Comments on: STOP LOOKING FOR EASY ANSWERS WHEN IT COMES TO SOCIAL MEDIA

By: Social Media Strategy at the Third Annual Walsh College Small Business Conference | ID Tags

Thu, 07 May 2009 14:42:05 +0000

[...] their goals so they can fit them into a certain network or community. It just looks messy… and not in a good way. Michigan is Going Digital – Social Media Strategy Presentation for Walsh College View more [...]

By: Social Media Strategy at the Third Annual Walsh College Small Business Conference « Somewhat Digital

Thu, 07 May 2009 14:13:27 +0000

[...] However, with all this talk of social media this and social networking that, small businesses often get caught up in the technology before developing their strategy. Companies need to create a plan that aligns with core business objectives instead of trying to repackage their goals so they can fit them into a certain network or community. It just looks messy… and not in a good way. [...]

By: Margaret Rogers

Margaret Rogers — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 21:44:07 +0000

I love this message. That’s been my feeling more and more as I’ve been navigating this for clients. I think people want to send out an email newsletter with a Facebook link and be done with it. Tsk Tsk Tsk.

By: Heather Rast

Heather Rast — Sun, 22 Feb 2009 20:06:55 +0000

Hi, Shannon. As always, your writing never disappoints, always enlightens and inspires. Thanks for tackling the “hey! this stuff is different! don’t put the same ‘ole dress on it!” announcement. I really hope your message reaches those that want to take a short cut and use a SM tool to solve a marketing problem without doing some serious due diligence first.

I think the most powerful part of your post, for me, was “The social element is more than any single platform; it is an ethos that can also transcend any technological interface to impact the offline interaction with your brand.”

Call me crazy, but I think social media is really a philosophy or mindset enabled by a growing number of tools. But the mindset must permeate throughout a company and manifest in internal communications as well as external (off- and online). *That’s* the company that’s prepared to innovate, cultivate authentic responses, close the feedback loop to drive better customer experiences, and whether any negative PR storm that may arise.

Looking forward to meeting you in Austin! Heather

By: Social Media, as Easy as 1, 2 … uh, What Comes After 2? « cs.pr

Social Media, as Easy as 1, 2 … uh, What Comes After 2? « cs.pr — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 21:43:00 +0000

[...] a blog post by Shannon Paul, she lays out questions that you’re company must honestly answer before leaping into social [...]

By: Chris Nadeau

Chris Nadeau — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 13:08:14 +0000

Shannon, yes it is great to prepare, but sometimes to much prep. makes the conversation less real. I think the “big guys” should focus on being more real and not so prepped. The ones that figure that out, will be the ones who rise to the top using social media.

By: Francois Gossieaux

Francois Gossieaux — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 22:28:15 +0000

Well – quite a threat this is becoming :)

It’s not just social media that will get messy. It is “the social” that is infiltrating all of our business processes that is inherently messy in comparison to processes, hierarchies and other ways by which we are evaluating businesses.

Being social comes with a ton of unpredictable behavior – think gossip, just to name one.

What social media enabled is for the social human to scale. No longer are we limited in communications with people within our line of command, and mostly with those who are within 30 feet of our desk. We can now connect and form tribes with anyone within or outside our organization. No longer can customers or prospects be isolated and spoon fed the corporate line, they will now affiliate with others and get their information that will lead to their buying decisions outside of your channels.

And that is messy…but also tremendously powerful for those that know how to live with it.

By: Shannon Paul

Shannon Paul — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 22:08:25 +0000

@Ari, I’m sorry I didn’t reply sooner to your comment. I think you raise an interesting point, but that the perspective is a dangerous one. There is still a lot of work to be done outside social networks, and honestly, I’m more bothered by marketers who seem to spend every waking moment on Twitter. I can’t help but wonder when these people are ever utilizing social media for actual businesses or for anyone other than themselves. How can help people learn how to adapt to this new type of communication if we’re too busy looking down our noses at them? Just because some of us got on board early doesn’t make them late to the party. We can all add value.

@Beth – I love when you stop by. Truly. I think strategy can be organized, but the life cycle of an issue or a blog post or even a promotion can resurface in social media channels unlike more traditional channels. Also, the implementation and execution of some strategies will ultimately get messy. For instance, they will be more time consuming and simply not stick to the script. We, as a company or department may be ready to move onto the next order of business but the public may not. The blueprint should be sound, but we can’t get offended if the public doesn’t go along. That’s the messiness I’m talking about. :)

@Michael, even with a plan, social media will get messy — especially for the individuals on the front line. This is because as much as we like to think we have accounted for everything, the people we’re interacting with may simply not always go along with the program. In many ways it’s like a dance, only sometimes we have to dance with a partner that has his or her own plan… Then, do we resist and try to control, go with the flow, something entirely different and possibly even better than what we had planned? I hope so.

By: Michael Calienes

Michael Calienes — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 14:27:49 +0000

Love that. Everyone’s out there just jumping in without really thinking about goals and strategies. It certainly can feel supremely messy without a plan. Good luck to the old guard. We’re moving on.

By: Beth Harte

Beth Harte — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 14:23:13 +0000

“The old guard is upset by social media because the mechanized approach to marketing and communications is going away.”

Brilliant Shannon!

Social media is also pointing out that so many marketers and communicators really don’t know how to, ah, communicate. [Ouch!]

‘Messy is the new marketing.’ That will have heads spinning for sure. As a marketer (traditional and new), I agree with messy, but I still think social media can be somewhat organized. Of course, this only happens once you let down the guard and accept the messiness. ;-)