There was a time, not that long ago, when a lot of people were very sniffy about social media. Some mainstream media companies would patronise people who created blogs and videos, and brands wouldn’t touch social networking sites or forums for fear of getting what their customers might actually say about them. Thankfully those days are now gone and even the most cynical marketeer in the most conservative of companies is starting to recognise that social media isn’t just an opportunity for marketing and PR, in many ways it isthe opportunity.
However, as with any gold rush, there are plenty of people now claiming to have all the social media answers. You probably know the type. They are hot on the theory, can name check all the latest cool apps and have at least 500 followers on Twitter. What many of them aren’t though are social media practitioners. They are way too busy to blog, don’t have a clue about how YouTube works and have never spent time adding followers to a fan page on Facebook.
Here at Little Red Rooster we are focused on being social media practitioners. We believe that social media theory is important, but unless you put it into practice both as an individual and in working for theĀ brands you represent you are basically selling snake oil. Social media is all about getting involved, and for social media professionals that is doubly important as that is the way you learn.
A couple of years ago I worked with a couple of friends on a YouTube vidcast calledPopJunkie TV. It was great fun and we built up a small but dedicated audience. More than anything though I learned how to engage with other YouTube users to help promote my channel. It’s a lesson that has proved invaluable to me as I have worked with brands on their social media campaigns. The same is true with blogs. In my experience blogging has been as much about building bridges and engaging with other blogs as it has been writing my own.
All of this sort of thing isn’t as high profile or as sexy as having a view on how brands might useĀ Chatroulette (although give me a shout as I have a few ideas on that one) but it is what social media is all about. Not theory, but actually getting your hands dirty. If you don’t do this you could be wasting money.
Over the last few years we have seen brands spend millions on building social networks that no one joined, supermarket chains creating YouTube pages that have only been seen by a handful of people and much worse. They thought that if they created content it would find an audience – they were wrong. If you are creating content for social media to promote your brand you need to ensure that your content chimes with the audience you are trying to reach. You also need to get someone working for you who will build communities, talk to your consumers on your behalf and help create fans of your brand.
It is hard work, but your social media campaign won’t be successful if you don’t roll your sleeves up, or get someone working hard for you.
