Are You in the Conversations?

By Bernie Borges
Published: September / October 2008

Social media marketing is a term that is beginning to go mainstream. It started with blogging, then social networking. Then YouTube hit the scene and Google bought them for an astonishing $1.65 billion price tag. Before we knew it, YouTube videos were everywhere. YouTube has become the poster child for viral marketing.

But, how can businesses across all industries harness this online viral phenomenon? Many businesses view social media as – well – just social, and hence, meaningless. This myopic view severely limits the business potential of effective social media marketing.

Let’s examine the meaning of social. I looked up the definition of social in Wikipedia and found a very long, esoteric definition. Here are some meaningful excerpts that help business executives understand the importance of being social in an online world.

To be social is to have relationships….To understand attitudes of people with whom we interact…To have memberships or belong to a community…To be cooperative with others…To be in compliance with a governing body…To interact with others.

I don’t see anything in the meaning of social which is not directly related to some of the success factors of running a business, especially in a marketing and sales context. The deeper I dive into social media marketing, the more convinced I become it is fast becoming mainstream. And, not participating in social media marketing strategies is more dangerous than ever. The tools mentioned earlier are some of the most commonly used in social destinations on the web. The key for marketers is to experiment with them. Don’t be in denial.

Social media isn’t just for early adopters anymore. Consider that most searches you do in Google return traditional results PLUS a list of blogs, forums and videos found by Google. What does this tell you? It means that social media destinations have become a viable source of answers and resources for us when we search on the Internet. In fact, it is changing the definition of search. The medium is no longer just the search engine.

I often find myself reading content on a social media site (or watching a video) and getting so engrossed in it that I ask myself how I landed there and I don’t remember. The “web” is such a vast structure of links that it’s very easy to land on content in a social destination site. One thing marketers can learn from this is that traditional search engine optimization (SEO) isn’t enough anymore. Our content must span various platforms to include blogs, social networking sites and content publishing sites.

The most common way for businesses to begin to embrace social media marketing is when you are blindsided by it. You learn that a competitor is actively posting good content in blogs or podcasts, etc. Or you learn that a competitor is actively engaged in online conversations and has earned thought leadership status. Or, the kiss of death is that other people are talking about a competitor in positive ways and you are absent from those conversations. We all know that perception is reality. If your company is stronger than that of a competitor who is actively engaged in online communities, your absence can weaken your position.

So, what do you do about it? First, don’t fight it. I can provide a long list of innovations that have become mainstream (PC, cell phones, etc.). The social media phenomenon is global and it’s here to stay.

Assign someone in your company to dive into social media and help you learn how your business can harness the opportunities. Chances are there are already people in your business with profiles in MySpace, Facebook, LinkedIn. Even if you have already taken these steps, you should look for active ways to produce marketing value you can measure. What this looks like is different for every business and industry, but blogging is often the low hanging fruit opportunity in social media marketing. In my business I have observed that the third biggest source of referral traffic to our website is from the blogosphere. I’ve also noticed a growing trend of traffic coming to our site from Twitter, a micro blogging service.

Another big factor that warrants attention is the word of mouth factor that occurs in social media destinations. The power of word of mouth will never be diminished. When people develop trusting relationships online, products get recommended, brands get strengthened and business happens. The biggest risk is being absent from these conversations. That’s where opportunity costs happen.

Marketing Sherpa, a market research company with much emphasis on web marketing strategies, has conducted research on social media. One of the studies they did in 2007 showed that B2B buyers seek out information on vendors in social media destination sites before making a purchase decision. This really levels the playing field. It’s akin to the consumer who goes to buy a car armed with pricing details from the Internet. The B2B buyer is now armed with information about the vendors they evaluate from social media sites.

This reminds me of the commercial with the slogan: “What’s in your wallet?” When it comes to social media marketing, the question is: “Are you in the conversations?”

About the Author
Bernie Borges is the founder and president of Find and Convert, an Internet Marketing firm specializing in search engine optimization and social media marketing strategies. Bernie is a frequent speaker, blogger and podcaster on these topics and is currently writing a book on social media marketing business strategies. Bernie can be reached at 727-234-0952 and bernie@findandconvert.com.