I don't want to create a rubbish blog, though, so I might as well write about things that intrigue me about the online communities in which we interact and maneuver.
As a marketing guy, I have had the privilege of diving into the social networking world, particularly on the nonprofit side.
Here's what bosses love about social media:
1. It's cheap.
In fact, a lot of the stuff you can do is free. But even paid advertising on Facebook or with Google is significantly cheaper than, say, a television ad.
2. It's quick.
Social networks give firms a flexibility and nimbleness that many wouldn't have otherwise. Anything from special offers to responses to national tragedies is on the table with social networking.
3. Its reach is instantly global.
The fact that a single post or ad can instantly go out to anyone on the planet makes it (hopefully) a very efficient and economical tool.
4. It's relational.
For companies that understand this, the potential is limitless. Most firms feel about as personable and relatable as Mitt Romney on the campaign trail. Social media provides an additional touch point to not only talk to customers and partners, but also to listen.
5. It's sharable.
Nothing makes a CFO smile at the Marketing department like hearing about free advertising. If your customers can become your cheerleaders, then you have the power of the word of mouth advertising. Corporation meets grassroots.
Here's what bosses don't love about social media:
1. It's hard to monetize effectively (accurately?).
Hopefully this is something that will get figured out in the next few weeks of my course. While PTAT and engagement (and overall exposure) is great on Facebook, the relationship to ROI is not linear or direct, and it's hard to pinpoint the value of social media. Blogs can do it if done well and tracked, but many firms go to Facebook before starting a company blog. Which brings me to my next one:
2. How much time is this supposed to take?
Obviously, this flies in the face of the whole "It's cheap" point I made above. Because when you calculate time and effort, it's pretty expensive. This is a loaded topic that I'll go into in another post, but people can really tell the difference between firms that do this well and firms that said, "Well, we should probably have a Pinterest account, right?" Because of the lower-budget nature of social media marketing for most firms, and the difficulty in monetizing its effectiveness, it's hard to justify a salaried social media position if your company is not huge.
So, social marketing often falls to either the VP or Director, who already has no spare time, or a low-level employee (intern) who shouldn't really be trusted as a front door to the entire online population. Mistakes are a lot more visible and dangerous, because they have a tendency to go viral.
There are more things I could go into, but my main questions moving forward:
ROI
What's the best and most accurate way to measure ROI? It seems like every solution is some new software, but I don't know how they're measuring it, other than applying traditional advertising calculations and tweaking a couple of things.
Differentiation vs. White Noise
Because it's so instant and global, there's an absolute deluge of content and competition out there, no matter what industry you're in.
Think about it: Joe, a microbrewer from West Virginia technically has the access to the same channels as Budweiser. This presents unique opportunities for expansion for Moonshine Joe, but it also presents the challenge of effective differentiation for both firms.
Simply managing an account or paying for ads is not enough in the social networking sector anymore. Everyone is there. Marketing efforts in social media can quickly go the way of direct mail (or email), where most of it is ignored and resented.
So, I think there's a lot that can happen, and I don't think social media is going anywhere for a bit. In many ways, I think the digital age has moved marketing to the forefront of many businesses' strategies, and rightfully so. Particularly in the online world, a customer or client is asked to make a choice (buy, subscribe, or find out more) without actually having anything to hold in his hands. It's up to the marketers to know their targets and their strategies, and be able to maneuver with the quickly changing environment of social media marketing.
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