Strategic Media Coach

Surprise, surprise, there is a new social media site – www.foursquare.com – that is becoming all the rage….

Rather than me try to explain it to you, read this blog by Todd Carpenter, Social Media Manager, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS.  He wrote a great article on it – much better job than I could do…  Anyway, check it out. It is a very interesting idea (kind a scary too…).   http://speakingofrealestate.blogs.realtor.org/2009/12/04/foursquare-and-the-mobilization-of-social-media/

Just remember that before you jump on board, figure out where it fits into your social media strategy.  If you do play with it, I’d love to hear about your experience, thoughts, etc…..  Is this something I should be encouraging my clients to get on????

Strategic social media planning is a deliberate, continual process for improving performance by developing long term goals to produce results using new social media tools.    It involves looking forward to where you want to go; developing then implementing steps for moving toward that vision.  A strong social media strategic plan can be a powerful tool for systemic change.  

If you keep doing what you have always done, you will keep getting what you’ve always gotten.  Social media has changed how we interact with each other.

We’ve all heard the phrase – Failing to plan is planning to fail.  With social media the phrase is:  Failing to plan social media marketing is planning to fail in public.

Ok, I’m sorry if I offended you.  I know that sounds harsh.  Well, it is harsh.  I want to get your attention.  Too many people get hung up on the tools.  They think that the whole social media thing has to do with tools like facebook, myspace, plaxo, twitter, linked in -etc.  And I’m here to tell you that social media is NOT about the tools.

Social Media is about your strategy, goals, drives, desires – whatever it is that you want to call it.  The tools are just there to help you deliver the message, interact with your clients, and have a presence.  In reality, it doesn’t matter which tools you use as long as you have a plan for communicating your message and finding your  target market.

If everything changed tomorrow and all the social media tools were dumped, it wouldn’t matter to you or your business.  But only if you set it up correctly from the beginning and you know what your goal, drive, strategy is.

Notice that my website is not called – Social Media Coach.  It is called Strategic Media Coach….  That’s a HUGE difference.  You don’t need someone to coach you on Social Media, you need someone who can walk you through creating a long term strategy!

If you base your marketing/advertising on the tools, you are going to be in trouble tomorrow.  Why?  Because the tools change.  Think about this….  MySpace use to be the place where everyone went to ’socialize’.  Today, facebook is that place.  What if you had planned your business around MySpace?  Where would you be today? 

Plan your strategy and then work your plan.  If you do this, the tools won’t matter!!  If you need help, call me!

If you are not convinced that social media is having a major impact on our society, you seriously have to watch this video. 

And after watching it, you still aren’t  convinced, call me next year because you are going to need to get on-board FAST!  Trust me your competitors are already there building their branding, credibility, and communicating with your clients.

This is a great video – very well done and very informative!

watch?v=sIFYPQjYhv8

This whole Social Media trend is very confusing.   Sometimes it is difficult to discern what is social media and what isn’t.    Not only that but what the heck does social media mean? 

Well, if you look it up on wikipedia, it defines social media as “media designed to be disseminated through social interaction, created using highly accessible and scalable publishing techniques. “  Ok, so great – I’m still confused….

Well, to help soften my confusion, I decided to define what Social Media means to me….  (hmm, wonder if I can get Webster’s to use my definition – do they pay royalities?)   So here goes – Social media is the new communications foundation that enables human interaction via the Internet- and web-based applications. This includes but is not limited to on-line forums, blogs, podcasts,  video, emails, instant messaging, etc, etc, etc.  Currenlty the most common software applications are facebook, twitter, myspace, wordpress, and Linked In.

Sound confusing?  It is!  That’s why it is important to know up-front what you want to do and be able to articulte it with someone who understands social media and the business impacts BEFORE you start.

Basically, the verdict is still out  – the trend is still so new that experts vary in their interpretation of social marketing.  However, what they agree on is, it is here and it is here to stay.  Which means, you need to be in the medium or at the very least moving into the medium AND you need to be ready.  Without a doubt the biggest mistake businesses and people  make with Social Media today is not being prepared.

I love this quote about Social Media! 

It is an amazingly accurate reflection of how Social Media has changed the world and how businesses must now relate to customers to get their business.  If you really want to understand what your customers’ expectation, read this:

“There are businesses that I would shop at more if they would just learn how to connect with me, their potential client. They need to learn where I live, on Facebook and Twitter, and they need to interact with me. I don’t subscribe to papers, and I don’t listen to radio or watch broadcast TV. Social media is where it’s at for clients like me.” – A Biggos

Social Media has changed our worlds.  It connects customers to your business on their terms not yours.  For customers it’s all about providing value.  It’s not about being sold or selling.  It’s about transparency.  It’s about being engaging and being known. It’s about building credibility. 

Are you prepared to move your business into the next millennium?  Do you know what your customers want?  If not, you better figure it out quickly!  I’m sure your competition already has…