This is a guest post by James Ainsworth of Marketing Donut.
The hype of social media is at times, a near spiritual fever. Understand this, NOT everybody is doing it. Don’t panic and don’t rush into it because of all the noise surrounding social media. Those who are prepared to incorporate it as one element of a wider marketing strategy are the small businesses that prosper. @Pearcafe, @BrothersCider and Crystal Jewels all use various platforms well.
You shouldn’t introduce social media as a marketing practice to your operation if it doesn’t serve a true purpose.
In order to ascertain a need, it is imperative that you adopt a ‘Them’ and ‘Us’ mind-set. What do you want from it and what do you think your customers might like to gain from your presence on social media channels?
If you are thinking of getting involved, the more the merrier, just make sure it is a commitment you can sustain and above all, from which you and your customers can benefit. Social media is for you as much as it is for them.
Give it a go but don’t expect the rapture of instant business that you may have been led to believe is available. Build a following and work with it to create organic and tangible business growth.
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
Thanks for this post, James. I particularly like the slide about assessing how competitors are using social media.
I’d just add that when it comes to competitors, it’s not a matter of analysing their behaviour once and then only concentrating on (potential and current) clients. I think it’s important to engage with competitors on an ongoing basis, if you can.
A good 40-50% of the people I follow on Twitter are ‘competitors’. As well as learning from how we see each other do things, we also share ideas and work together and support each other in a way you probably wouldn’t expect to see among competitors in the ‘real world’. Beneficial all round!
Thanks Emily. Always monitor your opposition but don’t be afraid of them. It is perfectly reasonable to follow your rivals on Twitter and to engage with them.
I think it is very much evident that the modern day business model is inherently social. Yes there are business competitors (this includes freelancers too) who work in the same circles-be that online or geographically-but the collective knowledge and experience base helps everyone to do better business.
My favourite example of competitors using their collective innovation to combat big business competition can be found amongst a handful of baristas in Shoreditch. They recently introduced a dis-loyalty card scheme to reward customers for visiting different competing independent coffee shops, as opposed to the chain coffee shops that occupy the high street. If you visit all
Some really good rational sense here, James. It is certainly true that businesses should not be railroaded into social media strategies though some awareness of them is certainly important. There is a lot of hype and people claiming to be experts and businesses should learn what to avoid.
An awareness of social media is especially important in the case of managing negative PR online. We have seen high profile cases of businesses who have ignored negative feedback on social media only to find significant damage to their reputation.
Social media means different things to different businesses (and indeed individuals). Some businesses with existing database of customers may find social media to be a very convenient way of communicating latest news, offers, etc with them. Others may want to use it to generate buzz about a new product or service.
As you say, the community ethos of social media leads even competitors to collaborate on ideas. I find this fascinating… Connections are made which often transcend business.