Social Media – Unlocking the value of the focussed communication opportunity
(I wrote this a few months back for our corporate site)
In the maze of social media options, I am consistently asked “which channel is the best one for my brand?” My stock response to this question is “all of them”. This response generally is generally not well received and almost always results in the person saying “well then it’s not for me”
Why is it that my initial response is “all of them”? Simply put I believe that each channel has value and if properly executed a brand could probably make a success of any space that they enter. This though would not be my advice. Just as each brand has its set of consumers, so too the social media spaces have their unique audience characteristics, for example.
FACEBOOK audiences are voyeuristic, they like to share, catch up and indulge in some heart felt chatting.
LinkedIn is all about business, groups of like minded individuals, content sharing and connections being made, growing your own professional network and reputation
Twitter is the here and now, snippets of information, sharing of content (content extension) and building of networks, a little bit of fame and maybe some instant gratification
YouTube a great platform for video content and building communities around common interests
All of them have a common thread….It’s about me and the links that I create and networks I build, a brand trying to tackle and make a success in all of these spaces would find it pretty difficult. There are a number of large consumer brands that do navigate all of the spaces, but these are in the minority.
My contention is that you need to understand you audience, begin by asking some basic questions. Take your lead from your audience as to which space or spaces you should be involved in. Remember that is not about creating the biggest following or having the most “likes”. Ultimately it is about creating an engaging brand with a loyal following that promotes your values and views.