Your Social Media Page is NOT About You
I just read Dave Hamel's post, "Retail Categories With No Facebook Fans: What To Do", and he really framed social media strategy in a way I may not have done yet, despite my efforts.
You see, there are levels of engagement for businesses:
Level 1: Social media is not something I'm interested in.
Level 2: I'm interested in social media but I want to sit back and look at it for a while.
Level 3: Look at me! I created a Facebook/Twitter/LinkedIn/Myspace page!
Level 4: I am fostering a community online with a social media strategy.
And this is what Mr. Hamel is referring to - having the foresight to not just have a page on Facebook promoting your mattress business, but to go beyond your business and make your page about your customers. In other words, if you have a social media strategy, your social media page is not about you.
Social media strategy isn't about what you're selling, or what your goals are, or what you want to achieve as an owner, (at least not directly). Social media strategy is about focusing on your customers and what their concerns are. It's about giving your customers what they need and establishing a relationship around them, not you.
For example, Tampax did NOT create a social site around tampons and feminine products. What Tampax did was to create the site BeingGirl.com, to address the issues girls have when coming into their own. Notice, the site is not named "tampax.com", but it does offer free samples of the items girls need most at such a time. This establishes Tampax as something more than a company that sells feminine products - but a company that is a resource for girls going through a significant but confusing change in their lives.
When you create your social media pages, I encourage you to think above and beyond and think about how you can put the focus on your customers.
You see, there are levels of engagement for businesses:
Level 1: Social media is not something I'm interested in.
Level 2: I'm interested in social media but I want to sit back and look at it for a while.
Level 3: Look at me! I created a Facebook/Twitter/LinkedIn/Myspace page!
Level 4: I am fostering a community online with a social media strategy.
And this is what Mr. Hamel is referring to - having the foresight to not just have a page on Facebook promoting your mattress business, but to go beyond your business and make your page about your customers. In other words, if you have a social media strategy, your social media page is not about you.
Social media strategy isn't about what you're selling, or what your goals are, or what you want to achieve as an owner, (at least not directly). Social media strategy is about focusing on your customers and what their concerns are. It's about giving your customers what they need and establishing a relationship around them, not you.
For example, Tampax did NOT create a social site around tampons and feminine products. What Tampax did was to create the site BeingGirl.com, to address the issues girls have when coming into their own. Notice, the site is not named "tampax.com", but it does offer free samples of the items girls need most at such a time. This establishes Tampax as something more than a company that sells feminine products - but a company that is a resource for girls going through a significant but confusing change in their lives.
When you create your social media pages, I encourage you to think above and beyond and think about how you can put the focus on your customers.
Add a Comment
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Comment by Sherelle Salaver on September 28, 2009 at 11:57pm
- Thanks for your feedback, you're absolutely right. I'd like to add that as a business, it is easy to create another social media page that, while not being spam, hate, or racism; is still "heavy worthless crap" because it offers little value to the customer beyond being another advertisement/product pusher. In other words, offering your customers some value = standing out from the crowd of ads.
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Comment by Khalid Saleem on September 28, 2009 at 8:23am - Well what you are talkin about is more of marketing strategy............................the point is that we can use the social media for our own business as a source of promotion but obviously if we want to make it a success story we have to be innovative or do something off the hook. Social Media is full of spam, hate, racism etc but thing that matters is that if you are able to stand out in that heavy worthless crap then thats what all is needed.
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