Social Media (Feminine) vs. Traditional Marketing (Masculine)
Posted by: | CommentsThe big social media news of the week is Facebook’s new Groups. Like with any great tool, there are ways to use it for positive results – and ways to abuse it.
In one of the internet marketing forums I’m a part of, somebody posted recently that he’s excited about the new Groups features because, in his words:
I sorta cringe to hear people highlighting these “benefits” of groups. Groups – just like everything in social media – is not about the automation. And to focus on that would turn your “friends” against you.
Just yesterday I interviewed Matt Bacak for a compilation CD I’m putting together called “What’s Working in Social Media – Lessons From the Experts.” And he spent a lot of time talking about the fact that most internet marketers don’t “get” social media. They think it’s about the (very maculine) tactic of blasting your message everywhere; when in fact it’s about the (much more feminine) art of listening and providing value.
He also said people are missing the boat when they’re looking for direct EPC from their social media. He went so far as to say that although he doesn’t have the hard numbers to back it up, he feels certain that the people who buy from him are doing so because they’re also connected to him on Twitter and Facebook.
That is an argument I’ve been making for a long time – that your conversion rate with your emails or direct mail will skyrocket when you’re also communicating with those same people on social media. And not just blasting them in a different medium, by the way – but rather, chatting about their dog and kids and travel. Those “waste of time” topics that do nothing but create rapport. Oh yeah, that thing. Remember it?
In this way, social media is not unlike the newsletter – the tried and true standby of direct mail. Not the content newsletter that people pay for, by the way, but just the chatty “here’s a little way for us to stay in touch during the month” newsletter. Why does it work? Because it lets your customers get to know you a bit as a person. Same as social media.
The person who I quoted at the beginning of this article has actually done a terrific job over the last year and a half, using social media to build a large and responsive list for himself. And he’s succeeded at that not because of the automation strategies he uses, but because he’s put a LOT of time and effort into communicating authentically with his people, and providing a lot of good content and terrific value. And all that real “work” is something I’m afraid gets lost in the shuffle when newbies are looking for the magic pill and they read something like “you can now automatically add friends, and all your messages go to their inbox.”
What do you think of all the automation in social media? Leave a comment – let me know you’re alive!
Share What You Know And Become “Likable”
Posted by: | CommentsHow many times were you so excited about some great information that you couldn’t wait to share it with your friends? You probably quickly sent them a text or an email, called them or even stopped by their house with the news. That is exactly what social media communication is all about! Be a friend and share your information in a straightforward, honest way and you will build trust. In other words, you have to earn your way into a “trusted relationship” by being a good friend.
An important step in effective social media communication is the idea of giving information vs taking. Or, providing value to other people, rather than hoping to get value yourself. Mom was right after all, it is better to give than to receive, at least it is in social networking. Selling comes later.
You should constantly be looking for ways that you can add value to the conversations that your network is already having. This means, of course, you must be listening to what they’re saying. But once you know what it is that they’re saying, what it is that’s important to them, your objective should be to help them. Give information to them. Support them.
It is surprisingly easy to reap huge rewards in social media by simply providing credible information to your community. What do I mean by credible? The information you offer must include answers to their common problems without sounding like you are selling something. That will come later if you cultivate faithful followers who like and trust you.
The unspoken rule is to build rapport with your followers. We do this by sharing genuinely helpful information, on a regular basis that doesn’t benefit you in any way. In other words, it is not an article about how great you are, or how desperately they need your products and services. Rather it is a glimpse into your personal life that also includes knowledge that your followers are searching for.
Think about what kind of information you could provide on a regular basis to your audience. For example, if you have a pet supply business, your information could involve helping pet parents provide the best quality of life for their four-legged-family members through advice on nutrition, behavior modification, avoiding accidents and life-stage-care!
For a food products business, you could enable a recipe – sharing community or even a recipe contest for the group and they could all vote for the winning recipe. You could also bring them into contact with some professional chefs. It is not as hard as you might think to contact a famous chef. Just send them an email and ask for some helpful tips for the home chef. The ideas are endless.
Contrary to popular belief, your business is not different from the examples listed above. All businesses need social marketing. Just brainstorm with your community and they will let you know what they need from you. If you don’t know the answers, ask someone who does and quote them in your responses. They will love you for it.
People who freely share what they know are very likable. If the information that you share is also high quality, you quickly become trustworthy. Of course, they now know you and they know that you are a nice person AND one who knows what they’re talking about.
By gaining trust and respect, will they be more likely to read your tweets and updates in the future? Including the ones where you mention something that you have to offer? Consider the following:
- A FREE report from Chef Andre on the “5 Biggest Mistakes Chefs Make When Baking a Cake”
- Or a FREE video on “Baking Nutritional Treats for Your Pet” by pet bakery owner Jake Barkley!
Give people the information they desire, build trust, earn their respect and they will beat a path to your Tweets!