Social Media - Five Predictions for 2012

Another year, another step closer to viewing social media less as a newfangled technology and more as a must-have in your marketing plan. My 5 predictions for social in 2012. Feel free to add yours!1. Going beyond the blue F. Yes, you have a tiny blue "F" at the bottom of your ad perhaps a tiny blue bird as well. While it's a good reminder to consumers to look for you in the social space it's kind of passe. People expect you to be there and people expect you to be listening. In 2012 I believe the companies who are doing it "right" will give people a reason to visit their page, use their hashtag, or take that extra step. Some will integrate it into a campaign - visit us on Facebook and tell us why you love to drive your Honda - others will wave a reward to lure people in - follow us on Twitter for breaking airline deals. Either way, you need to give a reason, the blue F isn't enough anymore.

2. Interests are key. Facebook will continue to be the keeper of our personal memories, stashed away in a beautiful timeline, but the other space to play in for social networks is our personal interests. Twitter has capitalized on this and the emerging network Pinterest is also quickly gaining ground. When we want to take a break from our friends and selfishly look at what interests us, these types of networks will be where we go. Facebook tried to tap into this with its subscribe button, but posts on your interests are often overwhelmed in your newsfeed by your friends' activity. I believe they are two separate needs, and ultimately two platforms.

3. Social will continue to be an important voice. From the upcoming election to unrest in the Middle East, social media will  be the people's voice and play an important role in social change.

4. Mobile, mobile, mobile. Social media will be how we show the world what we are seeing, hearing, feeling while we are on the go. From pictures to check-ins to status updates, social will continue to be our voice on the run, our source of news, our quick hellos, our way to kill five minutes in the waiting room. The big networks will continue to invest in their mobile platforms and you'll start seeing more mobile ads on social networks.

5. Getting help. Companies will continue to have that a-ha moment when they realize that social takes time and they need to either staff up or outsource. At first they'll try to save a few dollars and pawn it off on the intern. Then they'll realize their intern may know his/her way around Facebook but is not quite yet a marketing genius and get someone with more experience. It seems to be the path most businesses go. What I predict you'll see is more affordable social marketing support in the next year. Smaller agencies who will run your Twitter, Facebook accounts for a reasonable amount.

My five predictions, let's hear yours.

Using Twitter to Gain New Business

As social evolves, businesses and organizations are becoming more savvy on how they use social to reach goals. Here are two ways to use Twitter to get new business:The Passive Approach: Position yourself as an expert to get referrals. Follow others in your field, create an industry specific list, tweet from conferences, share news articles on relevant topics. Be the expert of whatever it is that you're passionate about. It's important to try to be specific about your expertise, so you can make yourself easy to find. If I'm a lawyer then don't just talk about law in general but make your Twitter handle reflect the type of law you practice and the industry you focus on.

The Aggressive Approach: Go find your customer.The search function is highly underused by most companies in their Twitter strategy. Not that you want to cyberstalk people by any means, but it would be nice to find people who fit your customer profile and let them know you are out there.

If you are a restaurant with a focus on healthy, low-cal, fresh food , search for people in your area who are tweeting about exercising, use the term “fit” or perhaps even “diet.”  Reach out to them by following with the hopes you’ll peak their interest and get a follow back. It’s not about spamming someone, it’s about delivering content to someone who has similar interests and has given you permission to share in those interests via a follow.

What other ways have you seen Twitter used to gain business?

Google +, One More Network to Manage?

Finally, Google has created a social network that people seem to like, or at least tech reporters seem to like. The rest of the world gets to have their say later this month.Why Google + may work:

It's clean, lean and seems to provide an easy solution for one of Facebook's downfalls - I don't want my mom/boss/potential future employer to see this post. Sure Facebook has created lists and groups as a work around to this problem, but after you reach the 200-plus friend mark, it almost seems easier to wipe the slate clean and start with a new social network placing friends where they belong from the get go.

It offers a quality video chat function. Facebook is set to announce one soon, but it puts them in a me-too bucket, a place Facebook seems to be often these days (see Foursquare/Places, Groupon/Deals).

Between the Circles and Sparks function, Google + seems to combine the best of both worlds - friends (Facebook) + interests (Twitter).

It already has brands itching to get on board. Among many other media outlets which have created profiles, Ford is one of the first brands to create a page. Google promises small business pages are in the works.

And finally, it's too important to not work.  With Bing in bed with Facebook, Google has to find its answer to social search. It tried Twitter, but recently ended that relationship for Google +.

We'll see what happens and if people are going to make the switch. In the mean time check out the demo: http://www.google.com/+/demo/

Getting Good Agency Advice: Apps, Web and Social

Kudos to Mashable for pointing out a flaw in Tiffany's latest promotion. The promotion asked consumers to log on to an app and/or microsite to input their most romantic moments on a user-generated map.

The idea is cool, and a great fit for Tiffany's, but as Mashable pointed out, a bit clunky when you have to remember the microsite url, or download the app. Could the same promotion not be handled using existing social media platforms - Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr? Sure it could.

Tiffany's isn't the only brand that has fallen into this trap, it is a reoccurring  problem because: 1. Brands still want total control from a creative perspective and perhaps, you could argue analytics, and 2. (This is the most important here) agencies don't make nearly as much money when they don't have to build something new.

It always irks me to see an agency pushing a branded mobile app when in most cases it makes more sense to advertise or co-brand within an existing app that has steady traffic. Do it the other way around and you better be prepared to spend money not only on development costs for building your app but also on advertising to drive people to your app. The app store is rather crowded these days. Personally, I'd rather spend money advertising my brand not my app.

Another frequent agency pitch I don't agree with is trying to get clients to invest in a Facebook app or custom tab. Most people will come to your page once to like it and then they're done. If they want to interact with a post they'll do so from the newstream which means you can fancy up your page all you like, but few people will see it. Investing that same money in a Facebook ad buy, or clever content for your posts - video, copy-writing help, etc, would probably do more good. Once in awhile you'll see a branded app break through, but for the most part people are spending their app time on Mafia Wars, Farmville, etc. You know, apps that are designed by the guys that actually make a business out of building and maintaining apps, as opposed to the folks that build an app as an add-on to a marketing plan.

Finally, when it comes to web, everyone is different. If you have e-commerce, well sure your site is pretty important, but if that's not the case, have a web presence but host your promotional activity where people are spending their time. Unless you are a news site or weather.com, people do not wake up and go to (insertyoururl.com). They are, however, waking up and checking Facebook, Twitter, etc. Be there and have your promotion live there so people don't have to leave.

We're all busy. If you can appreciate that and serve up your branded content where people are spending their time, my guess is you'll have better luck and more interaction. Just a hunch and a good reminder to think of your customers' needs first.

Social Media: Dealing with Non-Believers

While pitching new business I've realized that people have very different perceptions when it comes to social. I'm sure people had these same questions when PR first came into play and perhaps even advertising. The age-old "do we have to do that? I think we can make do with what we've always done" will always be some people's attitudes.But social media is at a place and time where it is now at least being talked about, thought about, shunned by some and embraced by others. Here are three different attitudes toward social and my suggestions for approaching them whether it is new business or upper management.

There are the believers. They've seen how social media can build loyalty, handle customer service issues and transform relationships. They understand that social media is most powerful when it works hand in hand with traditional efforts. They don't feel threatened, they embrace it and dive into the data.

Advice: For these folks, make sure they set realistic, measurable goals tied to business sales that can make other non-believers in the company understand. It's important that the entire organization gets behind social media and integrates it into advertising, research, etc.

There are those who are still on the fence. You can hear them saying: "Okay, so this is more than a fad, but I'm not sure it really does anything for my bottom line. Seems like a bunch of people wasting time online."

Advice: Show them what people are saying about their brands online. Explain how the word of mouth newsfeed works. Too often we assume people know and understand the impact of a brand/business mention on social.

And there are the anti-social. I'm not saying they are hermits, I'm just saying you won't find them using a hashtag anytime in the near future.

Advice: Do what you can to get them on social media. Without getting your hands dirty, social is a hard thing to wrap your head around no matter how many presentations you sit through. There is a a-ha moment that happens somewhere between a poke on Facebook and claiming a deal on Foursquare.

Any other advice you'd like to share?

Social ROI - Defending the Channel

After years of defending the power of PR I now have moved on to defending the power of social media. Like any new marketing medium social has to constantly prove its worth, an odd position because I believe social can be measured far more easily than any other marketing medium. (Yes, I believe social is easier to measure than PR, I'll admit it).

For example:

TV - I can buy an ad or secure a segment on the morning news show but I have no idea how many people are truly watching it. Maybe the TV is on but they're busy making popcorn. Unless you are hocking 'buy one get one free' products and have a redemption code, it's pretty difficult to track actual viewership.

Print - Again, my ad is in there or my story is in there, but I'm not sure they read it.

Direct Mail - Did that postcard actually make it from the mailbox to the home or was it tossed along the way?

Online - I can't tell you how many times I've opened another window to avoid having to watch the pre-roll ad. I let it roll and then I'll come back to the content I actually want to see.

Social - If someone likes it, retweets or comments, I know they saw it. A like is living proof that a potential customer engaged and that engagement was most likely shared to their friends via a newsfeed. I'm not saying all 130 friends actually saw the message in their newsfeed, because that we don't know unless they in turn take an action, but I do like my chances.

Still some will argue, does social drive sales? Well does your print campaign? How about your TV commercial? If the answer is yes, then your advertising was probably pretty well produced with convincing content. Make sure your social channels also have compelling content. I'm not saying you make every status a "buy me" update, I'm saying you learn how to speak social and make the soft sell in a conversational, interesting way.

At the end of the day, social sets you up well to reach customers with an easy to track, easy to engage, easy to listen-in platform. It also allows you to reach consumers more frequently than any other channel, unless your ad budget is ginormous. But that's just half the battle. If you aren't posting interesting content, if you aren't listening and rewarding, well then no, your ROI won't be very good.

If you're ready to point the finger, my advice would be don't be so quick to blame the channel, but rather take a hard look at how you are using it.

Co-creating with customers. Give it a whirl.

There has been a lot of talk about revolts lately from serious political movements like Libya and Egypt to important, but less life threatening revolts like the Union struggle and even the NFL...which is important I suppose if you are a huge Colts fan like my husband.I would argue that consumers have been on a revolt of their own for the last few years using social media as a tool, but unlike the Middle East unrest, it has been easy for corporations to turn their heads and pretend it isn't going on.

Here is what I believe consumers are fighting:

- One sided marketing messages that are being forced down their throats at in opportune times (ie - uninteresting ads in the middle of your favorite TV show)

- Hearing recommendations or benefits of a product/service  from the same company who is selling it. (of course you'll say good things)

- Not having a voice. (will this company ever respond?)

Along comes social media and suddenly consumers can connect and share opinions, recommendations and experiences easier than ever before. They also have unprecedented access to companies and organizations without having to call into a 1-800 number or being lost in a sea of  "contact us" emails.

Despite the fact this has been going on for a few years now most companies are still spending a large amount of money on traditional advertising. While there's no doubt that TV or magazines reach a ton of people, producing ads the same way you've always done it doesn't really cut it.

So who is doing it well?

Kraft's experiment with Mac & Cheese and Twitter was a nice attempt at co-creating with consumers to produce a spot (the company took a tweet about Mac & Cheese and formed a commercial around it).  While I'm sure there are some tweaks and learnings it was the most interesting mac and cheese commercial I've seen in a while and they still got the fancy glossy food shot at the end.

Old Spice's response to consumers via short videos was engaging and fresh, not to mention extremely buzz worthy.

Jimmy John's is putting customer quotes on its outdoor boards.

Miracle Whip is enlisting everyday joes to proclaim their love or hatred for the product via short spots on YouTube.

Nationwide is inserting consumers or at least Pam..er.. NationPam into its commercial (kind of awkward, but props for trying).

Companies that are taking that first step forward are letting the consumer have a say from the get go. Like in any revolt or conflict there are bound to be negotiations, new ways of looking at things and chances to  give and take. Think about ways you can let your customers or members help co-create. It's a new era and I have a feeling that those who play nicely will be nicely rewarded.

Why Social is so Important to Your Marketing Mix

Most people know social is important even if they aren't active users. They've heard the names Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn enough to know this little thing called social seems more than a fad.But what they don't always think about is why social is so powerful in the marketing mix. If you think about the frequency and length of time to which consumers permit brands to speak to them social blows any other marketing channel out of the water.

Think about it, if you sent an email three times a week to your consumers, you surely would get a lot of unsubscribes. If you secure a great article or TV spot using PR you'd get a quick pop of interest, but it would soon be replaced by the next day's headlines.  Social, done right, allows you to speak with a consumer multiple times a week for long periods of time.

When it comes to investment social isn't totally free but the cost of creating compelling content will still pale in comparison to producing a TV spot. You also have a better chance at reaching people via social - less competition. TV is so fragmented that even with a large investment you are competing with hundreds of channels. People spend more time on Facebook than any other site and more than 80% of their time is spent on the newsfeed page. What does that mean? If you can get people to follow you, the chances of them seeing your message is quite high.

If done right, social has the power to allow you to talk more often, for longer periods of time than any other part of your marketing mix. It also allows you to have a two-way conversation and gives you the ability to listen in. Not bad. Not bad at all.

Is Social Media the Next Dot-Com Bust?

After a few glasses of wine, my dearest friend leaned over to me and said, "I read this article that said social media is going to be the next dot-com bust. I didn't want to tell you but I thought you should know."For a second I panicked. After all, I just started a business centered around social media, but then, two breaths later I regrouped. People may overpay for Facebook stock, Twitter may never successfully make money and all the location based networks could be scooped by the next best thing, but I don't think people are going to give up social quite yet. And it dawned on me, perhaps a bit late in the game, that it really isn't about the network you are on, but rather about what social allows:

- A quick and easy way to spread information.

- A voice that businesses/government/organizations will listen too.

- An easy way to maintain connections. The lazy man's friend.

- An easy way to meet new people and get new ideas.

I can't see people giving any of that up anytime soon. Facebook may fall, but social as a form of communication is here to stay, and companies are going to need help figuring out the best way to leverage social and how they are going to support their social efforts.

Phew, indeed.

Know Your Audience - Don't Text a Facebooker

In this age of multiple devices and ways to reach people, I find it curious how my friends have attached themselves to one preferred method over another. If you want to reach Kristin - text is a 50/50 shot but Facebook will guarantee a response. My friend Sara on the other hand is a text junkie, I know that will warrant a response much quicker than a social network ping. My husband loves his blackberry so he'll respond quicker to an email, even more so than a phone call for some reason, perhaps I should take issue with that. And finally, my friend Amy is one of the last few people I know that will respond to a phone call with a phone call back the same day.I don't have this written down anywhere. I just know. After trial and error and seeing where they spend their time and whether they do or don't respond to one method, I've sorted it out in my head. You should do the same with your audience. Find out where people are talking about you, where you get the greatest response when you put out a message and be there. Don't build an iPhone app if your audience is all on Blackberry or hasn't made the smartphone transition. Don't put a lot of effort into one social network just because you've heard other people using it. Know your audience, know how they like to communicate. Figure this out and you are one step closer to getting them to listen.