What is your primary purpose for using social media?

Lindsey,

In everything we do at the office, we aim for it to be about our customers. It's easy to fall into the trap of making your business all about me/us, but when it's about serving others - providing them something that they can genuinely use and benefit from - it is always going to be more successful and rewarding.

The happy corollary is that in serving your customers well, it's safe to say, you'll make more money too.

So to answer your question I'd say 'D. All of the above'. Social Media as a strategic part of our communications does build our brand, does service our customers and is a key part of our marketing efforts because all of those things have to do with our relationship with the customer.

Andrew, good points. It must always be about the client, and those like them that are currently not clients. Valuable,relevant content to the end-user is the overall objective.

Too much social media is about thumping one's chest. It does not take long for this to be demonstrated. In my view, some of the worst offenders are those that call themselves social media experts, sengsei, ninjas, gurus, etc. It seems to be all about being invited to the next social media conference in hopes of landing a speaking gig.

As far as the purpose of social media, it all depends on your business goals. Perhaps you have a new corporate identity or a new product. Both require some sort of awareness/marketing strategy. Social media becomes part of this strategy, certainly not all. Social media must fit into and be a part of your overall marketing strategy/tactics.

Hi Lindsey,

A good question here, also being asked by many corporate execs today. The use of social media is different (and, in some ways, the same) for B2B and B2C businesses. It is an avenue that leads to the social networks that people have always used to influence their buying decisions. Obviously people have both business and personal networks that they "crowdsource" for ideas and input, so in this way, the use of social media is the same for B2B and B2C. Where they differentiate is in the way or level of engagement. Businesspeople typically seek opportunities to engage with fellow businesspeople (although many will still crowdsource their personal network), and they consume information differently. The content that is delivered, the way a company engages with them and the expectations from that engagement are different when compared to B2C. Think about it, consumers who are Facebooking their fellow hunting buddies about a cool new rifle scope are going to expect different dialog than the corporate CIO who is weighing the pros and cons of a new $1M server. Therefore, they expect to be engaged differently and they expect the information to be different. How you differentiate that engagement and content is what now sets companies apart.

The big difference between today and 20 years ago, is that companies are now able to penetrate people's social networks much easier and much more personally. What companies need to bear in mind is to respect this privilege and remember that social media is about creating or improving the relationship with your customer or prospect. It can be a one-on-one experience, or it can be about offering a "community" where thoughts and commentary (preferably positive, and preferably about your product or service) can be exchanged.

But, in answer your specific question, companies that engage their customers through social media have the opportunity to build their brands through dialog and thoughtful engagement; they are able to improve their customer service by listening and responding (to both positive and negative feedback); and they are able to market their products and services by engaging customers in their "protected" space (their network). But, with social media, the real value is the opportunity to build relationships that transcend the historical customer/vendor relationships and open channels that have been more difficult to open in the past.

My advice to companies, of all types, GET SOCIAL!

Hope this helps.

John

Hi Lindsay,

Some great advice in this stream. I think it is all about the brand. Your brand is your most precious business asset and social media helps you engage customers and prospects outside of the traditional "outbound" in your face advertising approach. Social media is an inbound strategy, designed to inform, engage and interact. So, I recommend you explore, listen, engage and act. Yes, social media is about customer service (brands like Best Buy, JetBlue and others attest to the Twitter opportunity) and it is used for marketing. But, at the end of the day, it is about your brand, the reason to choose. Protecting and nurturing your brand is key.

Mark Burgess
www.bluefocusmarketing.com
Twitter | @mnburgess