Socialmedialand

Posts Tagged ‘Social Strategy’

Ok I know it sounds like a stretch at first, but stay with me on this one.

As social media continues to grow as our industry’s biggest buzz word I’ve seen an increasing number of client requests for blogs, twitter accounts, or facebook pages. Without fail the request goes something like this:

          “Please put together a strategy for client XYZ to have a Twitter account.”

          ”….?”

What will a Twitter account accomplish in a scenerio like that? What about all the unaswered questions? Like, “Why do you want a Twitter account in the first place?” ”What is your plan for handling customer concerns, suggestions and ideas internally once they’re brought up?”  And it’s not just Twitter. These questions need to be answered before a starting a blog, creating a network or joining a forum. No social media technology should be adopted lightly.

Just like you can’t adopt a puppy without thinking about it first. Sure it’s cute, sure everyone loves puppies. But you can’t just buy it and then forget about it. You have to feed it, you have to pet it, you have to walk it, you have to give it water, you have to have it groomed and taken to the vet for checkups, and you have to listen and respond to its complaints about your products. Ok maybe the last part is really only applicable to social media, but you get the idea.

The hardest thing to explain about social media is that it’s not a “thing” that you can just “have.” It’s a complete change in your business the same way a puppy is a complete change of lifestyle. You have to be prepared for the fundamental shift in the way you relate to your customers. Twitter isn’t just another platform for your advertising bursts, it should be the gateway to a deeper communication with the people who purchase your products. And a blog isn’t an island – it should be a traffic center where you put out information, bring in information and respond to it.

So do you still want a puppy? Think hard before you decide, because once you buy one it’s nearly impossible to go back. Think back to the last commercial you saw featuring the sad puppy dog eyes of the dogs at the humane society – can you handle how bad you would feel if you had to give your new puppy up to that fate? Same thing with social media – it might sound like all fun and games to start now but if it doesn’t go the way you expect you can’t just ditch the effort. Your customers will be twice as angry that you asked for their opinion and then ignored it when you didn’t like it. They’ll feel abandoned, just like that puppy. Social media is a commitment to your customers that you will take care of them for life, from here on out.

If you’re not ready for that relationship with your customer, then you’re not ready for social media in any form, no matter how trendy it is. Because trends come and go, today it’s Twitter, tomorrow it might be something new. If you understand the fundamentals of social media you can simply adapt to any new platform your customers adopt, you grow with them the same way pet owners switch dog food for different stages of their puppy’s life, if you don’t then you just have an irrelevant account on yesterday’s cool new site. And a sad puppy.

And so, social media is like a puppy. Agree? Disagree? Have another metaphor? Share in the comments section!