In my new job, I do a lot of research specifically on the 18-34 “Millennial” demographic. If you’re targeting the same demographic, you are well aware the social media is playing a strong roll in your strategies. The good news is, social media isn’t waning one bit. In fact, it’s on the rise. The question isn’t should you market in the social space, but how? eMarketer.com recently release an article that offered their 10 best practices for social media success. These are so good that I wanted to share them with you. My thoughts are [italicized]:
- Don’t think social media, think social marketing. – Social marketing is more about empowering, organizing and training select staff members to engage on social platforms—and building a corporate social presence—than it is about paid media placements.
- Know your objectives first—then develop your social strategy. – Broadly speaking, the most important objectives relate to creating deeper relationships with customers and branding.
- Recognize the secret ingredient: trust – Clearly, marketers see an opportunity to leverage this peer-to-peer trust factor by participating in and influencing social conversations taking place on the Web. But the way in which they do that is critical. The first step toward earning trust with consumers, as in any relationship, is to listen. [If you haven't read Chris Brogan's Trust Agents yet, do it soon.]
- Listening comes first. [When @ComcastCares entered the Twitter space, they did so by listening first. It wasn't until they understood the medium and how their customers were using it, that they actually went public. Planning and preparation are key to success in the social space.]
- Don’t just barge into a conversation: Add value. [In fact, nothing will get you ignored faster.]
- Be authentic, transparent and humble. [Social media is about conversation. It's not a platform.]
- Recruit from your core: the brand enthusiasts who already love you. – Digital communities allow marketers to both find these coveted consumers (through listening) and empower them to share a brand story with many others.
- Target the coveted influentials. – Some consumers have more clout than others. These so-called influentials, representing about 10% of the population, according to Keller Fay Group, have an undue influence on others because of their extensive digital networks and perceived expertise in particular areas. Keller Fay believes that influentials are 130% more likely than others to talk about brands on any given day.
- Adopt a long-term/real-time approach. As blogger and social media expert Joe Jaffe has frequently said, “[Social media] marketing is not campaign; it’s a commitment.”
- Integrate social media with other online and offline communications. Social media represents another stream of touchpoints for the marketer, but they are most valuable when integrated with other consumer activities, from search and e-mail to watching videos and reading news online.
Whether you are a brand, or someone trying to figure out how to engage with people inside the social media sphere, this is a great list to go by.
What are your social media best practices?
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Last week I had the privilege of sitting in four days worth of focus groups to have random people within a pre-defined set of variables, watch and dialogue about some of the Halogen content that we’ve created. Let’s just say, it was very interesting.
As you can guess, you can’t please everyone and our content proved [...]
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I just posted this over at the Halogen blog, but I thought I would tap into my readers here too. I could really use your input.
Halogen: Socially Conscious. Empowering. Entertainment.
What does that mean anyway? If you’ve wondering the same, you’re not alone.
After sitting with this tag line for the past year or so, I’ve [...]
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I ran across this quote the other day and it struck a chord with me. Perhaps it will with you too.
The boss drives group members; the leader coaches them.
The boss depends upon authority; the leader on good will.
The boss inspires fear; the leader inspires enthusiasm.
The boss says ‘I’; the leader says ‘we.’
The boss assigns the [...]
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Every night that I put my 2 year-old to sleep, I look forward to a really sweet time of hugs, laughs, kisses and singing. My songs consists of those that are short, easy to sing and hopefully, easy to remember so one day, she’ll sing them with me. But seriously, have you considered the content [...]
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The results of the earthquake in haiti are staggering. Thousands of people are dead. Millions of people are homeless. For those who were fortunate enough to survive the destruction of their homes, they’ve flocked to large fields setting up slum-like living areas made of sticks and sheets. Again, sticks and sheets.
While hope is on the [...]
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Update: I’m giving away 1/2lb of Toffee to the first 5 people to place an order and leave a comment on this post.
Today, I am launching a new series called Entrepreneur Spotlight. It’s where I will highlight a brand, company or idea that I’ve stumbled upon along the way that I want you, my [...]
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Earlier last week, I made the move from using my Twitter username “chownage” to “kylechowning.” As to why, my main motivation is because people will know me before they’ll know chownage. Moreover, there are SEO (search engine optimization) benefits and overall, it just makes it easier for people to recall and reference.
After making the change, [...]
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So I was thinking about LOST today and probably like you, I’ve been wondering why the dual plot lines. One moment, Jack and crew are still on the island. On another, he’s landed safe in LAX. But why? Here’s my conclusion so far.
In the end, they will go back in time, blow up the shaft [...]








