Are you too caught up in getting social media “right?”
Yoda said “Do or Do Not. There is No Try.” When it comes to social media at least, the little green guy is full of it.
If you accept the fundamental premise that social media’s power lies in its ability to change the nature of relationships from brand>>customer to brand<>customer, then the outcome of your social media efforts is less important than the existence of the effort.
Sure, there have been some corporate missteps in the relatively brief history of social media. But, most of those have been due either to overreaching, or acting before listening. I cannot think of one example of a social media program that focuses on engagement with customers that has not been successful.
And why wouldn’t it be? Ongoing social media programs that emphasize customer interaction are always a net positive (as opposed to social media marketing programs that are more promotional in nature).
Sensitive, intelligent social media outreach isn’t all that complicated. It’s customer service with a human face in a timely, public forum. And the fact that you’re even trying to help your audience understand and benefit from your products and services is what counts, not whether you have the perfect Facebook page or the ideal monthly ROI spreadsheet.
Your company has a phone. Your company has a Web site. Your company has an email address. Now, your company has a blog/facebook page/Twitter account. Don’t overcomplicate it. Be genuinely helpful and your customers will appreciate you more than if you weren’t.
They say that close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades. I’d like to add social media to that list.
(photo by Orange_Beard)
Fun post, I like it. It’s an interesting predicament though, as “trying” doesn’t really sell well as a motivator in the high pressure world of marketing in this economy. I do agree with you 100% though as we really don’t have enough of a good sense of social media to understand how it’s truly best used. So, given that we either dive in and “try” or ignore it. That type of uncertain investment is all about leadership rather than managing to metrics, which always takes courage. Yoda would be proud of that…
Nice post (and funny pic) and you make a great point. I would even take it further, though. I think in Social Media, Try and Do are about the same. It’s the journey, not the destination, and trying to skip to the end is where most people get it wrong.
Social media outreach is definitely not hard. There are so many free tools out there to help you monitor the web it’s ridiculous. I ordered a pair of Toms Shoes (http://tomsshoes.com) last month and had to exchange them. I still haven’t gotten my new ones and tried to reach out via phone call (sent to voice mail), email (no response) and finally publicly via Twitter (and STILL NO RESPONSE). If they’re getting Google Alerts (a no brainer) they should see this comment (another public venue). Hey … TOMS SHOES would someone tell me where my shoes are!?
Chase Granberry’s last blog post..Headed to SXSW
Reading: Yoda Was Wrong – Trying Counts http://ow.ly/LZz
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Cute post, but Yoda’s point was the incredible power of true commitment. And successful use of social media is, as you have pointed out, all about commitment.
RT @tweetmeme Yoda Was Wrong – Trying Counts | Social Media Marketing | Social Media Consulting – Convince & Co… http://tinyurl.com/atpds9
RT @tweetmeme Yoda Was Wrong – Trying Counts | Social Media Marketing | Social Media Consulting – Convince & Co… http://tinyurl.com/atpds9