“Social Media Marketing” Is More Than Just “Social Networking.”
Today on Twitter, John-Paul Hatala (@jphatala) asked the question “Do people get confused about social media versus social networking?”
The answer to this question is a definite YES!
Technically, social networks include sites like:
I constantly hear “social media experts” saying that they have the “answer” to the social media marketing puzzle. For example, I just recently heard:
“To use social media effectively, you need to be on Facebook, Linkedin, and Twitter.”
Now, I agree 100% that anyone who is using social media as part of their overall marketing strategy should at least consider joining the communities of Facebook, Linkedin, and Twitter…
BUT, social media marketing is so much more than this.
First of all, there is NO one answer to “how to use social media marketing to grow your business.”
Why?
Because social media is not a one size fits all strategy.
Where you engage in social media marketing dependson your business, your personality, your interests, your target market, your skills and strengths, and the rest of your marketing strategy.
So, besides social networking sites like the ones above, social media also includes things like:
- Blogs
- Video sharing sites (i.e. You Tube)
- Social bookmarking sites (i.e. Digg, Stumble Upon, Del.icio.us)
- Squidoo
- Hub Pages
- Wikis
- Forums
- Microblogging (i.e. Twitter-yes, technical;ly twitter is NOT a social networking site, it’s a microblogging community. But, IMHO, the lines definitelytend to blur (just look at how Facebook, Linkedin, and My Space have status updates, which look just like Tweets.)
Social media is simply any site which relies on “user generated content.”
This means that instead of a typical web 1.0 website where the owner is “broadcasting” their message to readers/ potential customers, the individuals who make up the community are the ones who provide the content.
So, how are blogs social media when the author writes the posts?
Well, the thing about blogs that makesthem so valuable and interactive is that the readers (usually) are allowed to (encouraged to) comment on the content, thus producing even more (user-generated) content.
Again, there is no “magic formula” for the “right” social media communities to participate.
You need to do your research and figure out where you will feel like you are part of the community and therefore will be a willing and active participant. Your chosen social media channels should be places where you feel comfortable generating content and participating in conversation because you WANT TO, not because you HAVE TO because it’s supposed to help you “make money.”
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Social Media Marketing is all about the sharing of information. Some strategies focus on finding the individuals who will most likely share their product while other focus on the enabling tools that will facilitate the sharing.
I think as people begin to fully understand the potential social media has to connect people with other people they will begin to find more productive uses for integration in marketing techniques.
03.30.09 on 11:08 amI agree completely. In truth, social media experts – whatever that means – are usually just social networking experts: They have a boatload of followers with relatively few updates.
Frankly, I'm always saying I'd rather meet a self-made millionaire then someone with 20,000 Twitter followers. You can't make a car payment with a Twitter follower. (Not without some kind of drastic mind control and a Paypal account, anyway.)
04.3.09 on 4:47 pmGreat man! I posted some comments before anyway, because a lot of your stuff is really great. You are a verry good writer.
10.15.09 on 5:51 amI love twitter, and I tweet probably way more than I should. I’ve followed you on twitter. I use twitter more than ever nowadays and my blog feels abandoned!
01.28.10 on 3:49 pmI know what you mean. I suggest looking into some of the simple and extremely useful Twitter plugins for Wordpress. I have some training and tutorial videos showing cross-platform updates and it’s something that’s all but essential with so many choices for sharing and engaging.
04.3.10 on 9:49 pmReal "experts" also share and give away before they EVER ask you to give them something back. If someone knows what they're talking about, they can answer any questions you have, explain what they're service/product actually does, explains, or includes, and that's it. It's pretty easy to spot someone whose entire Twitter feed consists of "sharing informative content" that is actually just them tweeting their own stuff.
Another thing I see a lot is "free training" membership sites. Where you have to sign up in order to really know what they're training includes and then you find that it is all just "surface training" in order to get you to think they know what they're doing and join their system, company, or whatever.
My philosophy?
I just don't SELL anything on social media platforms. I share information, I talk to actual people and build relationships, sometimes I help people with issues they're having, and that's it. I don't sell anywhere online where I do not OWN the content and rights to it. My blog has affiliate links for things I recommend from time to time. All the things I recommend, I also use. I also have video training to show my team how to use the services/tools that I use and recommend if they're needed.
It's not hard to get a bunch of Twitter followers using various and always shifting/disappearing apps and bots (e.g. "Get More Followers Instantly" types of things). The more useful and difficult thing is to get Twitter followers through your own value and personality. That's the only way to go as far as I'm concerned.
Thanks for the great comment,
-Sheree
05.24.10 on 10:00 amYes, it is about the sharing of information. Depending on the nature of the information an individual has to share, one social media platform may be more effective or appropriate for sharing that knowledge and/ or opinions. I think that no matter what, everyone needs to learn as they go and you really can never stop moving forward and becoming a more effective social media marketer.
Also, people need to focus LESS on the "marketing" part of "social media marketing" and more on the "social" part. It's just not cool to try to sell stuff right on Twitter. Especially, selling things in social platforms by using false "hooks" like "free training" or "wow, look what I just did" type of updates.
It's a place where we can all come together, everyone with his/her most valuable knowledge and skills, and find one another according to who or what we need.
-Sheree
05.24.10 on 10:04 am