Archive for the ‘Social Networking’ Category

This was the question raised among several of the most intelligent marketers I have had the pleasure to meet. Social networking still has that stigma – it’s for kids, it’s for social stuff, I don’t care what everyone is doing every second of the day.  Fascinating!

I personally cannot tell you the last time I actually read a post where someone told me something I truly did not care about. Perhaps it’s who you are friending or following.  Hmmm…now there’s a thought.  Perhaps you should consider instituting some guidelines around social networking. Have a strategy about how you are using social networking?  Say it isn’t so!!

I try to use my accounts for business purposes. Now, that is not to say that I do not ever say anything personal, or communicate in a personal way with someone online.  I did it when I worked in the “corporate world”. I had work friends and we shared all sorts of things from  personal issues to business challenges to opinions about out latest boss.

Yet, when it becomes part of the Internet, people view it differently. Perhaps it’s because of the sheer number of people who can actually see that information. Or perhaps it’s because they are uncomfortable with the technology. I can certainly understand both those positions. But think about it – how often did you know someone who either was reprimanded at work or worse, fired, because the rumor mill was in full force and somehow that disparaging remark got back to the new boss?  It happens all the time.

Now, I’m not condoning putting everything you are doing on your social networking accounts (see my netiquette blog for some tips). There are some direct posting and messaging options that allow you to state things more privately (much like closing the office door before you gossip about a co-worker). But, just like everything else in life, you need to pay attention to what you are saying, how you are choosing to behave, and remember the repercussions. If you don’t care, hey – then tell everyone everything. It’s your life. But if you do care – if you are one of those people who is insightful enough to realize that you can have repercussions from your actions – then keep your blog posts, social networking information, and even e-mails a little less personal. I don’t mean cold, or even totally professional all the time. Just something a bit less revealing.

Have a strategy

When I decide who to friend, or follow, I look for a common thread. The person has information I’m interested in, they are in an industry I would like to follow, they have a hobby I might want to undertake one day, they are funny, or I’m intrigued by their writing style. I do not simply friend or follow every person that comes along. Not trying to be a snob, but for me it’s not a numbers game.  I’m not interested in having thousands of people on my social networking accounts that I cannot provide some value for, or that are not a fit for me professionally or personally. I don’t need to be the popular kid.

Because I make a point to consider various criteria, I rarely get some crazy post or Tweet telling me about bodily functions, or mostly inane information. I receive a lot of valuable information from my connections, and find them to be interesting people that I would not have had the opportunity to get to know otherwise. Bonus!

If I find aftering following someone that we do not have the level of commonality I prefer, I simply unfriend or unfollow them. It’s not personal. I’m sure they have lots of other cyberfriends who are thrilled to read their posts. And I do not feel bad about it. I’m simply trying to maximize my social networking time, and would understand the situation in reverse. Time is precious, so no reason for someone to continue reading my posts if they are not receiving some benefit from them.

The bottom line is you have to decide how you wish to use social networking. If you want it to be all personal, fine. If you want it for business, then accept that you will have to merge your personal and business, or not ever friend a personal friend. Either way, it’s all good. After all, you really have friends at work, right? It’s fine to be yourself, and have some fun! Just remember to respect other’s time, and that anything you put online can be found.

The Today Show recently aired a program called Social Netiquette:  When poking isn’t polite.  I thought several of the rules of engagement were worth mentioning, such as:

Number 1 Rule – Treat others with kindness and respect according to U.K.-based etiquette authority Debrett’s.  So true! It is tiring that people feel the anonymity they can receive on the Internet gives them the right to be tacky. It doesn’t.

Other rules include:

Don’t give too much information (this can come back to bite you later, particularly since employers use the Internet to check into applicants)

Keep the information appropriate when posting comments.  Don’t air your dirty laundry.

Keep Poking (on Facebook) to a minimum.  Better yet, don’t poke at all.  Why would you poke someone in the first place?

It’s not candid camera, so put your best face forward and be mindful of the type of pictures you are loading. You are never sure who is looking!

You do not have to accept every invitation you receive. It’s OK to be selective about who gets access to your information.

Remember, keep it clean. The clever quip or dirty joke may keep you from landing a big contract later on.

To read the entire article, check out the Today Show’s web site at http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/29616648/. The video is worth watching as well!

Social networking is no longer a young person’s entertainment media. It has grown into a more mainstream method to interact with your customer base, give employees options to interact internally, and provide a company an authoritative voice on the Internet.

Social networking, including blogging and online communities, has experienced phenomenal growth over the last 5 years. Early adopters primarily used the technology to communicate with family and friends. Now the social networking phenomenon includes major corporations and is showing strong, steady growth in the corporate space. A recent study of the top 500 corporations as ranked by Inc. Magazine, a major business publication targeting CEOs of fast-growing private companies, shows a significant increase in the use of social media in their marketing mix.

The Inc. Magazine survey depicts a 22% increase in use of social networking as part of their top 500 corporation’s marketing strategy over the previous year when comparing 2007 and 2008. A critical metric to understand is the final question asking the corporations if they were not using any social media. The results yielded a 20% decrease in companies no longer considering or using social media. The survey also predicts continued use of social networking among large corporations.

Edelman, a leading independent public relations firm, compiles an annual survey on trust and credibility. The 2008 version yielded some interesting results, including 58% of those surveyed named a peer, or “a person like me,” among those trusted to provide advice and information. This is the first time in the nine year history of the survey this number surpassed professionals like doctors and corporate executives. Therefore, it is important that all companies find a means to communicate and collaborate in a peer-to-peer fashion with their target market and customer base. Social networking allows for such interaction while giving a “person like me” face to the company. The personalization of companies is important to achieving success in social networking. Additionally, companies engaging in social networking will have a collaborative effort with some competitors and affiliated professions, known as co-petition. This open communication provides a competitive advantage by the sharing of ideas and issues between organizations, and has not been previously possible in such an easy and open way.

Bottom line – social networking is here to stay, and needs to be seriously considered as part of every company’s marketing strategy. Otherwise, you may find yourself left behind.