subject: Renew Your Social Media Solution [print this page] Social media has been so looked up to that the high expectation leads big or small business into disappointment. Let's not be all mournful.
To avoid being overly idealistic, here are some suggestions for you.
1. Are You Using the Right Platform?
There are many social media platforms to consider when designing an online campaign. Twitter, Facebook, blogs and YouTube are some of the biggest and most important. While all the social sites should be examined, blindly signing up for accounts can be a mistake. To start, educate yourself on each platform and how they can enhance your brand. When launching a Facebook presence, consider the various platforms within this medium; Pages, Groups and now Communities. Each have different purposes, tools and limitations. Do some research before making the commitment.
If you choose Facebook, you must also choose the right platform (i.e. groups, communities, pages) within.
Twitter is the best place to announce news about your company. It is also an excellent source of followers' feedback. Since Twitter is highly capricious, you'd better stick to their updates and stay informed.
Don't underestimate the power of a blog. If you regularly update your blog, you can actually optimize the search engine and feed your consumers with the latest information about your company. Blogger, WordPress and Tumblr are some desirable options.
Each social platform has its own "job," and they can all be used simultaneously to boost success. "Jamie has pages on Facebook, Bebo, MySpace, Twitter, and YouTube - people tend to use their own favorite social networking sites, so it's a good idea to be on all the major ones," said Saldanha.
2. Provide Messages Your Audience Wants
In the 21st century, hard selling is out of the question. They aren't machines taking your oder. They are humans for Christ's sake! Craig Engler (manager and vice president of SyFy Digital) embraces this belief. That's why he has been educating his viewers about the production of a TV show.
Once the audience feel connected to what the company is doing, they will be much more understanding and less judgemental.
3. Be Attentive
Listening to consumers is as important as sharing messages with them. Dunkin' Donuts makes this a priority on their Facebook Page: "Because we have over 1.4 million fans on Facebook, we keep several sets of eyes on our Page throughout the day. We make sure our fans are clear on common confusions by selecting important questions posted to our Facebook Page to answer. We can't respond to everything, but by hand picking those that are representative of common questions we show we're there, listening and engaging with our fans," said Ben Smith, their interactive marketing manager.
Feedback from different platforms should be handled differently.
For Facebook users, the wall is the playground. Be extra attentive there and change the setting of your e-mail notifications to receive updated messages.
YouTube and blogs should also be watched closely for comments and questions. Like Facebook, there are settings that, when enabled, will create e-mail alerts when there is a new comment or connection
4. Let Them Speak
To maintain a strong bondage with consumers, you better allow freedom of speech. Jamie's representative Saldanha used the Food Revolution in America as an example to illustrate how sharing of food and cooking experience among his fans has brought up the morale of the campaign.
5. Don't Go All Serious
It doesn't matter what business you're in - people want to be entertained. Find fun and fresh ways to keep your audience engaged. Dunkin' Donuts does this well through Facebook by creating fun and sharable content. For example, Maurice is a cartoon espresso bean who lives on the brand's Facebook Page. "Maurice was created to raise awareness about our espresso and latte category. It was done in a way that is fun and light hearted but that drives the emotional connection. Instead of straight product talk, make it fun," Smith said.
Online media promotion deserves the same amount of effort as offline one. Decision makers have to be creative and smart enough to choose the right platform. As said by Engler, they millions of people within your social media network are those who bring the good name of your company. So give them the best treatment as you can.
