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Social media and its applications for business are on everybody’s minds these days. In fact, the speculation, over-promise of return and unnecessary aura of it can be exhausting. Its application is no magic bullet for success, nor lack of its application a precursor to failure. It is simply a new mechanism to communicate, allowing businesses to interact personally (and openly) with their customers. And just like other mechanisms of communication, it is used poorly by many and quite successfully by few. Just for fun, here are a few basic tips to keep in mind.

If you want to do it, do it.
What we often communicate to clients is that if they are curious, just jump in and do it. (With one caveat: it can take over your life if you let it.) You won’t break anything and in order to be successful, you need to wade in, understand it and determine how you want it to live within your overall communications. And the best way to make it happen, is just to make it happen.

Be true to your brand.
Don’t give responsibility for social communications to the summer intern. Someone who knows, understands and can speak the language of your brand needs to be responsible. Posting photos of the Lady Gaga concert may not be true to the brand identity you’ve crafted since your business began. This is not to say it shouldn’t be fun. It should be as open and fun as the personality of your product/brand.

Keep it simple.
Don’t make people work to understand and enjoy your presence. Twitter recognized very early that in order for its social platform to work, it has to be simple. So, they make you keep it simple, and you should apply this across any of the networks you participate in.

Make it about them, not you.
Nobody “likes” a person or a business that talks only about themselves. Post and be proud of accomplishments, but make sure that you are projecting a steady stream of what is interesting to your target audiences. What will be interesting and entertaining to those who have chosen to like and follow you? If the content you create is boring and/or only interesting to you, be prepared to have a lonely existence in social media land.

Social media means audience participation.
If people are interacting with your social media presence, that’s a good thing. It’s inherently a conversation, not just a stage – and it’s a conversation that others will overhear. If you take criticism for your product or service, be prepared to respond in a meaningful, transparent way.

Commit to it and keep it updated.
Nothing in the realm of social media can survive it if is not changing. When someone links to your Facebook page and sees that your last post was six months ago, it communicates that you are not involved in this communication (and/or savvy enough to appreciate it). If you do it, keep doing it. Like anything, it takes time to build success and a community, but it will happen if you apply even a little commitment.

There is no magic to social media, nor is there a need to communicate in a different way than who you are. Just be your brand self and have fun.

 

All great business leaders know that in order to succeed in business, you have to lead or be first: First to market, first in technology, first in product development. And to be successful in communications, you have to be aware and understand some other fundamental “firsts.”

Target first: There is no way to emphasize this enough – businesses that lose sight of their customers, fail. Sometimes this is attributed to “market changes” but what actually changes is people. (More importantly, the people who are buying your product.) You do not determine if your business succeeds or fails, people do. Never lose sight of this fundamental fact or you too will wonder, ”how can we be shrinking when we have such a great product?” When you develop your communications, know and understand who needs to act to bring you success. Get to know this person as an individual before you begin creating your communications campaign.

Benefits first: Once you know your target “person,” figure out how you are going to improve his or her life. Will you provide more time for them to spend with their family, let them keep more of their money, or make an unpleasant experience enjoyable? And keep this in mind: this isn’t what your product or service can do, it’s how you make your target’s life better, whether it be big or small. It’s not your product, it’s their benefit. (Our favorite metaphor for this is that people aren’t buying drills, they are buying the holes.)

First impression: Even great businesses lose sight of the simple, undeniable fact that a first impression can’t be taken back and is so foundational. So, don’t rush it. Before an important presentation, most of us are concerned that our appearance, information, and everything we want to communicate is spot on. We know that this first presentation will define how we will be perceived for a long time. But surprisingly, people don’t put this same thought and foresight into communications that may be seen by thousands of people. Just make sure you do the same planning before you craft your communications. Is the message simple, meaningful and truthful? Does it look and feel like you? Make it your own and make it great. Don’t copy others or just slap it together. If you’ve put your target first and understand your benefits, this won’t be as difficult as you think.

Being first in your business requires being first in many aspects of your business. So what are your firsts?

 

(Note: This is an entry we wrote in 2008, but it's still relevant today.)

Often when communications firms are asked by clients and media, “what should businesses do when the economy takes a bad turn?,” the standard answer is, “don’t cut back your marketing and advertising.” Unfortunately, this answer is not only biased, but may not be good advice at all. A far better reply is “get back to basics.” And nothing is more basic than evaluating those 4 Ps of marketing: Product, Price, Place, Promotion.

Product: Are you providing the right benefit?
Is your product affected positively or negatively when your customers are feeling a financial pinch? If your product is a luxury item, the answer might not be a comfortable one. However, if you have a product that people tend to buy less of during difficult times, you need to look at the product, and more specifically its benefits to your consumer. Consider how you might position your product to make it a more advantageous one during a rough economy: Does it provide more benefits than simply luxury? You may want to adjust your positioning to reflect those benefits that, prior to a negative economy, may have been secondary.

Price: Is it right?
Okay, here comes a tough one. If you are sitting in a warehouse full of products that are no longer moving, you may want to consider adjusting your price, changing the framework of the purchase, or reducing your production costs. This may be a simple proposition – lower the price. Or maybe you can find a way to enable people to purchase your product over time or with additional incentives. Another thought: Is there a way to lower your production costs without compromising quality? Break out your old supply-demand curve and make sure you know where your price needs to be. You may have to narrow your profit/sale in the short term, but keep on top of it and you can weather the storm with a solid price strategy.

Place: Are people finding you in the right spaces?
If you have a traditional product distribution model, now might be the time to change where consumers can access your product. As an example, many businesses continue to rely on pushing their products through traditional placement with retailers, while more and more people go to the Internet to find deals and value in their purchases. If you haven’t fully flushed out this distribution model, now is the time to ramp it up. But whether you’re changing where people find your products/services or getting away from “tradition,” make sure you think about how and when people will be happy to find and purchase your product. Then work to put your product in their way.

Promotion: Which tactics are working hardest?
Finally, we come to the questions we hear most often as an advertising agency. Should ad (promotions) spending be cut? The answer is, “it depends.” When sales are going well, we tend to keep adding to our mix of promotional tactics (direct sales, print, radio, interactive, etc.) without always scrutinizing the value they are providing. There is no better time to review our tactics. The kicker is that it is difficult to measure the value each tactic is providing. Most promotional efforts do not provide specific, measurable returns in the short run, and they all work hand-in-hand together. (The reason ad budgets usually get cut first is that it is difficult to provide crystal-clear ROI, which makes it easy for an accountant to break out the red marker.) We suggest making a list of all your efforts and putting them in the order you feel they are working. You’ll want to consider how the tactics complement each other as well as bang for the buck (cost) in this list. Which tactics could be dropped in order to save short-term expense, without compromising your sales, market share and top-of-mind awareness? If you need to save some expense in order to keep people employed, pay the rent, etc., by all means cut back on the tactics that are at the bottom of your list.

Sometimes a little pressure provides the best reason to make sure your marketing, and your 4 Ps, are lining up with your vision and adding to your overall business. Refining the basics can keep you heading forward in an economy that’s moving backward.

 

© 2010 3 Advertising LLC, a full-service advertising agency in Albuquerque, New Mexico.