Margie Clayman

A lot of people seem perplexed about why it’s hard to get some CEOs or others in the C-Suite excited about Social Media.

“It’s cheap,” they say incredulously. “What more can a CEO want?”

If you are trying to convince your CEO or another executive to support a company blog or a more full corporate Social Media plan, using the “cheap” word will not get you anywhere. In fact, you are more likely to lead your CEO to think that you don’t really understand how business works.

Here’s the thing. Social Media sites are, for the most part, available for free. You can enhance the experience for not much money. So far so good.

Now, let’s say your CEO catches an article in the Wall Street Journal about how important a corporate Social Media policy is. She wants to get one of those in place before you go any further with the conversation. That means a lot of people, a lot of meetings. That means, potentially, a lawyer. That means a meeting or a series of meetings to make sure everyone understands everything.

Once you have your corporate policy in place, it’s a really good idea to figure out what you are going to do, what you want to achieve, and how you are going to measure all of that. That’s a lot more time. That might be getting your agency involved, or it might mean bringing in a consultant.

Now let’s say you walk your CEO to the point of having a Social Media plan. You’ve made it this far. The company has decided that a blog is a really good idea, and you want to promote each post via Facebook and Twitter. It’s decided that you and 2 of your co-workers are going to work on this. Suddenly, though, you realize that this Social Media stuff is a 24/7 proposition. But things are going pretty well. Your Facebook page has a lot of fans that are interacting with you. Same with Twitter. If you stop now, you’ll look awful.

Now your CEO is looking at hiring a Social Media manager, a position your company has never needed or had before. A whole new salary tied to a whole new category of work that was not an issue before you walked into your boss’s office and said that Social Media was cheap.

This is not an argument against Social Media. It’s an argument against saying that Social Media is cheap, or easy, or free. Your CEO may realize that before realizing the value of what you are proposing. Meet him or her where they are, and see if you can find a way to bridge the gap.

Image by Jenny Rollo. http://www.sxc.hu/profile/buzzybee

Maybe some of you can answer these questions for me, or maybe some of these questions will inspire you to write a blog. Or a book. Or a ten-part docudrama. Here’s to hoping.

1. Why do so many people have difficulties with your and you’re? You’re has the ‘re on it because it is a mashing of “you” and “are.” See? You’re just replacing the a with an apostrophe. Hence, when you say, I think your right, you are actually not finishing YOUR sentence. Are you?

2. Why doesn’t Twitter make it easy for me to tell if people I’m following are following me? How can I be moody and dramatic and accusatory?

3. Why do people retweet retweets of themselves? To quote Pee Wee Herman, “I heard you the first time.”

4. Why do people who describe the movie Alive as “people eating other peoples butts ‘n crap” (paraphrased) follow me? What do we have in common?

5. Why are there about 250 “life coaches” following me on Twitter? Are you trying to tell me something, or am I helping you?

6. Why do people who have not tweeted once have 750 followers?

7. Why are you following some of the people you follow? Yes, you. I go to check out someone named “WoodchuckFreak907” and 20 of my friends are followers. C’mon, now!

8. Why do people continue to send automatic direct messages when everyone in the world notes how annoying they are?

9. Why do some people auto DM me 2-3 times? Did you think I would just cave and become your slave at time number 3? (It takes 5 times)

10. Why do people think there is their way and the stupid way?

11. Speaking of which…what is so hard about there, their, they’re? There is “here” with a t on it, so that’s the place one. They’re is that whole word mashing thing again (some call it a contraction). Their means “possession.”

12. Why do people think quoting other people in lieu of personal interaction with living people is a good idea?

13. Why do people rewteet tweets of Thomas Edison quotes? He doesn’t see that or care, you know…

14. Why do people care about whether Kanye West tweets back to them? Do you think he’s going to suddenly ask you to go on tour?

15. Why do people RT their “Follow Friday” mentions? Every. Single. Time?

16. Why do people try to argue with or patronize Lisa Barone? You know she will destroy you with her brainz.

17. Why do people unfollow you because you didn’t follow them, then return and follow you again? Give up, yo.

18. Why is there an ap for lengthening tweets now? That’s cheating. 140 or bust, man.

19. Why do people try to prove that folks like Chris Brogan are dumb and then misspell every word in their tweet? Take it up a notch, at least!

20. Why am I the only one asking these questions? Or am I…..?

Image by Richard Dudley. http://www.sxc.hu/profile/bluegum

One of the posts I highlighted in my #30Thursday post yesterday was by @RickBakas. If you haven’t gone over to read his post comparing Social Media experts with Santa Claus, I would highly recommend you do so. In the meantime, I’ll tell you what struck me right away about the post. Rick talks about how various marketing folk try to pitch his business (winery). They come up to Rick with big promises, but it becomes clear right away that these “experts” don’t know a thing about the industry at large.Even more stunning, they don’t know a thing about the business they are about to pitch. What are these guys thinking? If you approach prospecting that way, what are YOU thinking?

It’s not like research is an endangered species

Have you seen commercials for eHarmony? (this is where everyone says, “oh uh, no, yes, whatever will be the least awkward”)? The whole site is based on the premise of meat market research, right? Take 2-3 hours to fill out a form that helps you psychoanalyze yourself. Find other people who have undertaken a similar task (already common ground). Look at peoples’ faces. See which of your personality characteristics match up. Start chatting. Start texting. Then get married. Right?

Think about the time people invest in research about cars, homes, fashion, health living, healthy eating, exercise. I mean, we are research fiends! And yet, in marketing, there is a hesitation these days to engage in research. Why? Here are some potential excuses.

“The world is just moving to fast. I need to jump on opportunities.”

“I’m such an expert that a business will willingly educate me about it when we start working together.”

“I just recommend Social Media and help people get 5,000 followers in 2 minutes. No research required.”

Now, let’s take each of those reasons and explain why they are dead wrong for today’s marketers.

“The world is just moving to fast. I need to jump on opportunities.”

The world is moving fast, and the uncertain economic times are creating a very competitive environment. For every huge firm that cuts jobs, there are that many more people trying to make it as an independent consultant. There are only so many companies in your particular niche. So how do you beat other people to the punch?

The thing is, in these kinds of situations, making yourself memorable just might be worth more than being quick. What do you think networking and engagement in Social Media is all about? I mean, yes it’s fun, but it’s also research. You talk to people you want to do business with. You say, “What’s going on with your business right now? What happened with that distributor that was mad because they thought you were underselling them? Did you ever get that fixed up?” You find out what is going on in the industry. You read things and discuss ideas with people. When someone in your network needs the type of service or product you offer, guess what? They’ve already been talking to you. You might be buddies, even. They know you know their business. You might not have been the hare, but you still won the race (Aesop must be weirded out that his fables are being utilized by marketers).

“I’m such an expert that a business will willingly educate me about it when we start working together.”

There are probably some people out there who could think this and maybe even be right. It’s probably not you. Unless it is. Hi!

Even if this is a truth or a semi-truth, you will put your “expert” status in jeopardy if you begin talking to a company without a clue about what they do. For example, I one day was talking to contact from a publication. They contacted me thinking that I was one of our clients, and they thought our client was the agency for another client of ours. I have no idea how the first client they referenced even got into their system, but it became apparent that they had not taken even a millisecond to check into things. At that point, there was nothing that person could have said that would have made me feel confident about their level of expertise.

It’s always best to go into a situation with a clear value add. If you call yourself an expert and then demonstrate that you took the time to customize your expertise, that will really blow people away. Worth the time? I would think so.

“I just recommend Social Media and help people get 5,000 followers in 2 minutes. No research required.”

I could tell you how to make tons of money in five seconds. None of those ways would be particularly reputable. The same holds true for fans, followers, leads, clicks, or other marketing metrics. Without research, there is no guarantee that those 5,000 followers will translate to business. It just means that you have a number, a lot of which would probably be spam bots.

There’s really not much more to say about this particular issue  – I feel that if you are in this latter category, there’s a lot of other stuff you’re missing too.

But Research is Hard!

Yes, research can be hard. It can be time consuming. It can be hard to prove for sure that it was worthwhile, especially if your well-researched pitch results in a “thanks anyway.” However, it is the most sensible thing you can do. You wouldn’t jump into a marriage without research. You wouldn’t likely buy a car without research. When you pitch a company, you are asking, in essence, to build a partnership with them. Would you jump into that kind of relationship without research? Take the time. It’s the right thing to do.

1st Image by C O. http://www.sxc.hu/profile/Hob_

2nd

Over the weekend, I reached 1,000 followers on Twitter. Now, if I were to say that I am ready to throw in the towel or call myself “lord” (I saw a self-proclaimed “lord of social media” today on Twitter) after reaching that landmark, I’d be lying. However, if I were to say it wasn’t kind of a time to think and reflect, I would also be lying. Even if 300 of my followers are spam bots, that still means that there are 700 people out there who have some interest (maybe) in what I’m saying. I take that very seriously, as you can tell. What do those Spartans x 2 + 100 want me to provide them? Am I doing it already?

Questions lead to questions

My brain is kind of like a game of dominoes. Or like a jar of Pringles. One question is never enough. What do I do now that my follower numbers (legit followers) are growing? What will I do when I end up befriending, truly, hundreds of people? What does this all mean for my professional life? What is the meaning of life?!? Okay, well, maybe not the last one. But I realized that when I set out on my Twitter & Blogging adventure, I didn’t really have a plan, despite all of my preaching that a plan is important. I didn’t think I’d ever get the hang of Twitter. I didn’t think I’d ever make it to 75 followers. Ever. To quote David Byrne of the Talking Heads, “Well, how did I get here?”

Once in a lifetime

Really, my journey to 1,000 followers has been one of the most purely fun experiences in my life. I have met so many amazing people it’s like, literally sick. Nauseating how lucky I’ve been. I’ve made friends. I’ve shared ideas and thoughts. I’ve been mentored. I’ve learned. I’ve even started to teach, just a little. When I stopped caring about numbers, I stopped worrying about what I would do when I got to a certain point. I just was having a ball. Soon, it became not a life and death activity to check my number of followers. I didn’t agonize anymore about why 3 people unfollowed me. I just started kinda doing my thing. And now I’m here. There’s my bit of wisdom for those of you who are new to Twitter. Enlightening, right?

Houston, we have a problem

Well, so here we are. I am following over 750 great people. I have received some extremely nice and flattering compliments on my blog. My responses in Twitter are increasing. People actually seem to care about what I say a bit more. And that’s all awesome, right?

Budding success.

At the end of the week, when I turn the light off in my office and head out the door, I could, I suppose, hand in a report noting some of the really fun conversations I had that week. As far as that silly little “new business” or what’s it called…”money?” Well, those columns would be uh, empty.

Budding failure.

BUT I have learned an awful lot about how companies can use Social Media to prospect and how to nurture leads, and I have started applying some of that knowledge here and there in my own work in Social Media.

Budding success.

Did I mention I haven’t made a dime?

Budding failure.

What is the definition of Social Media success?

If we lived in an Austen Powers kind of world, I would not be having this riddle inside an enigma problem. Of course I would call my Social Media experience a success. I made friends, baby, yeah! I shared ideas…very garoovay. Sadly though, we live in a Dr. Evil/Number Two kind of world. Companies still run on money. Cars still run on dirty fuels. Rain falling from the sky is probably about as acidic as whatever that is moving around in my tummy. A Social Media Karma ticket is definitely not going to impress a CEO, a President, or the bean counters.

So Social Media success is really about making money, right? When you can buy something based on your Social Media experience, you’ve made it.

Except that best practice in Social Media begs you not to come out with a strong sell message, and by the way, content (or is it information) are the new currency.

So…if you write a lot of good stuff you’re a success? Who defines that? Is it like Mario Brothers, where you defeat a dragon and then can move on to the next level?

Should I stay or should I go?

One of the greatest players ever to grace the gridiron was James Brown, a Cleveland Brown. Fulfilling Cleveland’s unique ability to seem cursed, Brown decided to retire at the height of his career. How did he know that he was at his height? How did he hear that voice say, “This is as good as it gets?” I always wonder about that.

I am in a bit of a cobweb because I can’t really tell if I’m playing this game the right way. My mushy hippie heart says, “Yeah man, like woah, you’re like, sharing your feelings and like, your knowledge, man.” My desire to succeed professionally and to help our agency is screaming, “The song doesn’t say “friendships make the world go ’round.”

How do I know what to do next? If I’m doing this wrong, I don’t want to expand more of the same. If I’m doing it right, why is this blog post happening?

Help me Obi Wan Kenobi. You’re my last hope.

A few years ago, my wonderful parents bought me the John Lennon anthology. Many unreleased songs, all beautiful. One of my favorites is a song called “Serve Yourself.” In the chorus, John repeats, “You gotta serve yourself, ain’t nobody gonna do for you.”

Well, that’s not exactly true anymore, is it?

If you are looking to promote yourself, a product, a company, or anything else, you can find people who will promise to do any or all of the following:

Start your Social Media accounts

Run your Social Media accounts

Get you thousands of follwers

Get you ranked on the top of Google search results pages

And more.

On top of those folks,  you have consultants, experts, gurus, influencers, and other gangs of wandering advice givers ready to give you ideas on the fly.

Pardon the image I’m about to plant in your head, but this scares my pants off.

Why be scared?

Ultimately, marketing is like choosing where you’re going to go to college. It’s like mapping out where you want to work and what kind of work you want to do. It’s like choosing your friends. It’s very like creating a community. In other words, it’s a lot about guided personal preference. Or it should be.

I’m not so sure it’s that pristine now, though. Marketing is often an add-on to a middle manager’s job. In between taking calls from customers, pleasing the boss, and trying to figure out the new company management software, people are asked to consider how to promote the company. Are they going to turn down someone who says, “Let me handle that for you and get you better results than you could ever imagine?” Maybe. Maybe not.

You are not a sheep

So here’s my plea. If you are looking to market a new product or if you just want to learn how all of this goes, dedicate the time to really learn. Don’t go into Social Media marketing because an expert says you’re a coward if you don’t. Don’t avoid Social Media because someone says it might not be good for you.

Experts, consultants, gurus, influencers – they should not be viewed as sheep herders who are trying to get everyone in the marketing world into the barn of their particular thought realm. They are teachers. They are consultants. But they cannot talk with every tweet and with every blog post about your specific situation. Nobody can. Nobody except you.

Lots of people are around saying they have the answers. If you want to avoid getting fleeced, make sure you follow John Lennon’s advice. Serve yourself. There are people who wanna do for you, but only you can have your true best interests at heart.

Though I really hope, hypocritically, that you consider this particular advice carefully 🙂

Image Credit: http://www.sxc.hu/profile/thimoholst

Boy, there were some AMAZING posts this last week! I got some great recommendations, and making choices for the remainder was tough. I hope you enjoy reading these posts as much as I did. Maybe they will inspire you to write your own blog post in response.

Don’t forget – start your own 30Thursday post. Ask people to submit blog posts to you. #30Thursday becoming a community of blog reading, writing, and sharing is my dream 🙂

1. We were  off and running with this post from Matt Shaw. He calls it his “boogie man post” and he calls out Chris Brogan.

2. Another great post from Lisa Barone: 6 ways to lose customers, credibility, and  friends on social media

3. Stellar and to the point from @sueyoungmedia: “Hello, my name is Dumbass” (love it)

4. One of the more brilliant posts on Social Influence I’ve seen, by my buddy @JefftheSensei

5. My friend Ellen (aka @SweetSoaps) is gonna be on MSNBC on Sunday!!! 😮

6. @SbuxMel has a lot of insights about the business side of Starbucks in her post about “drip only” lines.

7. This is a really amazing post from @LisaPetrilli on the importance of asking, from May of this year.

8. In case you wanted tangible proof as to why I admire @JayBaer, read his “Chicken and the Egg” post.

9. Great article from toprankblog.com (written by Andy Beal) on 6 steps to take before you start monitoring of Social Media

10. There were a lot of posts about 9/11, but I thought @mayaREguru’s was among the most poignant.

11. Outstanding interview sent to me by @ckburgess: The 7 steps of creativity, interview of Tim Leake by Brian Slattery

12. How Eminem stayed relevant & how it can save your blog. Masterful post at copyblogger, written by Sean Platt.

13. @tommyismyname is struggling with character versus authenticity. Are you? Read this excellent post.

14. My new friend @CorpWriter4Hire debunks 5 myths about the corporate Ghost Writer. Very educational!

15. Are you so busy calling yourself an expert that you’re not even doing due diligence and researching your prospects? Read why @RickBakas groups “Social Media experts” with Santa Claus.

16. This will probably end up being the cutest post — about clouded leopard cubs 🙂 Thanks to @SarahLizLaw for the suggestion!

17. One of my favorite scenes from this week’s Mad Men also inspired @BrianSRice. The Wind and the Son, one of Aesop’s Fables

18. Internet Marketing is still very much like the Wild Wild West. @AllisonNazarian warns, “beware of the snake oil salesman” in her post, Enough Already (recommended to me by @cloudspark)

19. If you love metrics and ROI, you’ll love this fantastically researched post from @createdevelop

20. My always brilliant friend @knowledgebishop offers thoughts on how our current Social Media world is like Musical Chairs.

21. A checklist from @ementormarketing for driving traffic to your new e-commerce website (guest post at 365daysofstartups.com)

22. @smartel explains the wonder of a company both listening AND using good manners in Social Media. Great story!

23. @mitchjoel writes more eloquently than I ever could about one simple truth – Social Media might not be perfect for you or your company

24. @geoffliving is pondering how to stay relevant for your communities. And by the way, this is how you disclose that you are using your blog to work on a book.

25. @pushingsocial writes about trust as a  blogging power tool. Trust him, it works!

26. The press release is dead? @HeidiCohen says Au Contraire. The Press Release is Alive and Kicking!

27. Interesting peek into the future, and the present, and the past, in @julien’s Where the poor go post

28. I want to keep the spotlight on the awful situation Colin Bower is in. Here is @ChrisBrogan’s post about Colin, Noor, and Ramsay

29. @BethHarte wrote a brilliant post on why we don’t ask why. Can you answer any of her “why” questions? Awe inspiring food for thought.

30. Talk about thought provoking. @SuzanneVara on Twitter gone bad (or is it?)