Change: Right Here, Right Now...

May 2, 2011

Have you seen the video by Socialnomics/EQualman? - It's been out for a few years and edited as recently as last year.

Social Media Revolution 2 (Refresh) from Erik Qualman on Vimeo.

I mentioned in the beginning of March, change was gonna come. That change was that I merged my company with another in the Greater Grand Rapids area. Things didn't work out, unfortunately, and the merger diverged or divested a couple weeks ago. My next post will discuss this "Diverger".

Change isn't often easy - in fact it can be rather difficult sometimes. Periodically it can actually be painful. (Ready for the segue?) The change from businesses managing the dialog, to consumers having a voice through Social Media doesn't have to be painful. It could be, however, difficult for some to completely grasp. Last week, I assisted the Grand Rapids Social Media (GRSM) group with a round table discussion on how to get followers in social media. It would seem that a number of people still have questions.

It's alright to not understand something. You don't have to be an expert in in a matter just because it flirts with your job title. Most likely you were hired for several specific tasks - then this whole Social Media "Revolution" came along and now you feel the expectation that you must do SocMed for your company. There are plenty of great resources out there that can help your business. But please, consider outsourcing a practice in which you're not trained or adept.

If you feel that you can handle this strange new abstract, then you must embrace change as well as discussion. Like any relationship, it's all about conversation. If the communication is not there, things aren't going to go well. Everyone has to understand the expectations: If your audience wants to learn about what you had for lunch, then by all means tell them - if they don't, stop blathering on with statements they have little concern for. A small FYI: by-in-large no one cares about your cats. Perhaps your listeners really want engagement - ensure you are responding timely. It is possible that you mostly want to inform, make sure you are giving the info your audience desires, but you still need to listen - SocMed is not push only.

As I said before: there are lots of resources out there, both online and human. I really recommend if you don't have the time or inclination, hire a reputable consultant.

Posted by Douglas Kelly

May 04, 2011

Douglas Kelly said...

I know a majority of what I write about in this article is found on other blogs and sites - but I don't think people still get many aspects of Social Media. I had a discussion with a potential client this week, where she imparted to me that SocMed was still all so new and immense. She felt incredibly overwhelmed.

So many companies say they have no budget for Social Media/Social Marketing then dump their facebook page and blogging onto the "most Tech-Savvy" person in the company. What if you were to move some of your budget over to this new thing, you know nothing about, and actually hire a consultant to come in and review what you're doing now and develop a strategy you can assist in implementing?

Throwing paint at a wall just looks like you threw paint at the wall. Hiring an artist to make that wall look luscious will scream to the world that you know talent and want to use it. It's like those old websites from 1999: If you put spinning worlds and fluttering flags and flaming logos on your website, no one will take you seriously. If you had hired a good web user interface designer, you might not need to refresh your site for a few years - ensuring your were updating content of course. But that UI guy would have worked with you on your content, so you would know what to write. It's the same thing with Social Media. You can't do somethings in house very well. There are really good experts that can help you.

(Where did that soap box come from?)

douglasmkelly's posterous