Is our fascination with social media driven by hype? My guess would be that most people would say no. But check out the headline that popped into my inbox yesterday:
Survey: 7% of Social Network Users Would Look at Messages During Sex
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Now that’s a committed group…or is it? Yes, social media has set marketing on its ear. Kids won’t leave the house without their mobile devices glued to their bodies and grandparents love their Facebook pages with all of the grandkid’s activities there to see, but does that mean we should be throwing out marketing strategy and putting all of our efforts behind social media?
Marketers would say “of course not”, as they run to their computers to send the next tweet, which must be done for the sake of staying on top of trends. Clients, on the other hand, say something different. Some don’t want to hear about the marketing tactics that have worked in the past. They ask only “what should my social media strategy be?” Others just want a custom Facebook page put up. Fast.
Does your target even use social media?
For some, getting rolling with social media, is mission critical. But for many, social media can undermine other marketing efforts that could be far more effective for the organization. For those selling to other businesses, this is particularly true. Clients are busy. Really really busy. Research we have done on behalf of our clients shows that, particularly at the executive level, people can’t even begin to keep up with their business email, let alone reading articles, going to webinars and conferences and doing the other things that are necessary to keep ahead of the curve in their given field.
Three “musts” before you start
So before you jump into the fray, make sure to:
- do your research. Tightly identify your target group. Pursue social media statistics that will help with your decision making. Get your sales force to enter into informal discussions about media habits with your customers, or conduct a survey to get you the information you need to find out whether social media will have any impact with your target.
- determine your objectives. Decide exactly what you want your social media activities to do. Drive traffic to your site? Increase sales?
- Identify your success metrics. How will you know what to stop, start or continue unless you measure whether you are achieving what you set out to achieve?
So back on the hype thing. That headline about looking at messages during sex…got me thinking…I wonder how many people would say the same thing about TV during sex? Probably more than social network users. But it sure doesn’t make for a good headline.
* Source: http://www.mediapost.com/publications/?fa=Articles.showArticle&art_aid=124847
ortant to them?
ers.
Compare Apples to Apples
As a B2B firm, that calculation may shock you, even at 1 or 2%. This leads to my favourite method of calculating your marketing budget – look at what you spent the last year, or three – you may be surprised. No two companies are alike, so use your own history. This would include all graphic design and web development services, copywriting, printing, electronic and print ad space, sponsorships, internal time writing blogs and the like, pens with your logo on it, domain registration and hosting, mailing services like MailChimp or Constant Contact, etc, etc. – probably more than you realize.
Factor in what you want to add to the mix this year. Even forays into social media aren’t free, though they’re often touted as ‘free marketing’. You may not have to buy ad space but it takes man hours. What’s your strategy? Who would do it? Do you need outside help in executing or setting it up (like an editor or ghost writer for your blog). The ROI on this type of marketing is harder and slower to recognize as relationship building takes time.
Finally, build in a buffer for unexpected opportunities. Many clients decide to participate in a tradeshow or sponsor something and are surprised with an offer of ad space they need to now fill. Or, your professional association suggests you provide branded tchochkes for giveaways at a conference. Maybe you hire new people or plan to move and will need more stationery. If you set aside a little extra, it will give you the breathing room to do it well, which often means professionally.
needed to rebrand. With the help of two great guys and some close friends we went through three sessions that eventually landed us a new name – Rapport – and tagline based on what makes us special. And my new website was written by a pro.
business? When you achieve that kind of consistency it creates a continuity that, if not there, can be confusing.
or association and the copy focussed more on the other side of their business. They had program information in the website, but one would have to dig for it. If you landed on this page and weren’t even sure you were in the right place, would you search for it?
– the hidden opportunities for business, jobs, friends and ideas happen become much easier to find. Just by sharing information on a social media platform, you have much more opportunity for being heard by this invisible network.
We had a client who’s in the business of buying and selling. When we started this session he was focussed on the buying aspect, so much that the URL he bought which he wanted us to brand had “buying” in it. Not just that, it was all based around people finding him with Google. Once we went through the session we discovered two things that stopped the process. First, although buyers are more likely to be looking for him through the internet, the real money-maker is selling and that’s the part of his business he really wants to grow. Second, he doesn’t meet his clients through Google. He’s in a business that is personal, based on face-time and trust.
