Thanks, Chris, for touching on a number of very important issues. I'm in the process of pulling together a social media 'offering' for a client and I've found that distilling the benefits isn't easy. I certainly don't have all of the answers but I am very keen to be involved in the further discussions. Rich

Count me in, Chris.

Social media is NOT rocket science. And yet many clients, and unfortunately some working in the industry itself, view it/paint it to be a dark art, something complicated and mysterious that should be treated with caution and scepticism. That's not good for anyone.

If “we” could between us (and I think this is what you're suggesting?) devise firm methods, explanations, pointers to results etc that clearly show the client the fantastic benefits of getting involved in social media, it'll benefit us all. And stop so many clients skirting around the edges or talking about it but being afraid to take the plunge.

I completely agree Chris. In my experience social media still isn't very well understood – in many cases people either try to avoid it altogether or just add it to a long 'to-do' list that they will never get round to looking into. I definitely think that clearer explanations of the benefits are needed, both to use when talking to clients, and to facilitate understanding in the industry itself. Until PRs and marketers are buying into social media as an essential tool, our clients can't be expected to sign up to it.

Let me know how the Cow Bell Party progresses!

I'm in, Chris. Those of us who've had P&L responsibilities know that any activity has to make justifiable business sense. And in order for an activity to do that, it needs to be aligned with whole-business goals and part of an integrated effort. Social media is no different.

Hey Chris, great post, thanks for the heads up. At the risk of oversimplifying your argument somewhat – for me it's all about measurement; social media is no different to any other method of communication and until we have evidence that it produces results we're on thin ground for convincing sceptics or for investing heavily in it. (Notice the use of the word 'evidence' – so strong, reliable, rigorous, evaluated findings not one or two anecdotes wheeled out time and again as we've seen throughout the election campaign).

I'd love to be involved in moving this conversation forward – although I strongly suspect I'm outside of your guys worlds (my organisation is charitable and works to improve practice in health and social care so a strategic approach to communication or marketing is a distant light at the end of a verrrry long tunnel). I've tended to use social media to enhance my personal life, and have made some great friends and colleagues as a result, but have yet to push to integrate it into my working context – and some of my hesitance is linked to the level of investment required to do it meaningfully and my uncertainty about genuine results. Maybe I can play devils advocate for your conversation

Hi Chris,

As a newbie, I still feel lost in the social media black-hole. However, I'm very keen to be part of a discussion that helps me and the people I'm helping understand how to engage and prosper in this different medium.

Best, Robin

The irony is that Social Media is a far more trackable, measurable and analytic media than Broadcast methods.

Rather than waiting for other's to give evidence (although there is lots out there), I'd recommend you run a short test for a set period of time to prove the viability of Social Media for your organisation. With everyone I've worked with, this has proved to be the best way to begin because it proves the concept, and lets you have those teething issues in a small, contained environment

Blah blah blah! Robin as if you are a newbie!

You understand the SOCIAL of Social Media better than anyone else I know. Period.

Yes, there then must be the technology and media expertise, but lets not forget that a lot of this is tied up in early adopter geekism and is becoming simpler and more mass market.

Rebecca, I hate to promote my own stuff on Chris' blog, but to get a clear understanding of Social Media, the Social / Broadcast Matrix grants people a very clear model for framing knowledge: http://scottgould.me/the-social-broadcast-matrix/

Newbie in the sense my L-plates are still well and truly in place. It takes extraordinary patience and trial & error to learn how to use what comes so easily offline, in the online space.

Thanks for the discussion Scott. I work for a small organisation, we have 7.5 staff and none of them have a dedicated comms role – so we struggle enough with existing broadcast methods. I'm reluctant to do a 'short test' because personally I believe that people only *get* social media by immersing themselves in it and that takes an investment of time…that none of our staff currently have available. In addition, for me, social media is about conversation and that's not something you can test/trial without having the resources/commitment to continue it if it works well. Having said all of that, I trust the concept, I know that organisationally we have no choice, but for now I'm trying to balance the prioritisation of very limited (and ever decreasing) resources with what else is on the agenda.

In addition I'm yet to be persuaded that there is a lot of rigorous evidence out there so I'd love to be pointed to it by you, Chris or anyone else reading this. Thanks.

Robin

I think we're all newbies really. This is a developing and ever changing landscape. Every day I notice new people who come into the social/online world, who without guidance and support from a wide variety of people and skill-sets, will walk away dismissing it. I'm really please you're on board and look forward to engaging in the discussion

Thanks for joining in with this. I see this as being the very essence of 'social'.
Some of us feel we have the experience to know this new arena but without input from all levels and viewpoints then we are nothing. I've been working around social media for a number of years now and am learning every day. Without conversations with people like you I'll just sit in a bubble and think it's OK to carry on as I am. I hope you question me and others as we progress through our plan, and make us think about how we interact, behave and execute social media strategy.
You are most certainly not 'outside our world'. You are the very reason this conversation is happening. I hope that when you look back after the conversations you'll agree that we are all on the same page.

Thanks Eric. Through knowing you as I do I know you'll add plenty to the discussion. I hope we all learn something from what we're about to do.

Rebecca

You make some great points. One of the key areas I'd like to explore further through this is why and how organisations put social media on a To-Do list but never get round to it. Thanks for highlighting that.

I hope that across this concept (which I hope lasts a long time) we all learn and pick up things which will help us all demonstrate why and how social media will help companies. This is no different to other disciplines and should be seen as important as PR, Traditional marketing and other communication methods to customers and communities.

In short…social media needs to prove it's worth and be be able to explain its offering if it's to take a long term place at the top table of business. Integrating into business is our purpose.

Paul

You already know that we both sing from the very same hymn sheet often on this type of subject. I'm really glad you're on board and I hope we all learn from each other. Knowing you as I do, I hope that includes questioning and keeping it [& others] real. I promise I won't let any dark arts, Jedi masters, gurus or magic men get involved.

Plans, methodology, understanding and routes to market are our aim. We have to stop business peering in the door of social media, having a look around and thinking “No, this isn't for me”, because of a lack of understanding, knowledge or fear.

Rich

Thanks for being a part of this. So many of us know it can help businesses. We just need to work together to think about what our offering is, and the best way to persuade the market just what power and potential it has for their ROI and company performance.

Oh, so much to say… but as it’s not my blog I’ll try to keep it short’ish (& sweet?)

There IS a lot of spin out there associated with Social Media – Most of it coming from people jumping on the “trend” wagon. Talking a lot, doing little IMHO. Also lots of mutual back slapping NOT a lot of hand holding & guidance (No wonder some people are driven to bury their heads in the sand!!)

My lesson for today ~ One from OLD MEDIA – Don’t believe your own publicity! ~ There are no Social Media Messiah’s period. This is a new & rapidly changing landscape. Some know a little more than others, a few know more than most and nobody is a total expert! I feel the best way to deal with my clients is to engage honestly with them & ask the BIG question – What do you want to achieve by using Social Media for your business, your brand & yourself?

Almost forgot Chris … the best thing about the social landscape? ~ That it IS alive with change, new people, & ideas of course!

Chris, I'd very much like to be involved in this. Hopefully I can bring something to the table from the non-profit angle

Hi Chris,

Just wanted to comment on your most recent piece of genius. Great thought points here, I'd just like to spend time on a few of them.

Really quickly: yes, thank you. Social media is not magic – nor does it happen overnight, contrary to popular spamming belief. Go ahead and build followers, but if gaining followers is a priority, then you need to re-evaluate why social media is an important dimension in your overarching IMC plan.

Not sure about you, but I don't think a business can “try” their hand at social media. It is either something they inherently know, or they don't (and if they don't know it, then they need to be hiring someone who knows what they're doing). You can't teach someone social media – rather, it needs to be an experience they get a feel for themselves. That's why you make this point, that they “talk the talk but don’t really want to get their hands dirty with work” will never fail to kick your brand's ass. It takes time, and nurturing.

Also, no business succeeds by doing what they “think” is the right way of going about things – but they do succeed if they know how to build a community for their customers, which I am happy you included. How do you build a community? Engagement. Getting the consumers to talk. At the end of the day, the connect comes when people talk about themselves and their experiences, and it is within direct relevance to your product/brand.

Another important point to note is that you can only build a community so much before it starts to build itself – and while brands might think they are controlling people's opinions of their company, really, the customers are defining it for them.

Which is why, if you want to sell product, you must have a great product. No exceptions.

I think I've rambled enough here…

Once again, excellent post. I look forward to becoming a Cow Bell regular.

You make a lot of sense with your thinking. I know you'll add to the discussion as it progresses.

You've already got me thinking.

Wow Chris – you certainly proved that this is a conversation whose time has arrived!

The principal hurdles for business are most likely two-fold, and both are size related.

First, for small business, including charities & not-for-profit social enterprises, there is a straightforward resource issue, as exemplified by georgejulian's comments: not enough heads, and too much to do to afford the “luxury” of the time commitment required to get into, and actively engage in, SM. In some instances clear & relevant case studies can help bring on the “lightbulb moment” that moves luxury to necessity. In others, as you yourself made clear, SM must provide the answer to an urgent business need, such as widening the previous sales funnel to counter for drop off from local economic conditions.

Second, for larger businesses, and of more concern, is acceptance of the required paradigm shift that the corporate world must make to become “open & transparent” when they have spent decades keeping secrets in order to gain commercial superiority. Part of that shift revolves around letting go of the concept that they control the message, and accepting that, whether they like it or not, the customer is king, and must play a greater role in the running of their business models going forward.

This is very much a conversion movement I want to be a part of!

Thank you so much for ramping it up,

Let's get started!

I'm convinced that with that approach Gabrielle you're going to bring a lot tot the table during the discussion. Thanks for such a clear and focused response. It's already had me thinking about a few areas, in particular how we ensure we keep those who are piling into the twitter stream for the first time interested and not alienated by any condescending attitudes.

Stuart, you will most certainly be adding to the debate and I suspect you'll also help us keep 'it real' with a no a “BS” guarantee.

Great points Howard. This discussion is already proving an eye-opener for many and I can't wait once we really get started.

Interesting comparison and raises a few points we should all think about …

I think the best thing about the social landscape is getting what YOU want from it. That is a way of thinking some businesses still need to come round to as their consumers are now 'empowered' (dare I say it) and are looking for what they want and when they want it.

I also agree with Samantha's comments – businesses can't really 'try' their hand at social media unless they are fully informed and up to speed and have listened to the landscape. After that it all comes with experience and getting the conversation started.

Great post though – looking forward to the next.

Kind regards,
Katie

Thanks for the post Chris, I particularly like the MS V MP comparison. At Cofacio we'd definitely like to be part of the conversation and I hope we can add value as we come at things from a slightly different angle. Our focus is on creating technology solutions to help businesses become more social so with this in mind we're always keen to listen to the issues they encounter in this area.

Chris

Thanks for the 'invite' to comment. What you have written in this post really resonates with me and couldnt agree more.

As the old expression goes, 'Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day, TEACH him how to fish and he will eat for the rest of his life' – for my money, this is the same in SM or SN (or whatever term is being used today!).

As with the fish allegory, its all about the tools and how to use them – that is something that is not just lacking, but non-existant unless you get 'collared' by one of those 'gurus'!

Everyone starts at the beginning and it is up to them how far they decide to go, it is up to us to give them the tools and experience to allow them to 'move forward'.

I would be delighted to help Chris if I can and again thank you for the invitation.

Chris, excellent post (as always!) I’d LOVE to be a part of the conversation.

For me, the best part of Social Media is meeting like-minded people (like meeting you for example) and indeed connecting with friends and family. Living abroad and moving from a country to a country in the last 9 years, I have met a lot of amazing people that I would not be able to keep in touch with if it wasn’t for social media – I am not really into letters and phone calls abroad cost a fortune.

I’m not convinced that companies can just ‘try their hand at social media’ – I believe that ‘success’ on social media can only be achieved at the price of major commitments. I like that you wrote that ‘Every single person in a company is responsible for how a buyer perceives that organisation.” It’s something I always try to convince the companies about, that what is being said about their company on their employees ‘private’ Facebook accounts or even ‘protected’ tweets does matter. Many of the companies truly need a shift in their corporate mindset; however this is often difficult to accept.

Chris, as you know, I'm firmly on board. Looking forward to making waves. Great post – very timely. Bring on the revolution! B

Hi Chris – sign me up as a member of the Cow Bell party, far preferable to these politicians

In all seriousness though, you raise some great points and I've experienced the counter arguments to social media within my organisation. For me as an internal marketing person as opposed to an external consultant or agency, it's all about trying to balance the 'traditional' demands of the organisation versus the new opportunities that social media offers. As Seth Godin says in Meatball Sundae however, you can just stick a bit of social media on top of what you already do, organisations need to really embrace the 'new' way of doing things if they're going to succeed.

For me, social media is first and foremost a fantastic knowledge sharing platform and I'm now at the point where I'm getting to actually meet some of the people I've previously only engaged with online which is just great. I've benefited hugely from building up my community and engaging with these people and feel like a sponge just wanting to soak everything up! And I hope I've been able to give a bit back along the way.

But as someone who runs a high profile online community within the learning and development space recently commented to me, with social media some people just 'get it' and some people really don't. His experience of those who don't is people trying to be very salesy and failing to really interact and engage with people – they just want to sell whatever it is they're selling. Which = FAIL.

Once your community is built and (hopefully) continuing to grow, it then becomes all about the content. What resources can you create to generate interest and comment and keep the community alive? Creating podcasts, articles, papers is all very time consuming activity and when you're answerable on a weekly basis as to how you've been spending your time, planning becomes key. My argument is that resources created for your social media community can be re-used elsewhere e.g. if you write a blog entry, could this be turned into a full length article for publication? Yes! You don't need to reinvent the wheel everytime. Which has led me to the conclusion that quality content is king in social media terms.

For the powers that be, it's all about return on investment and measuring what we do. Social media can deliver this but it takes time and effort. In my position, if everything is boiled down, it's all about the numbers – can it generate leads and opportunities in a business to business environment where the cost of sale is (relatively) high? Can we revise our strategy to integrate it effectively as a part of what we do and not just the cherry on the top?

All this remains to be seen, but I'm giving it a damn good go and with people like you and the online community, I think we'll get there.

Kate

Kate – your comment shows exactly why this discussion is taking place and why getting us all together to collaborate and engage in change is needed. You raise some great points – the value of content, ROI; and the way people go wrong with an over sales driven approach.

Lots to discuss

Change is coming Beth.

I agree with you Marta. It's a mindset change and I hope across the journey we can facilitate that for many.

That's quote is a great way of looking at this Jamie. Let's see if we can help some prospective fishermen (and women).

Different angles and approach is exactly what we all need Sim. Thanks for coming along for the journey.

Its the 'empowerment' that is part of the fear. Something together we need to see if we can address.

I've written about this in a post called “moving forward”

It's what I hope Tags can fulfil for Exeter, if people can get onboard to admin it.

As you point out Howard small and large business have different ways of looking at social media. Your points centered around the shift of control is key.

Count me in as well.

No tool is an answer in itself. The solution comes from how the tool is used, how well it is mastered and how appropriate it is to the job at hand. Because the tools have been shiny and new, it has been easy to forget or ignore the simple business needs you have mentioned but once the stage show comes to an end, then there has to be some results.

I like the fact that there are initiatives – this one included – to turn this into a useful, serious and respectable addition to marketing and communication and have the consultants, trainers and proponents who are involved in the industry stand out among all of the other 'politicians'.

I think you're logical and clear approach, as shown in your comment, will help all of us in moving social media working for business. As you say the tools are not the most important thing – it's how they are used.

Ok, so talk of connecting with 'friends', growing a community, feeling wanted etc is not the way to go when explaining social media as a viable comms tool. It's that stuff that puts the skeptical business leaders off. It's too fluffy and lacks commercial justification. It's also not rocket science and personally I'm getting a little tired of over complicated frameworks that do nothing to help explain what this is about and what it can achieve.

Business leaders want to see and understand clear, proven examples of how this has worked within their industry and proof that their stakeholders are using social media. In my experience, showing them this pretty much gets them onboard straight away. But as someone already mentioned, some people just don't get it and there's no point forcing them if that's the case.

If they do get it, we need to show them how to use it, without over complicating the issue. Integrating social media into a communications strategy is no different to how we've done it in the past. We still use same strategic framework: objectives // tactics // measurement // report // tweak if not working // repeat. And all of this driven by the overall business objectives. This should also be done in conjunction with other comms activities to ensure full integration, replacing those that aren't working to provide budget for this new activity. Training is hugely important, ensuring the internal team responsible is fully equipped and understands whats expected, with KPIs fully explained.

Once that little lot is done, and social media starts bringing in the results they need, they'll start to 'get' the fluffy stuff themselves, without our help. And by the way, I love that stuff too.

Count me in Chris:) I think this is all evolving very fast. A lot of what we were doing 6 months ago is either outdated or has been taken over by a new way of connecting. We need to get to grips with it by keeping it as simple as possible. I'm no social media expert but I see a lot of 'bunnies in headlights' at the moment. Scrapping around for attention and potentially damaging reputation.

I blogged about the need to move from social media to social business a while back. Its important that we use it to connect, have conversations and participate. But we will eventually need the results that build a strong business community. Working on a model at the mo!

Great response – enough said!

Thanks Ann

I think many of us feel now is the time to ensure business embraces social media before turning back. I hope we can do something here that helps us as advocates persuade organisations that 'social business' is worth considering on all levels.

Thank you for initiating the discussion Chris. I totally agree with you. Of course, I am on board. I may be talking out of my hat here but I don't think that any of us know THE Social Media Truth. However, our willingness to discuss, explore and challenge assumptions and concepts, will hopefully help us better help our clients optimise their use of social media tools.

Social media is about Transparency. But it also has to be about Honesty and Integrity.. especially on our part. Bamboozling our clients in the short run will not be beneficial to us in the longer term [being too vague, theoretical and high-level are not good either]. I still believe that social media is above a set of tools. Businesses using social media must understand HOW to use the tools available to them but the most important things remain the content, the product. Social media tools will only amplify what they already have. Our job as social media consultants is to help our clients define and express their stories, the beauty of their products and services, etc. The WHY is pretty self-evident now… Our main challenge is to show them the HOW. And there are no cookie-cutter recipes for that.

I'm totally on board with this Chris. I agree, there is a very clear and present danger in creating a misdirection with jargon; Says the hypnotist, ‘look into my eyes, look into my eyes….look at me with my tweeps and twhirls and my tawit tawoos, now you will call me Media Maven, King of all things social! Per-lease!!

All this smoke and mirror nonsense creates a ring-fence which safeguards the charlatans. In the words of Gorbachev, I call for ‘Glasnost’ – social media Glasnost if you will. We absolutely need to be transparent, open and honest.

Sign me up Chris, I’m in it for the long haul – not for the slight of hand and the quick buck.
Let’s get busy doing.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glasnost

As a group we can remove the magic men and tricksters and get busy showing what can be achieved. Love your comparison to 'Glasnost'.

Good post, Chris.

From a business perspective, social media is aligned with the old ways of advertising. Scary thought for many, but think of the brilliant campaigns of the 40s – 60s. I'm game.

Social is a market-oriented culture, but one that a sales-oriented landscape can mesh well with. The thing is? It is work. As marketers, many aren't used to having to prove numbers/metrics for something that seems new. he reality? Social media has been around for years. The platforms change, but the concept and execution foundation are the same.

We are faced with a conundrum – there are those that say social media replaces communication methods (Wrong) other than enhance it (Right) but that concept means work. If youre willing to commit to a business and organization, you have to go through all natural steps – is it a fit? Right direction? What type of demographic? What do you hope to accomplish, strategy, objectives, tactics, blah blah blah…..

It's not all about engagement. That's the foundation that is going to drive brand building and sales. We are in a business model where trust comes first.

L

I like the approach you've taken. The focus on 'the work social media takes' is important as is the commitment to it. Trust is the essence of all that we do across many marketing and communications disciplines.
Thanks for taking the time to be involved.

[...] change for me has been seeing others take a stand. A splendid gentleman named Chris Hall wrote a post last week about bringing people together to work through the issues that will genuinely help [...]

You've got my vote Chris!
As ever, very thought provoking.

I have spoken to 6 business owners in the past month who are all considering Social Media for the very first time. What was most interesting to me was this – not one of them had ever heard of “Social Media”!
They sort of knew what Twitter and Facebook were but they all dismissed Facebook as something their children use and 5 out of 6 just perceived Twitter to be a complete waste of time from a business perspective!
This I found absolutely incredible and astounding. How could business owners not get this stuff?! This was incredible to me. These were smart people who you would think would know about Social Media and marketing and Internet Marketing.
It was a profound discovery and it made me realise that some of us are forgetting our past, myself included.

It reminded me of a mate of mine called Jon, who became a scuba diving instructor. I had got him into scuba diving and we progressed up the ranks together. I was a Rescue Diver on this guys very first open water dive – and he was rubbish! He couldn't get his bouyancy and always forgot to equalise his ears and was quite a nervous diver. Now he is awesome – one of the best and most experienced divers and instructors I know.

But I remember this occasion when he was teaching some students in the pool he lost his patience becasue they were slow learners; they weren't good at mastering bouyancy! It was incredible. He had completely forgotten that not so long ago he had been in their fins (shoes!) making the very same mistakes and was just as nervous. But he was now a scuba diving guru and so had no time for the beginners.

I listen to many of the people I've met in the SM space during the last year and a half and I get the feeling that a proportion of them are making the same mistake Jon made.

Let us not forget that the newbies who know nothing and are asking the same old, boring questions which we all think are so obvious; they are in the exact same position we were when we first jumped on the Social Media train. They need our help like we all needed the help we got when we began our journeys.

I'm in Chris! We've all been in the buffet car for too long! No more Gin and Tonics for me. It's time to get off the train at the next stop and help the new passengers who are nervously waiting on the platform. Lets get them onboard and give them the answers to their questions and show them case studies that give great examples of the results Social Media can help businesses achieve.

Love the analogy. Seems you me and a fair few others (who've commented here) are off that train are going to get back to the streets and help the new people in town – not alienate them anymore.