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.

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