I was sitting in a client meeting last week and while they were debating around Social Media I found it refreshing that although these guys see the importance of Social Media they weren’t ready to just jump in without a proper thought-out plan and strategy. I spend my time monitoring conversations online and I know that as much as Social Media has an important role to play, you have to allow for a certain level of caution and planning.
I’ve seen too many brands trying to participate in social media because they think it’s the cool new thing to do. That is not enough anymore you have to participate because it’s effective, otherwise what’s the point?
To help clients with this idea of being effective, Josh Bernoff invented a little acronym called POST which I gladly share:
- P is People. Don’t start a social strategy until you know the capabilities of your audience. If you’re targeting college students, use social networks. If you’re reaching out business travelers, consider ratings and reviews.
- O is objectives. Pick one. Are you starting an application to listen to your customers, or to talk with them? To support them, or to energize your best customers to evangelize others? Or are you trying to collaborate with them? Decide on your objective before you decide on a technology. Then figure out how you will measure it.
- S is Strategy. Strategy here means figuring out what will be different after you’re done. Do you want a closer, two-way relationship with your best customers? Do you want to get people talking about your products? Do you want a permanent focus group for testing product ideas and generating new ones? Imagine you succeed. How will things be different afterwards? Imagine the endpoint and you’ll know where to begin.
- T is Technology. A community. A wiki. A blog or a hundred blogs. Once you know your people, objectives, and strategy, then you can decide with confidence.
So before you jump in boots and all consider these point, they will definately help you move in the right direction!
