the world’s leading server of waffles, T-bone steaks, hashbrowns, cheese ‘n eggs, country ham, pork chops and grits.
Toby/Diva Marketing: I read that the now famous Belgium Waffle House Tweet wasn’t planned. In fact, there was no committee or even social media team brainstorming on how to get into the World Cup social conversation. Would you fill us in on the who-what-why of the back-story?
Meghan Irwin/Waffle House: Goodbull Hunting actually initiated the idea by tweeting at us upon hearing Team USA was moving onto the next round in the World Cup. When asked for our opinion of Belgian waffles, we replied with “We dominate them.”
TMZ Sports got word of this tweet then contacted us to ask more about it. On Monday June 30th, TMZ published the story and we kind of ran with it. So yes, this wasn’t planned.
Toby/Diva Marketing: Not only was Waffle House the darling of the social media world but main stream media picked up and moved your story along. Who was the first media outlet that contacted you?
Meghan Irwin/Waffle House: Van Lathan from TMZ Sports reached out to us on Friday June 27th. Boycotting all things Belgian was a hot topic, so they asked if we would support that. Of course we would! We’re America’s place to eat!
Toby/Diva Marketing: What was it like at work when you began receiving calls and requests for interviews?
Meghan Irwin/Waffle House: Surprisingly, we weren’t in the office for the majority of the day. The team was at a press conference for our valued partner Smithfield. We took most of the calls in our Waffle van to avoid any background noise. It was actually pretty amusing. We’d see emails for requests and we’d take turns by hopping in the van.
Toby/Diva Marketing: Did the excitement and buzz trickle to the field restaurants and if so what was their reactions?
Meghan Irwin/Waffle House: Yes, we received positive feedback from Area Vice Presidents. We also educated the public and our customers that our waffles are not Belgian waffles. They’re sweet cream.
Toby/Diva Marketing: With all of the conversation and RTs that were happening, did the Waffle House tap additional people to monitor the conversation?
Megan Irwin/Waffle House: We work as team in the effort to engage in conversation with our fans.
Toby/Diva Marketing: We saw you were engaging with your community in RTs and responses. For many companies listening is a struggle in terms of the right tool and the time commitment. Would you share how the Waffle House approaches tracking, listening and reporting?
Meghan Irwin/Waffle House: We are one of those companies. We struggle just like everyone else in terms of time commitment and listening. We’re in the process of doing a trial with a couple companies now to see what fits best with our company.
Toby/Diva Marketing: There didn’t seem to be a unique hashtag from @WaffleHouse. Was this intentional?
Meghan Irwin/Waffle House: There wasn’t a need for a unique hashtag. This was an organic conversation with a fan. By adding a unique hashtag in this mix, we feel you lose the genuine feeling of the conversation.
Toby/Diva Marketing: Interesting idea Meghan. Perhaps we can encourage brands to be less "hashtag happy."
In addition to Twitter and Facebook were other social media tactics were included and if so which networks and which worked best to move the engagement?
Meghan Irwin/Waffle House: We focused on where the majority of our community is. We have a strong, vocal fan base on both Twitter and Facebook therefore our efforts to engage was focused on those two channels.
Toby/Diva Marketing: What was the most surprising aspect of the experience?
Meghan Irwin/Waffle House: The fact that our community responded with this playful boycott and ran with it. Also, we saw media outlets that don’t normally cover Waffle House, ending up covering this tweet.
Toby/Diva Marketing: To put your responses in context, what does social media mean to the Waffle House in terms of branding, awareness and customer loyalty?
Meghan Irwin/Waffle House:
- To us, social media means continuing the conversation with our customers after they have an experience with our brand. It continues well after they leave the restaurant.
Toby/Diva Marketing: How large is your social team and who does it report up to?
Meghan Irwin/Waffle House: As it falls under Communications, we work as a team.
Toby/Diva Marketing: As we discussed, the response Waffle House received was fantastic. What do you have in mind to build it?
Meghan Irwin/Waffle House: We want to stay true to the brand’s personality and maintain the engagement with our fans. Like I mentioned before, it’s all about keeping the conversation going with our customers.
Toby/Diva Marketing: In retrospect, is there any thing that you would have done differently?
Meghan Irwin/Waffle House: Nothing at all. This tweet allowed us to grow our community and spread the word that Waffle House is on social.
Toby/Diva Marketing: What lessons did you learn that you can share with our community?
Meghan Irwin/Waffle House:
1. Be responsive.
2. Talk back to your fans if they engaged with you.
3. You never know what ideas you’ll come up with when engaging with fans. We were able to use the USA waffle photo by engaging with one of our fans. 
Toby/Diva Marketing: It’s become a tradition to toss the virtual Diva Marketing mic to you and give you a chance to add anything else you’d like.
Meghan Irwin/Waffle House: Our community is the reason this happened. We enjoy engaging with our fans and customers and will continue to do so.
- Getting to know your community is the best thing you can do on social media.
- We do it for the fans and for the bacon.
More About The Waffle House - Website, Career Opportunities, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest
Toss of a pink boa to Dorothéa Bozicolona-Volpe for her help in arranging the interview.
07/03/2014
During my time heading social media at Cox Media Group I had the pleasure of working with some great folks.
There was a special journalist, from California Bay Area KTVU, that was an inspiration when it came to understanding the importance of social media, how to build community and the critical nature of engagement ... especially on Facebook.
Frank Somerville, main news anchor, topped 100K Facebook Likes; in fact as of this moment he has 120,059k Likes. As anyone who has built out a social network page can tell you this is no small feat.
However, as we also have come to understand, Likes without engagement are simply a bunch of numbers. Left alone Likes do not necessarily lead to significant shares, community or brand loyalty. Which makes the extent of engagement Frank has nurtured even more impressive.
How did he do it? Why did he do it? And how does it relate back to the brand? Frank tells his back-story in this video interview.
Frank's 7 Tips To Succeed In Social Media
1. Be Authentic
2. Be Honest
3. Let people see who you are behind the camera… or behind your 'business face'
4. Respond to people
5. Don't follow all the rules...take a risk. This is new stuff don’t be afraid to experiment.
6. Try to find your own way and what works for you.
7. If people like you it will carry over to your brand creating a win-win-win (for your customer, the brand and you).
And I'll add one more ... have fun! It is quite evident that Frank is having a great time. The energy carries over to his relationship with the community and back again to their involvement with Frank and with each other.
Any brand, media or not, can benefit from Frank's insights. The video is worth a click and a watch.
Frank - congrats! Well deserved.
05/08/2014
The interweb and smart phones forever changed how we buy, what we buy, where we buy .. and who we take along on our shopping adventures.
What makes social shopping work is something so simple but at the same time it’s often a challenge for brands to achieve. The Social Share. Sounds like the next viral video dance!
One of the new ways to shop is taking your virtual entourage along. Your friends can be part of your shopping experience for seconds, a la SnapChat, or participate in in-depth discussions in Google Hangouts.
For some folks social shopping is an amazing adventure. Still don't know if it's really worth the extra money for the souped up camera? You have a way to bring friends, as the marketers might say, into the purchase decision. Girlfriend, are you in a quandary about which cute dress to buy? Through a few Snapchat photos of you modeling the potential new dresses you might justify buying them all!
If after their real time feedback you still can’t decide you can always create a Pinterest board, post on Instagram or start a Facebook or Twitter conversation. Upside: lots of opinions. Downside: lots of opinions.
If you can’t find the right ‘expert’ feedback from your family and friends, well there’s always the kindness of strangers. Odd as it seems, review sites like Yelp (www.yelp.com) influence purchase from the very important, your 27th pair of black shoes to the mundane, which dryer to buy. And then there is something in the middle .. Jelly a mobile app "knowledge search" from Twitter Founder Biz Stone. (It's my new favorite time suck.) Jelly combines your social network and your friends' network.
Retails both online and offline are launching mobile apps to complement our digial shopping experiences. Reseach from Internet Retailer indicates that in 2013 consumers on both major mobile platforms increasingly relied on mobile apps as part of the shopping process.
For others on-going opinions and reviews are a confusing maze of babble often resulting in a digital nightmare. Add to the mix input from brands and you have an over abundance of expert opinions.As Jimmy Fallon might say, “ew!”
Online and offline worlds collide in creating an important 360’ customer experience. For brands that have not built a digital community of people who will pass along reviews, photos, videos to their friends, social media is just another distribution channel. I ask you... why bother to invest resources in something that your website should accomplish?
Social Savvy Tips For Brands: It’s critical to monitor what customers and prospects are saying about their entire shopping experience from digital, in-store and of course the product. Often overlooked are hidden insights in comments on your own social platforms.
- With those insights gained take action beginning with thanking your customers for sharing.
Social Savvy Tip For Customers: Before you take out the plastic to make a major purchase read reviews from multiple sources. A Twitter search on a brand may turn up some interesting insights too. So many opinions, so little time.
How do you do The Social Shopping Share Dance?
12/25/2013
"We'll be known as the helpful store. The friendly store. The store with a heart. The store that places public service ahead of profit. The plan sounds idiotic and impossible...consequently, we'll make more profit than ever before."
Nope, it's not a new innovative social network strategy (that would be a miracle of miracles!). In the classic film, Miracle On 34th Street, Mr. Macy took chance on a different way to conduct business.
Customers would not be coerced into buying what they did not want; however, the real courage was if another store had a better or less expensive product Macy's would refer customers there.
Fast forward 66 years. It is now 2013, and as we close out this year, we face similar challenges of how to provide value for our customers. Technology can be the gift that opens the new digital door to an exciting way to build relationships with customers .. if we can be as couragous as Mr. Macy.
Pull off the pretty red bow and you'll find social networks with funny names like blogs, Twitter, Facebook, Foursquare, Google+, LinkedIn, Instagram and Pinterest. It's a world where to succeed we have to go beyond a one-off sale to opportunities where three entities: company, employee and customer create the brand experience together. That takes courage.
The miracle of social media is its impact reaches beyond just one customer. Digital relationships with the people who are the heart of your brand, both customers and employees, can set off a unique chain reactions.
My favorite act of couragous miracle making this season is from the Canadian airline Westjet that surprised passengers with presents that they wanted (not swag from the airline). Video is well done and worth a watch.
- Continuous listening -> learning -> understanding -> results in trust -> leads to loyalty -> leads to the cash register bells ringing. And every time a cash register bell rings a marketer gets a bonus or gets to keep her job (!) .. oops wrong film.
Corner grocery store digital relationships that are build not only with you and your customers, but among your customers and your employees could never have been imagined when Kris Kringle entered Macy's Santa Land in 1947. However, even as we approach 2014, for many organizations open conversations still seem like a Miracle on (insert organization name here) or like the ghost of Xmas future (oops wrong movie again.)
The plan sounds idiotic and impossible... consequently, we'll make more profit than ever before.
As we begin 2014, technology developments spin even faster taking digital business into areas that were impossible in '47 or '57 or even '2013.
Imagine a digital destination where you can include your review of the product, service or customer care that influences your or your friends' buying decisions.
Imagine a digital destination where you can talk to a brand employee who doesn't respond with a scripted answer.
Imagine a digital destination that allows for product and service customization.
Imagine a digital destination where you can start a conversation with a real person about what matters to you regarding a product or service.
Imagine a digital destination where you can actually help change the direction of a brand before it's even launched.
Imagine multiple digital devices from mobile to tablet and computer to wearable. How will you create unique content for all that is relevant? How will you respond on mulitple channels?
Imagine a digital destination where you can chat with people about their experiences and learn from each other .. in real time during your shopping experience. The result is smarter purchases.
Imagine an authenitc conversation, in real time, with your favorite actor, politician, author or reporter who responds to your comments not with platitudes but with thoughtfulness and courage.
Imagine an authentic conversation with your senior managmenet or an admired corporate executive where ideas are transparently exchanged.
Imagine an organization that works in partnership with its customers and employees to create a brand experience that is relevant, innovative and imaginative across multiple devices.
Imagine an organization that places its customers in the center of all decisions.
The plan sounds idiotic and impossible...consequently, we'll make more profit than ever before.
What a funny world we live in. It's interesting to compare a 1940's film, where finding solutions to customers' problems was perceived as unique, to 2013 where finding solutions to customers' problems is considered ingenious.
The techniques may have changed. New buzz words may be added to the mix. Bells and whistles may be a little louder. However, after all is said and done, the premise remains the same:
-Listen
-Understand
-Add value
-Do what it takes to go the extra mile to delight your customer
I believe that as we learn how to use social media it will change how we conduct business .. leading to creating an environment where people truly matter. And that my friends, is as courageous and innovative as Mr. Macy's Miracle on 34th Street.
The plan sounds idiotic and impossible...consequently, we'll make more profit than ever before.
And with that Max and I wish you a very merry holiday!
A classic Diva Marketing Holiday Post.
10/21/2013
My mind is still a jumble of thoughts. My heart wounded and broken. I've written this post a dozen times in my head but nothing seemed quite right.
So, I decided to go in a direction that he would have liked. To tell the story in a way that will help others understand what matters in this world we call social media.
Last week when I was walking Max I popped into email and a message from Marianne Richmond almost caused me to drop my iphone (again!). The social web was a buzz with the passing of a dear and much admired gentle soul -- Wayne Hurlbert. Who was Wayne Hurlbert?
In my world ... Wayne and his mom were Max's orignial social fans. Wayne was one of my first BBFs (best blogging friend). I called Wayne (along with Paul Chaney) a true gentleman of the social web.
Questions -- Can you call a person you never shared a meal, had coffee with or met face-to-face a "friend?" Perhaps there were phone calls, Skypes and emails. However, can you build a "real" relationship when a significant part of your exchanges are on the social web in blog comments, tweets, Facebook posts?
Many folks will remember Wayne for his innovative music tweets and and art posts.
For me, Wayne and I shared another passion. We believed that blogs, and then social networks, could impact the way business could be conducted with honesty, openness, and transparency.
- Did you notice those are the words (honesty, openness, transparency) used when describing the blogoshere? - Wayne Hurlbert
One of Wayne's core business beliefs was the importance of business ethics. Several times he graciously shared his views with me to include in Diva Marketing.
I had the honor of being Wayne's first guest on his acclaimed BlogTalkRadio show, Blog Business Success. It was Wayne who encouraged me to launch a BlogTalkRadio podcast. Wayne, along with Jeneane Sessum, were my first guests on Diva Talks with the show The Ethics of Social Media.
- Every action that you take and everything you do should be made with fair treatment helping others in mind. - Wayne Hurlbert
Wayne also kindly contributed his thoughts about ethics to Social Media GPS an eBook I wrote based on 40 Twitter interviews. In Chapter Four, Social Ethics, Wayne and Mack Collier answered this question: Ethics in business is the hot news topic. In SM we struggle with what is black, white and gray. Why is that?
- SM is about trust&trust must be earned. Once lost trust is hard to recover. In SM there is no second chance to recover it. - Wayne Hurlbert
- Using tricks & tools to get more SM followes may add numbers but without engagment&trust, raw numbers mean nothing - Wayne Hurlbert
Ironically, the last question I asked Wayne on our BlogTalkRadio show was -- What do you want people to say about you after you write your last post or your last tweet?
- That I helped people as I set out to do when I orignally started my post. - Wayne Hurlbert
His response underscores what his friends know to be true. Thank you Wayne for the help you selfishly gave keeping true to your philosophy of putting others first.
And I suppose that brings us full circle to the question can you create "real" relationships in social media? The relationship I shared with Wayne touched my heart and added value to my life. It doesn't get much more real than that girlfriend.
Note: 10/24 8p Eastern BlogTalkRadio will host a tribute to Wayne.
05/13/2013
The truth is like the sun. You can shut it out for a time but it ain't goin' away. ~ Elvis Presley
Just One Crowd Sourced Question
Twitter, Facebook, Linkedin,
Pinterest and other social networks changed how we think about "social media" from those long ago days of the blogosphere. However, I wondered if the "truths" of
social media also changed.
Is social media still about people-to-people conversations or is
monetization the focus? Has social media become a ghost writer's paradise or is
transparency still critical? What does authenticity mean in 2013?
Just Once Crowd Sourced Question is a Diva Marketing
series where the community shares their insights on a specific social media
issue. One truth that still remains consistent even in 2013 .. social media is about learning together.
What Is Your One Big Truth About Social Media in 2013?
Jack Yan. I think social media are changing forms.
I go to my
Facebook feed and I see links. This could be the new Digg (something I’ve said
for years). I didn’t come here to see links, I came here to share and see what
my friends are up to. Facebook is too busy monetizing and breaking its own features,
too, which doesn’t help. It’s buggy as heck. It has zero user support.
So to
get those people-to-people connections, I have to go to Instagram, where the
“conversations” (via photos) are just that more authentic. I don’t see that on
Pinterest or Linkedin. But if I am sharing on Instagram, then something’s got
to give.
Twitter, once so open, has become a closed-minded place—it’s not
helped by Tweetdeck, which crashes like crazy now, and Metrotwit doesn’t handle
multiple accounts. I know there are other tools, but my point is that things
aren’t all running in Twitter’s favour any more. So if I have good tools to use
for Instagram, then why should I bother with Twitter?
Tumblr, which I always
thought was a blogging platform, is still a neat insight into our preferences
and how we think. In that way, it has a social connection for netizens. Plus it
has reached 100,000,000 users—and staff can still send personal replies,
responding to bug reports and other enquiries. Facebook, Yahoo, Google and
others have a lot to learn from these guys.
Social media are still about
people-to-people conversations. We had those conversations with Vox between
2006 and 2009, which predated Facebook with sharing to different audiences.
Transparency is still important.
I don’t think these definitions change—just
that the sites that once hosted them are not what they used to be.
~ @JackYan JackYan.com
Nettie Reyonds. I would say that this year the big and necessary truth is for social media to stop taking itself so seriously.
It's not what it has been hyped up to be and people need to employ the social media economy of effort - meaning use the tools to connect with your customers on a real basis - make that effort and your company will benefit long- term much more than it would mired in hype, haste and hastily pushed out disingenuous content!!! ~ @netreynolds Nettie Ink
B.L. Ochman. My one big truth about social media: it continues to be my most important source of news and information, and it continues to baffle most companies. Wait! Is that two thruths?! What's Next Blog PawFun @whatsnext
Judy Mod. We believe social provides a lens into the world of our buyers and continues to transform the way buyers go-to-market to solve strategic business problems.
The problem we are focused on solving within the Social Executive Council is the shift from vendor-driven to peer influence is marginalizing vendors as buyers demand to be empowered with education on the problem definition before they engage for education on solution differences.
How do we arm buyers in the market to operationalize their problem diagnosis to reach them early enough to be a trusted advisor in their buying process and throughout their life cycle as a customer?
This shift and our lack of market visibility because of the noise and barriers to buyer adoption are having a significant impact on every aspect of our business performance. ~ @JudyMod
Anonymous. You don't have to be on every form of social media just the
ones that work best for you and your business.
Michael Rubin. It's ultimately still about people. Technology's the tool,
social media's the rocket fuel, people are the soul. ~ @merubin MichaelE.Rubin.com
Tanya McGill Freeman. I think it's
absolutely about people-to-people conversations...now more than ever!
People do
business with people that may represent companies but not really just the
companies themselves as a whole. Therefore the act of authentic, real
engagement is so incredibly important. We tend to do business with those we
know, like and trust, and social media provides a very effective way to
establish those bonds and maintain them. @D_Sophisticate
Kelly Dovovan. social media is still about one-to-one or one-to-few
conversations, but social media networks are making that harder to do as time
goes on.
Facebook admits that they show a Page's posts to only about 16% of
that Page's followers' news feeds. You have to pay if you want to send a direct
message to your fans, too.
Both Facebook and Twitter have started cluttering
users' news feeds with ads and sponsored posts/tweets, making it harder for
users to notice your posts.
LinkedIn seems to be the least commercial platform,
but surveys show that people online spend only about 2% of their social media
time on LinkedIn, so your conversation better stand out for the moment when
someone in your LinkedIn group actually logs into that network or you will miss
them.
Our challenge in 2013 is to meet users where they are and position
ourselves as someone worth actively following.
~ @HurriGator
Anonymous. Simplicity. Simplify it.
Toss of the pink boa to all who generously shared their truths.
What is your one Big Truth about social media in 2013?
Read More Just One Crowd Sourced Questions
How Do You Build B2B Relationships Using Social Media?
How Do You Take The Fear Factor Out of Social Media?
How Do You Put Soul Into A Blog Post?
Why Don't People Get Social Media Is Not A Private Conversation?
What Is Your One Tip To An Agency/Freelancer Contracted To Be The Voice Of The Brand In Social Networks?
04/03/2013
He: I need more traffic to my blog, more followers to my Twitter account and more likes on my Facebook.
Me: So I told him the 7 Step Secret Sauce Recipe For Social Media Success. In all candour, it's nothing new but as a reminder I thought I'd pass along.
1. The End Game - Start with the end game in mind .. or as marketers might say -- your goals.
What do you want to achieve? What is success to you? Is it gaining a new audience or repositioning your brand with current customers? Is it building stronger relationships with your employees?
2. Know Your Audience - The more you understand the profile of your audience the better you'll be able to put into play steps #3, #4, #5. Building a personae of people you want to reach helps to go beyond traditional demographics to including digital/social behaviors.
3. Selfless Content - Posts that take the needs of your community into consideration and are aligned with the values of your brand/company.
Mantra to repeat before hitting the publish key:
It's not about me it's about you.
4. Focused Content Direction - Choose a topic that is big enough to give you some flexibity but narrow enough to carve out a niche that sets you apart in the cluttered social media space. Helps if you are passionate or have a high interest in the topic .. to help you sustain over time.
5. Consistency Over Time/Social Platforms - To be The "go to diva or divo" - post several times a day about trends, hard to find information, hot tips, industry news.
To position yourself as a "thought leader" consider weekly posts using platforms that offer longer formats than Twitter and can be deep linked e.g. blogs, YouTube/Vimeo (video), SlideShare. Content ideas: opinons on industry trends, current issues, interviews with leading experts.
If you're focused on innovation or a start-up it might mean you become active on the latest shiny toy. Yes, there are times when jumping into the the new is a valid strategy.
6. Community Generosity - Identify your peers, influencers and greatest fans. Join the conversatons where they hangout. Contribute to the discussion with your ideas, links, opinions. Rarely does that mean pitch your product.
If you're in a more conservative world or your end game is to sustain your current positioning, it might mean the tried and true blogs, Facebook, Linkedin, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, etc.
Keep in mind that you do not and never will "own" any social network e.g., Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn, FourSquare, g+, etc. You are a renter abiding by the rules (terms of service) that can and are changed at the discretion of the network.
The only social media properties you have control over are the blogs, communities, sites you build and host yourself.
6. Resources - Much as we might like to think that the digital world is a free for all .. if you're using social media as a business strategy keep in mind there is a cost. The price you pay is in time, human capital and yes, hard earned dollars too.
Determining how your resources will be allocated will save you a few sleepless nights.
7. Determine Results - Is it working? How will you know (refer to #1)if your end game is met? Think about the metrics that will provide you the greatest insight. Hint: Likes are probably not the best indicator.
There are at least 27 billion tools (well .. that might be a slight exaggeartion but perhaps not!) to help you track, measure and analyze. Some are free while others can run you some major bucks.
A Few Resources - Tools
Twitonomy - a new fav for Twitter analysis
Curated from Social Media Examiner - 29 Tools
Curated from What's Next Blog - 6 Shiny New Objects You Can Use
He: If it's that easy why the big deal?
Me: Right, this stuff is really not as difficult as say finding the perfect jeans. (Girlfriend, now he began to look puzzled .. but you know what I mean.) But there is one more step that I forgot to mention.
The spice that kicks it up a notch ...pulls it together .. it's the person who builds and implements and ensures that outcomes are met within two cultures -- that of your brand and social web.
The skill set and experience that should be brought to the party grows more sophisticated and complex as social media becomes integrated into a business' DNA.
Social Media Manager Skill Set
Business experience, marketing experince, strategy understand and in the weeds tactics, great verbal and written communication, knows how to write for the web, problem solving, analytic skills, expeience in web analytics, understands the concept of digital conversation, continuous learner, generously shares, team player with people of diverse backgrounds, comfortable moving between online and offline environments, creative approach to the mundane and the unexpected, ability to work in a constantly moving world, likes helping people, customer first orientation, understands the concept of selfless content, content curation and creation, importance of multiple devices, understands digital behavior and building community.
Add to that the working knowlede of mulitple social networks, blogs, the concept of authenticity, transparancy, honesty.
Include an understanding of your brand value and promise and how content and conversations must align but not message or sell within the social web.
Oh yes .. throw in a little passion for social media and the brand and having fun.
I think that will do it.
Post inspired by Amber Kapish and David Munk, Stargayzing.
Graphic credit Zazzle
