There is much talk about the power of digital and social media as marketing tools but the underlying facts remain the same, does the media have appropriate “fit” given your wider communication strategy? And, ultimately, will it help build your brand?

Unlike most media e.g. radio, TV or direct mail, social media affords your audience the opportunity to respond, often publicly.  This can be really powerful but you have to be comfortable with the idea that as a business you can’t control your audience’s response, but merely influence them. There’s little opportunity for censorship and reacting to any negative feedback should be considered carefully. If, for instance, you find someone is criticising your organisation publicly you should align your response mechanism with that of your media team in order to manage reputational risk. In any case, it is always better to think carefully about how (and if) you respond rather than having a knee-jerk rant which you may later regret.

Many companies use online platforms as a post sale tool by creating “user groups” which are made up of customers who share experiences of products and services and serve as a virtual helpdesk to trouble shoot each other’s problems. You could argue that this is the role of the company but allowing customers to interact with each other helps create ambassadors and foster a “club” feel to the brand, where customers feel like they’re part of the brand experience rather than just someone who purchases products.

There’s a few things to remember when considering a move into social media;

For consumer orientated brands – remember you’re in your customer’s private space (yes, they do think it’s THEIR private space and not public)

Engage in ways your customers want to communicate. Make it relevant.

Create value in your interactions and be helpful

Get creative with social media. Don’t just stick with words, remember you can use pictures and video too. If you’re creative is REALLY engaging it might even just become viral

Be open when collecting data (people will share their details if there’s a compelling reason)

On the last point, Tesco, the UKs largest supermarket retailer, is a good example of how to engage your audience properly. They’re incredibly open about the ways in which they use your data and it’s clearly paying off for them.

As marketers it’s fairly true to say that we’re obsessed with the “Test and Learn” approach but you could always be brave and learn as you go. You certainly shouldn’t be afraid of engaging online and creating dialogue with your audience, after all it is an incredibly powerful medium which is not only measurable but gives you an opportunity to show how you value your customers (and prospects) and their support of your brand.

A few points to help you decide if social media is for your company;

Justify its case by asking questions of your current media strategy. Will social media add any additional value to your current plan? Is it relevant to my business?

Research - Where are my target audience spending time online? Don’t just create a Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn page or set-up a Twitter account for the sake of it. Business to business companies should be looking for “villages” to “inhabit” where they can share expertise and advice

Engage your media team in the decision making process so that they’re properly prepared and can handle responses with good judgement

Resources - Do you have the staff or specialist company who can manage a social media presence? It might be perceived as a cheaper or free way to market your business but you need to consider the time it will take up, having a dedicated resource to manage it and the monitoring processes needed to make sure it stacks up financially.

And finally, if you do decide to go ahead and include social media in your plans please ensure that you integrate it properly and don’t see it as new media and a separate part of your marketing efforts.

Feel free to get in touch if you’d like to have a no obligation chat about how social media might be suitable for your business