creative branding & marketing

Web design, graphic design, SEO, SEM and creative brand strategy thoughts to help you gain market share authored by the Metropolis Creative team and industry leaders.

6/29/09

"Social" Isn't a Tool

One question I've been asked a lot recently is "what's going to be the next Twitter?" The quick answer is, it doesn't matter. I know that sounds flip but hear me out before you think I'm just another social media basher (you'll know this is not the case if you read my blog). I say "it doesn't matter," not because I don't love Twitter and all the other social networks but because it assumes that the concept of "social" can be limited to a single tool.

To that end, comparing the phenomenon of "social" to a tool is somewhat akin to thinking that a good website is strictly about a great logo or a slick header graphic. Obviously those things help but they aren't the end all to be all. It's the concept of great usability and design coming together meeting the needs of a stated business objective that makes a site great. Oh yeah, the site damn well better meet the needs of the customer too. Otherwise, you're dead in the water.

Getting back to my rant about Twitter and why limiting "social" to the category of a "tool" is such a pet peeve of mine... Well, it's not dissimilar to thinking that the discipline of marketing could be confined to just e-mail or advertising. While some companies might concentrate their efforts on a particular tactic, most good businesses also leverage other tactics to help accomplish their goals. They also realize that at the end of the day, "marketing" isn't limited to one tool because it's a more about a philosophy and a thought process than it is a bunch of tools.

The difference between good marketing or even site design is that while "social" can be important to helping a company get in touch with its customers, it can also be a transformative power within an organization helping companies:

Share ideas — both internally and externally
Co-create with its customers
Energize its customer base by creating a launch pad for word of mouth marketing
Deepen loyalty and increase referrals by giving customers something of value

I guess the next time someone asks me what the next "Twitter" is, I'm going to tell them that it's the wheel, or the printing press. Or a turbine engine. Or the Internet. Maybe then they'll start to think about this brave new world of "social" as something more than just a tool.

So how does your company describe "social?" Let us know in the comments -- just do me a favor and don't use the "T" word.

Labels: online marketing, social media, the next twitter, transformative, twitter, Web design

0 Comments:

6/17/09

Expose Your Brand and Reap the Benefits of Social Media

It's very trendy. Companies of varying size and type are exposing their brand and messaging via social media marketing. These organizations are having cocktail parties online! They are establishing and maintaining real-time conversations with customers, colleagues, industry peers, thought leaders and management. Throughout the conversations, brand loyalty is being garnered. Messaging is being spread. Stories are being told. The exposure is immediate, smart, savvy and contagious. "Social media creates a solar system for a brand with multiple satellites of interaction channels, some large, some small." - Derek Showerman, Director of Social Media, Authority Domains.

Use your website to first explain your message/brand and then have direct links to your social media sites (i.e. Facebook, twitter, online community, etc). But be sure to keep the design of your messaging, and overall identity consistent!

Expose your brand to social media and reap these benefits:

Online conversations and increased SEO
Thought provoking and news worthy content is contagious. People tell people. Conversations will build a community of loyal followers (customers).

Immediacy
Hitting a front page of major social video, news and bookmark sites will send you large amounts of instant traffic while simultaneously building your keyword optimization.

SEO
Conversations and linking will dramatically boost your rankings in search engines.

Peer Power
Gain peer recommendations, attract influencers, comments from bloggers, etc. Initiators and influencers decidedly play an important role in decision making.

All Natural
Receive natural links without any discernible pattern! Your website will be exposed to large groups of people in a spontaneous fashion. This differs from paid advertising which can be conceived as commercial efforts.

Quite Complimentary
Social media optimization and marketing is usually community-specific. It doesn't interfere with any other methods of getting traffic to your website. It can and will fit perfectly with an advertising campaign targeting other websites or search engines.

The bottom line is social media has created a way for people and businesses to become transparent. Social media can be a great way to find and establish followers, but like in real life, friendships require time, understanding, honesty, and the occasional greeting card. Before exposing your brand via social media, step back and take a look at all of your marketing components (logo, website, calls-to-action, etc). Make sure that all of your messaging is consistent and accurate before you expose your identity. Ask for help.

In the spirit of being social, join us for a live presentation about social media communities. A complimentary and informative networking event with appetizers, drinks and even pool. June 30, 2009, FELT Boston, 6-8:30PM. Sign up here.

Labels: bad branding, facebook, SEM, social media, social networking, twitter, Web Strategy in Search Dominated Environments

3 Comments:

Jeff Cutler said...: Howard,

You've hit on most of the elements. The only one you didn't mention - but implied the use of it - was listening.

As we both know, it's vital to listen to the activity of your communities (audiences) and your industry to see what's being talked about.

Once you've given a listen you're better poised to formulate a marketing strategy that will reach the people you're targeting in the place where they're most apt to respond and act on your messaging.

Keep up the good work.

Jeff; June 20, 2009 10:58 AM
Kate Brodock said...: Great advice Howard. I couldn't agree more on the need for consistency at home before you enter the social media world.

We actually highlighted a few non-profits that are doing all of these right, and bringing the consistency from "home" into the social media space: http://www.othersidegroup.com/adcomments/2009/06/5-non-profits-who-know-how-to-do-social-media/

Cheers,
Kate; June 22, 2009 11:36 AM
J Murphy said...: Howard,

The topic of consistency is so important and underrated in social media in today's world of publishing: "But be sure to keep the design of your messaging, and overall identity consistent!"

People often forget how quick and easy it is to publish something online which makes consistency a challenge. With a click of a button, your opinion and brand is exposed to the world instantly. Sometimes I find it too easy to forget this as more and more time is spent online.

Great post.

-J Murphy; June 22, 2009 12:53 PM

1/29/09

Who Are You?

Your personal brand is not unlike a corporation's. Its your reputation, other's perception of you, and how you call attention to yourself. Long gone are the days where individuals align themselves to one company for their entire career. The strength of many companies rely on the quality and expertise of the individuals. So why do people neglect their most valuable professional asset — their brand?

Your personal brand used to reside on an old resume in a drawer, and perhaps on a few outdated letters of recommendation. But we have LinkedIn now. We have Facebook, blogs, and Twitter. And they're all easy to use. Think about investing time in your personal brand the same way that you would invest money for your retirement. Even a little bit of effort now, will pay off exponentially in the future. You are only a Google search away, or at least — you should be.

LinkedIn is a must for everyone. Its a permanent professional network for jobs, recommendations, advice, and professional growth. Get on there now, fill out your profile, and connect to people you know. This is an incredibly deep version of your resume. Facebook is LinkedIn's little brother in terms of professional networking. I prefer to use it to stay in touch with my personal friends, but there's definitely some crossover there.

Blogging and Tweeting can be a very public forum to showcase your professionalism, knowledge, and expertise. And because of the viral nature of these mediums, a little effort can go a long way. In fact, once you start using these tools, you'll find countless resources on how to blog and tweet like the best of them.

Its all free (for now), easy to do, and honestly, its fun too!

(For extra credit - read Chris Brogan's take on email databases, although I think a LinkedIn account is adequate for most.)

Labels: blogging, linkedin, market yourself, personal brand, twitter

5 Comments:

Natalie said...: It is interesting, when I was looking for a babysitter, after interviewing her on the phone, I googled her name and found her Facebook page. Her site showed a lot of drunk partying pictures. Not exactly the most appealing pictures when you are looking for a babysitter!

Never heard of Tweeter. I will have to check that out.; February 18, 2009 7:23 AM
Rich D said...: Agree about personal brand...only brand we've got...need to protect 24/7.; February 18, 2009 9:09 AM
Alex said...: The difference in perception of the social utilities on the web between generations is interesting. As the first wave of gen-x'ers graduate and find real jobs, it'll be interesting to see how the social scene morphs. Will their already-used utilities become more professional by necessity, or will we see a shift away from the professional applications of Facebook and focus on LinkedIn types as the gen-x'ers want to separate work and play?; February 20, 2009 9:32 AM
Secondary Income said...: Hey, thanks for reading my article http://www.secondaryincomeblog.com/keywords/how-to-optimize-landing-page-keywords/ and pointing me to yours - I have a lot of work to do to get better at optimizing the design of landing pages and I've subscribed to your blog and hope to learn more.; February 21, 2009 5:39 PM
Sam F. said...: This makes sense. Not every company thinks about Google optimization - but it is clearly important. Thanks for the enlightenment.; February 23, 2009 3:06 PM

come to us for	web design,
	graphic design and
	brand boosting.