Social Media is all about seeing what others are saying
“The snowstorm is over. Everything is white. So now what?”
How do we make social media relevant to company executives? Everyone hears the buzz, but many companies do not understand today’s marketing environment, and they don’t know where to start.
That’s where programs like Social Media Academy fill the void — teaching business leaders all over the world to look, listen, and learn how to implement successful social media strategies.
I’m enrolled in this year’s first 7-week Social Media Academy Leadership session and will be sharing regular reports on what I’m learning.
Social Media: not about its tools, but its implication for business
Company leaders must rise above the “local noise” and buzz about social media, so they can take a global view. Different types of companies have different needs. Whatever the company, though, it is important to understand that Social Media is not a campaign, but it is a State of Mind. It is about empowering employees, not just about having everyone Tweeting all day.
Customers have changed, but sales/marketing has not
Thirty-forty years ago, people had different levels of trust. They’d go to vendors and take their word for it — and their products. People no longer ask experts; they ask their friends.
“I want to see what others say: that is Social Media.”
Now 60-80% of purchases are made because of recommendations. Businesses need to be part of the Recommendation Chain. Social Media is where customers meet customers for experience, skill development, and failure prevention. When a company builds a product or service that people are asking for . . . How COOL is that!
Create a better customer experience
Lay the foundation for your social media strategy– plan by understanding the dynamics of the market before diving in. There is no rush: Look, Listen, and Think before acting.
Social media is personally empowering. It is not just for the elite; anyone can do this. Take care of your connections and leverage them.
If you don’t follow the road your customers are taking, you will lose them.
“Create a better customer experience”
I have noticed a marked increase in satisfaction responsiveness by companies that I do business with just in the last year.
I have customer service nightmare tweets that weren’t tweeted and similar blog posts left unpublished because I got a return call or an email just in time from a responsive corporate representative who was earnestly interested in providing me with value and willing to do so in less than a 24 hour period.
The bar has been raised and the recession survivors are already hanging on it.
-Tony
Love the Raising The Bar analogy. Let’s keep raising it higher and higher as more of us learn how to do business right, i.e., treating our customers as the important people they are.
I’m starting a new job today and it’s all about evangelizing the use of social media to corporate managers. I think the first thing to do get across is that the values businesses use such as: profit, ROI, efiiciency et all are not longer being considered by the customers and that they care about “human values” rather than “robot values” so that’s why social media doesn’t look as the normal tool a business would use.
Jorge, lots of luck with your new position. I heartily agree that one of the Ultimate Benefits of Social Media will be the humanization of the business world — and the subsequent improvement in the quality of all our lives. Thanks for your comment. Looking forward to getting to know you better. — Shari