The StoneHenge blog

At the InnoTech Conference in OKC recently, I had the opportunity to sit through the eMarketing track.  The first session was touted as "Lessons Learned from Internet Marketing Experts," and while the panelists were certainly qualified, the discussion solely focused on the use of social media for their various industries/businesses.

Now while social media is clearly a hot topic and everyone is certainly jumping on the bandwagon to use Facebook and Twitter and all the other social outlets to promote their business, this certainly isn't the only option for marketing to customer -- and quite frankly isn't a truly viable outlet for most businesses. 

Sure, if you are a real estate agent or career counselor, restaurant or entertainment venue, there are great opportunities to connect with your customers and extend your word of mouth through these avenues.  But let's face it, if you are developing software, manufacturing air compressors, or selling dental supplies there isn't a lot to "tweet" about on a regular basis.  At least nothing that would be highly interesting to your customer base for them to become a follower or to pass it on!

So, how can you take advantage of social marketing while being relevant and reaching your customer in a channel they use?  No easy answers on this one, but the best way to start tackling it is by going back to basics and asking yourself: "Who is my audience?" 

If the answer is C-level executives in non-entertainment type industries, then your odds of them being big consumers of social media are pretty slim.  Find a more relevant channel to reach them.  They are going to search websites for information on products and services, so ensure that your site is search engine optimized and that you are making smart investments in the top keywords this audience would use to find you.  And make sure that when they get to your site that it is highly informational and easy to navigate. 

Asking yourself "What kind of messages can I send out on a regular basis" is another great way to identify your social marketing potential.  Frequent Tweets and Facebook updates are critical in keeping followers engaged, but those messages need to have value to the person receiving it.  And they can't be overloaded with offers and discounts or these then become too "sales-y" -- not to mention the hit your brand value begins to take.

Current best practices for social marketing indicate that not more than 25% of messaging should be a sales directive.  That means you have to find more informational type messaging for the other 75%.  Can you provide that kind of balance on a daily basis? 

You can anticipate needing to commit to at least daily updates but in many instances multiple updates in a day are necessary to keep the audience engaged.  Can you make the commitment to the frequency of updates this channel demands?

Take a page from your traditional advertising handbook and really evaluate the target audience you are trying to reach and then select the most appropriate channel to reach them through.  Social media is a great new option and provides lots of opportunities for customer engagement, but it isn't one size fits all.  Make sure the customer is in that channel and that your messages can be timely and relevant. 

If you aren't sure, then ask them.  Surveys are still a highly acceptable means for understanding your customer's needs, even for communications.