What’s So Hard About Social Media?

Social Media Isn't That Hard

I see a number of Ad Agencies not sure what to do and how to incorporate Social Media into their repertoire. In the advertising sense, some of them try to apply the standard broadcast methodologies to it, while others do this, some do that, and some don’t do anything. It’s a new medium, and everybody is fumbling around with it, (at least we’re doing something) whether they want to admit it or not. But what makes Social Media (which is simply another cog in the Internet Marketing wheel) such an axis shift for Ad Agencies is it’s an environment and atmosphere for conversation and exchange. This makes Social an active and maybe a “perceived” participatory medium, just like the name implies, and so unlike any of the staple “broadcast” mediums that Ad Agencies skill-sets have evolved and adapted for. This makes sense, because for the most part broadcast mediums were all any of us really knew, until the Internet, to get the skinny on what services or products were around. Traditional broadcast mediums were and are a one way street… and a brand could keep its distance.

The one alternative before the Internet to have a conversation and exchange with a producer, seller and customer was by going to a market place, like a farmer’s market for example, where people congregate, shoot-the-breeze, and the conversation is king – with broadcasting relegated to the back seat.  But that’s all changed. A gazillion’ of us, and growing, are yakking away on a turf called Social Networks, brought to you wherever-the-hell-you-are thanks to the Internet.  Words aren’t so much broadcasted here either, they’re exchanged. And if the Social Network explosion has proven anything it’s that broadcast advertising doesn’t work as well with people in an environment where conversation, exchange and expression can happen, and obviously flourish. Broadcast advertising isn’t going anywhere though, hell, it’s an American staple, like baseball and apple pie, it just isn’t “the top banana” like it used to be, it’s “part of,” meaning it isn’t the biggest dog on the block anymore.

Go to a social function, networking event, maybe a non-profit, this or that, and people are talking, listening, conversing, expressing themselves, not so much of the broadcasting stuff going on, then, after some good conversation you might hand them a business card or suggest they go to your Website or give a call. This is pretty much what happens within the Social Networks – only digitally, it’s a nurturing ground for rapport - first and foremost.

And therein lies the rub for a lot of Ad Agencies. Some of them just might have to learn to converse with people again - not broadcast to customers. Putting the stuff aside that makes the Social Media choice possible maybe the future of some Ad Agencies is in their past, with guys like David Ogilvey, who’s advertising said something perceived genuinely  worthwhile to people of a particular interest group, which in turn led to a bit of a conversation within that particular interest group, which in turn persuaded parts of that particular interest group to say “you are now worthy enough to try and sell me on your product – so take your best shot – because you don’t have long.”

Smart Ad Agencies know they have to adapt themselves to Social Media by thinking another way. Not a new way, just a way they always knew and maybe some forgot.  All the same, I haven’t seen yet the entry of a new medium replace any of the old, maybe knock the king-of-the-hill medium down a few pegs or shove it around a little, but that’s about it. And sometimes, depending on the type of new medium, when it’s hatched and takes hold, it can really throw a monkey-wrench in the works - which seems to be what’s happening now with Social Media, (that’s kind of an understatement I think).

Based on that mumbo-jumbo, let’s look at a few of what I see as the fundamental hurdles some Ad Agencies need to contend with as far as Social Media goes:

First: At the core of what a lot of Ad Agencies are about is winning awards, pure and simple. It’s difficult in the current Ad Agency Award structure to hand out a “paper-weight”  for the most stunning print ad and the most breathtaking TV spot or the most acid-trippy Flash Site when Social Media is not print, it’s not TV and it isn’t Flash.

Second:  The nature of Ad Agencies is to think in terms of we, (the ad agency) broadcasts, the consumer receives, while the Social Networks just keep saying “nice try buster, but that dog just doesn’t hunt here.”  So, if the heart of Social Media isn’t a message displayed or broadcast on a billboard or TV, or an acid-trippy Flash thing-a-ma-bob, what is it? Well, from our experience it’s a “Table for Two” (thank you Clue Train Manifesto) which I’ve peppered-up a bit to say a “Table for Two with Seating Accommodations for a Zillion.”

Third: A lot of Ad Agencies still just wish all this Social-Media-Network-Conversation stuff would just go away. It’s probably not.

So, before we put a sock on it, a thing we’ve learned about Social Media, (and we’re just scratching the surface) is this: For the most part the Conversation is King and Broadcast Advertising is Court Jester… and we’ve picked this up mostly from our clients.

On one of my next ramblings, which will happen to be in the form of a Blog post, I’ll share with you deep down what I really feel Social Media is about. It’s one word, one of the oldest words in history, and if you base your Social Media escapades on it we believe you’ll have a shot at some success…and we got a client to thank for this little insight too.  Maybe we should be paying our clients instead.

Hasta la vista, baby.

Pittsburgh SEO Etiquette For Blog Commenting

Note To Self: Be A Better Neighbor On The Web

Blog commenting spam still carries weight in the rankings

It would cease to be such a prolific tactic for comment spammers if it didn’t. Below are a few points about being a better citizen of the digital community. We are not immune to these either. We are identifying these traits and making concerted efforts to be better citizens and neighbors of the digital world.

Refrain from Hijacking the Conversation

Stay On Topic. If there is some other direction you would like to explore with a blog topic, write about it yourself. We see it all the time; blog comments that hijack the conversation of a well written post. It has become so commonplace that few even take notice. It’s the ADD of the Internet. Someone creates an awesome post, then the comments turn into “look at me”, “look at our post”, “our post is better”, or they manipulate the conversation to suite their own ends. Pure laziness.

Solid debate drives ingenuity

Respect yourself enough to read the post you are commenting on. This way you don’t end up looking foolish for getting the whole point mixed up. Or worse yet, parroting points the author has already made. Take the time to read the post. Your reputation and standing in the community will benefit. If you have a genuine beef with the writers’ post or opinions, simply state it. That’s the beauty of the Internet; it is a celebration of diversity and like minded people all in one.

With all the aggregating websites designed to produce and repurpose content out there, the Internet is becoming filled with trash. Useless sites spewing out endless volumes of unreadable and duplicate content for the sake of links and ads are everywhere. The search engines are finally looking and penalizing these sites. Kudos to them for identifying the problem and taking action.

Value Your Own Credibility

This boils down to reputation management in my eyes. If you continuously spam posts with “Well Done” and “Nice Site” comments it shows weakness in your game. It says to anyone who reads, writes, or administers blogs that you just are an also ran tagging along and riding the wave of their toil and sweat. Bloggers will react and either delete your comments through a spam filter or report you to comment spam reporting sites to do the whole blogging community a service.

Give Credit Where Credit is Due

Want to increase your online status and credibility? Link to the original post that stirred your creative juices. Mention the author or blog site that made you pause and think of a better mousetrap. Then you can comment on the original blog in a meaningful and substantive way. You could even add a link like this one for the Yoast.com article on spamming blog comments with anonymity that became the trigger for this article.

At Blackball Online Marketing we try to inform, infuse, and enlighten.  We have fun; it’s in our mission statement. Pittsburgh Internet Marketing for small business is our game.

Image courtesy of Brain Waves LLC

Think about it. People “brand” every day, either consciously or unconsciously. We’re hardwired for it. And that’s because it gives us a mental “shortcut” via the storing of one primary attribute relevant to ourselves which simplifies things. It makes the journey between association-to-recall easier. This works for us by way of storing a mental snap-shot which is clear, memorable and distinct. It sometimes goes like this; “oh yeah, I remember that guy, (or girl) he had that crazy laugh” and so on - you get the picture. We meet somebody that ignites a bit of interest in us, (good or bad) we then mentally and automatically distill the individual down to a single “stand out” attribute unique to them, which in turn gives us the best chance for recall down the road if needed. It helps us cut through the clutter.

Let’s use a restaurant example; you’ve been asked if you know of any good restaurants around here, you say I know this place that has great pasta, now, they may also serve great seafood, salads, and other stuff, but you’ve instinctively “branded” the restaurant by taking that one attribute about the restaurant which was relevant to you personally enabling a clear transfer of info to someone else. The person who is the recipient of your “branded” information transfer may not be the pasta type, but they may think well hey, even though I’m not into pasta, and this individual (who seems credible) says they have great pasta, so maybe they’ll have other dishes that I’ll like which are great too.  One way or the other decision making for the restaurant seeker has been made easier via branding. Just like taking a shortcut.

Now, to really seal-the-deal about branding being a part of our DNA, let’s take the most powerful, prolific and the most well-known brand in human history; Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ contained a multitude of unique attributes; He was a carpenter, born of a virgin, preached, helped people, performed miracles and a whole lot more. (I’m sure there weren’t a lot of complaints about the water into wine thing.) But what is His relevant brand, or His relevant brand promise that stood out from everything else about Him? It was and is Salvation. (Talk about consistency in a message.) And what made His brand relevant? Well I guess you could just ask any Catholic priest on Easter Sunday, or any Sunday for that matter.  (And you thought I was going to say The Beatles.)

So, a brand which incorporates focus, relevance and follow-through has a good shot at cutting through the clutter and maybe “becoming somebody.”  And with the endless onslaught of messaging overload consumers are hit with through traditional advertising streams, the Internet and its Social Media offspring, “cutting through the clutter” is more paramount today than ever. Besides, it’s in our DNA.

Sounds simple doesn’t it?