Authored this article published on
CMO.com today:
http://bit.ly/8K3B5W Just like people, no two organizations
are exactly alike. Every enterprise has its own unique personality.
When it comes to social strategy, there is no universal formula for
driving ROI. Enterprise social media is not a one-size-fits-all
proposition. The most successful social media initiatives occur when
the strategy is aligned with the DNA of the brand itself. We don’t ask
a wallflower to be the life of the party, nor do we expect a social
butterfly to thrive without wings. No matter which of the following
four personality types describes your brand, here’s how to start
driving value from your social strategies.
1. Social Butterfly
You like to be where the action is,
darting from one trendy application to the next. On the cutting edge,
you were probably an early adopter of blogs and Twitter. Outwardly,
you’ve created an impressive following and have led your organization
through uncharted territories. But when the conversation turns to ROI,
your attention is quickly diverted to a new tactic.
-- The Risks: Every marketer
understands the thrill of winning customer attention. But what comes
next? One million fans are only important if you can effectively
leverage those connections toward your goals as a business.
Consumer networks come and go. Banking
enterprise strategy on shaky ground, or scratching the surface of what
should be deeper, does not promote sustainable value and results.
Without focused commitment, you may disappoint your networks while
failing to receive future executive support.
-- The Opportunity:
Activity is taking place on consumer networks, and it is essential to
be where the interaction is happening. Consider ways to bridge your
social interests with your enterprise. Open Authentication, for
example, can inspire your fans to leverage existing credentials they
have from Facebook or Twitter to join your community. And you’ll gain
momentum if you keep those fans engaged from one campaign to the next.
Anchoring social media initiatives in an
enterprisewide strategy will help you strengthen and deepen your
connections. As trendy consumer networks disappear, your brand presence
will remain. This engagement can benefit all aspects of your
enterprise—sales, customer service…even product development.
2. Thrill-Seeker
Known for your crazy antics, those
around you never know what to expect next. You’re the life of the
party! You take risks, stir things up, and keep your name
top-of-mind—at any cost. But you’re not in it for the long haul. When
the excitement dwindles, you’re already off in pursuit of your next
adventure.
-- The Risks: You’re
behind some of those social media initiatives that have the industry
talking: social takeovers, controversial ad campaigns, contrarian blog
posts, and viral videos. But when all is said and done, what have you
ultimately accomplished?
Hiring and firing agencies, employee
turnover, customer churn, and damage control all weigh heavily on the
bottom line. One-off campaigns can be fun, but unless they are part of
a bigger strategy, they cannot help build the momentum that is needed
to drive sustainable ROI.
-- The Opportunity:
You have what every marketer wants: the attention of a crowd. And you
have followers waiting with bated breath for your next move. Extending
your allure, capitalizing on the attention, and offering your networks
something of more substance will further elevate your success.
Sure, you have no trouble filling an
auditorium. But when you can provide ongoing value, meaningful
relationships, and reciprocity—in addition to a good time—you’ll not
only fill the auditorium…you’ll keep your audience members in their
seats!
3. Wallflower
You embrace social media passively,
remaining at the periphery of the action. You’re on a “listen mission,”
monitoring discussions around your brand through various social
networks. You have yet to realize the full potential of social media.
-- The Risks: Instead
of fueling conversations, you’re merely eavesdropping on them.
Consumers don’t hear a lot about you, nor do they hear from you. While
you’re playing it safe, your competitors are playing to win.
Without proactively developing
relationships with consumers, you risk losing them—and the resulting
revenue—to your competitors. It is proved that engaged customers not
only spend more, but they can become your greatest advocates. If you
aren’t engaging your customers, then who is?
-- The Opportunity:
Social media doesn’t change your business goals, just how you achieve
them. Whatever your objectives—increased productivity, improved
retention, reduced costs, or more sales—social media can effectively
fuel them all, but not without your taking a proactive role by
influencing the conversations around you.
Going social does not require a
corporate180. At Neighborhood America, connecting our workforce through
internal networks launched us into social strategies. Within 12 months,
we experienced financial returns of $10,000 per employee. As we gained
confidence, we expanded our reach beyond our walls.
4. Strong, Silent Type
You watch. You learn. Then you do it
better. You are successful, but not boastful, letting your
accomplishments speak for themselves. You welcome calculated risks that
are approached strategically. You’ve witnessed social media transform
your business, and seek to continue applying these strategies
throughout your enterprise.
-- The Risks: Whether
you’re using Twitter for customer service or an online community for
crowdsourcing ideas, social media is at the core of many of your
operations. But bringing it all together has proved overwhelming, if
not impossible.
You run the risk of spreading too thin,
unable to dedicate the resources needed to manage both content and
data. You are ahead of the curve and need to proceed with caution.
Choosing the wrong provider(s) will only magnify this risk—avoid
partnering with a vendor that will pull you back.
-- The Opportunities:
As more social initiatives are deployed, they must be consistently
managed across the entire organization. Consolidation is critical to
data aggregation and cross-functional teamwork.
The opportunity to launch a comprehensive social go-to-market strategy brings the ability to capitalize on the following:
- Power of consumer networks
- Flexibility of an SaaS-branded platform
- Value of the data created
- Increased value of existing systems when integrated with social (i.e., Social + CRM)
Aim for the ability to push and pull
content from varying consumer networks using your own community
solutions, and leverage them as one complete, integrated platform.