What business owners should know about social media, and how they can (and can’t) benefit.
You’re a business owner, perhaps a fresh young entrepreneur just getting started with his or her small business or the owner of a decades-old company with a well-known brand. Whichever the case, you are hopefully continually thinking about what an optimal online or digital marketing strategy should be. After all, there is never an end game when it comes to effective marketing. So you probably think about how you can leverage technology for your business, trying to put the efficiency that e-commerce and the internet offer on overdrive for your business.
If you are in the process of either starting or revamping your online marketing plan, you probably have taken note of one phenomenon in particular the last few years. The hottest topic basically anywhere you turn in this current digital age is social media. What is social media? One basic definition is simply that social media is the use of web-based and mobile technologies to turn communication into interactive dialogue. In that spirit, social media represents a lot of things including blogs, Twitter, LinkedIn, and of course, Facebook. In fact, because of Facebook’s immense popularity, many people think social media – the genre – is synonymous solely with the social network itself, which of course isn’t exactly true.
So when considering what approach to take with your business online, shouldn’t you hitch your wagons to social media and Facebook as a business owner? Yes and no.
Business owners should think holistically about how to market their business, product or service. Should Facebook and social media be a part of that holistic approach? Absolutely. But, don’t get carried away. The biggest mistake I’ve seen business owners make is to build their brand within Facebook in a way that is reliant on Facebook. In other words, they spend time and energy putting up their business’s Facebook page because it is the “en vogue” thing to do, while not focusing on other potentially more important aspects of promoting their business. This is not a great approach because you’re not really building YOUR brand, you’re actually building Facebook’s.
Business owners need to use social media as a vehicle for marketing their product or service, but need to maintain ownership of the brand. They need to have their own website or blog. They need to have their own web presence, and then dip into social media as part of their marketing toolbox in driving new prospects and customers to their own site. I cringe when I see commercials or direct mail pieces or even online ads for a business with a call to action that says “Visit us at www.facebook.com/xyz”. Why would you want to drive traffic to Facebook as a destination? Facebook works FOR businesses when traffic is being driven FROM the social network to YOUR site.
Businesses really need to understand that social media is likely here to stay, and can be an asset for them if they use it wisely – namely, as part of a well-diversified online marketing program. Social media is one spoke stemming from the overall online marketing hub, along with Search, Display Ads, Affiliate Marketing, Email, Mobile, and Video to name a few. And that doesn’t even touch on all the offline vehicles like direct mail or TV that could or should be part of your holistic approach.
When I consult with business owners that are trying to build their business online, or translate their product or service offline to online, the biggest thing I coach people against is starting with social media. Think about that last. Utilizing social media to promote your business should be the icing on the cake after you have already built a strong website which is optimized to accept traffic, new customers and importantly sales or new leads. Get your own house in order, so to speak, before you even think about building a Facebook page or profile, or setting up a Twitter account.
What’s another thing to think about related to social media? That not every brand or company translates equally well to social media. In other words, social media can’t be all things to all people, businesses or brands. It’s not for everyone and not for every business. And that’s ok. Sometimes business owners get caught up in all the hype when they hear about 500 million people utilizing one social network. Of course, any business owner would love to promote their business to 500 million people. But, think about why so many people use that one service: mostly, it is to socialize with each other, and not necessarily to buy anything or engage in dialogue with a business.
If your brand or business isn’t inherently “social”, you likely aren’t going to turn it into something social just by putting up a Facebook page. If I run a printing business, I certainly wouldn’t put as much resources into social media as my friend who runs marketing for Starbucks, which is inherently a more social brand. It is just my opinion, but some businesses have a natural cache or sexiness about them; others don’t. It doesn’t make one better than the other, but should be a consideration for every business owner when thinking about where to put resources.
I’m not at all suggesting that business owners shouldn’t have a Facebook page, LinkedIn profile or Twitter account. In fact, I think everyone should because they are all part of the marketing funnel. My point, however, is that all of these things which are classified under social media should simply be viewed as other, newer promotional vehicles in addition to the more traditional and perhaps more proven methods. Don’t put all your eggs in the social media basket in lieu of things like building a list online, email marketing (which by the way, can be social too), and good old fashioned advertising. Social media can put you in touch with lots more prospects and customers, but so can a lot of other complementary methods.
About The Author:
Mike Sprouse is the Chief Marketing Officer for one of the largest, privately-owned internet marketing companies in the world called Epic Media Group. He is a published author of The Greatness Gap, which is a book that details personal strategies to maximize one’s professional career. Mike presides over the national “Marketing Team of the Year”, awarded by the American Business Association. He was formerly the Senior Vice President of Marketing at Playboy, the youngest senior executive in the company’s history. Previously, he was a Program Manager at MBI, Inc (aka The Danbury Mint) and led the team which founded the company’s e-commerce business. Mike was a professional tennis player with an ATP World Ranking in singles, and has run 7 marathons. He attended the University of Notre Dame, graduated with honors with a degree in Accounting, and was awarded the national Arthur Ashe Award given to one Division I tennis player for accomplishment, leadership and sportsmanship. Mike doesn’t drink coffee but still considers himself a closer. Please visit his website at http://www.mikesprouse.com to learn more.