Comments on: Social media is harder than it looks – think before you do

By: Max Design - standards based web design, development and training » Some links for light reading (6/10/09)

Tue, 06 Oct 2009 19:30:06 +0000

[...] Social media is harder than it looks — think before you do [...]

By: Recently linked (25-Sep-2009 to 30-Sep-2009) - zumio

Recently linked (25-Sep-2009 to 30-Sep-2009) - zumio — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 01:05:43 +0000

[...] Social media is harder than it looks - think before you do – Stephen Collins posts an excellent review of the types of challenges in communicating, designing and executing a social media campaign. Recommended reading for anyone considering social networking/media approaches for your organisation… [...]

By: laurence millar

laurence millar — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 06:40:01 +0000

Love it. Five things to think about while you focus on doing it.\

Nothing more needs to be said – well done Stephen.

By: Scott Farrell

Scott Farrell — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 01:45:43 +0000

Very similar to a conversation I had last night.

I dont’t quite evangelise. But I do find hard to discuss something with passion, discuss it as one alternative, without coming of as its the only solution.

I found it interesting to discuss how web2 differs from traditional approaches.
see my thoughts here:
http://gearedforprofit.bluepower.net.au/web2-relevance-to-busines/145

By: Kimota

Kimota — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 01:08:41 +0000

I couldn’t agree more. I’m more than a little tired of the smoke and mirrors approach to social media evangelising that goes on. So rarely do the talks, blogs etc relate things back to actionable and realistic data that can be taken to the board.

So often I leave conferences surrounded by marketing managers and business owners who say “that’s all very nice, but I still don’t see how it’s relevant for me” or “love it but there’s no way I can say that to the board and not get shot down”.

When the majority of business in Australia are SMEs, is it really relevant to try and get them excited by telling them how Dell made $3 mill on Twitter? Or how Starbucks uses communities? Nope.

Is it really acceptable to try and overcome genuine business objections by telling them “you’re wrong, this is the future” and that’s it?

Too many social media commentators are hung up on the technology. It’s got absolutely nothing to do with twitter and facebook and the rest. It’s all about human – and thereby consumer – behaviour. Nothing else.

Hmm, I can feel a ranty post coming on…

By: RobertKCole

RobertKCole — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 21:15:43 +0000

Thanks for referencing my post on the Views from a Corner Suite blog.

At a recent speaking engagement, I tried to highlight where social media should be prioritized:

1) Product – is it working as planned? Is your service delivery system functioning efficiently? This is essential.

2) Brand Positioning. Is your unique selling proposition clearly defined and consistently executed? Does your audience understand your brand’s personality & sensibility? This is also essential.

3) Are you participating in social media? Are you listening to your customers and proactively interacting with them? if you aren’t conversing with your customers, who is?

Point 3 is not essential. If you are not participating in social media, no worries, the conversation about you is taking place anyway – the market is defining your brand without your input.

My guess is that those who are not interested in participating in #3 are probably not doing a great job at points #1 and #2. If they put a lot of effort into #1 and #2, then they understand the value of customer engagement and #3 becomes a no-brainer.