Dear Marketers, Please Be Human on Social Media

 

Why have social networks succeeded? Is it the platforms and the capabilities they offer? Is it the marketing opportunities created? Or, is it just luck?

Simply put, social media is about friends and conversations. According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary – yes, we now have a definition – social media is defined as:

Forms of electronic communication (as Web sites for social networking and microblogging) through which users create online communities to share information, ideas, personal messages, and other content (as videos)

The key behind this explanation of social media is communication because it signals that you are speaking to someone or exchanging information. Where has this element of social media gone?

There still is socializing on social media, but it’s definitely not where it should be. Sadly, the biggest culprit of this behavior is often marketers. Yes, you read that correctly. Marketers – people like you and me – are many times the worst at not being human online.

The challenge is time. We know more than most that social networks are time-consuming, especially when trying to implement effective social media strategies. This is why we welcomed automated services with open arms. But, as beneficial as these are, they are not meant to remove the human element completely.

We, as marketers, set the example for so many brands on how to act on social networks, and being human ranks near the top. For example, which of the following social media posts would you react to?

On Monday, Brand X: New blog post: [link]

On Tuesday, Brand X: New blog post: [link]

On Wednesday, Brand X: Buy our new product: [link]

On Thursday, Brand X: New blog post: [link]

On Saturday, Brand X: Buy our latest product: [link]

OR,

On Monday, Brand XY: “If opportunity doesn’t knock, build a door.” #MondayMotivation

On Tuesday, Brand XY: For businesses looking to further leverage Pinterest, the company is testing a DIY platform for Promoted Pins targeted at small-to-medium-sized businesses: http://techcrunch.com/2014/06/05/pinterest-cpc-promoted-pins/

On Wednesday, Brand XY: Your grandparents are among the fastest growing demographic on Twitter, according to #Socialnomics 2014 from Erik Qualman. Learn what else is popular in this video: "text-align: center;">

 

On Thursday, Brand XY: #BeingHuman is the key to true success on social media. #FakeNeverWins

On Friday, Brand XY: Did you know Father’s Day is this Sunday, June 15? If you need last-minute gift ideas, try Pinterest: "http://www.sugarspunmarketing.com/wp-includes/images/smilies/icon_smile.gif" alt=":)" class="wp-smiley" />

About author:

Although Abby Johnson’s education and early career are based in traditional broadcast media, her most recent experience has taken her into the world of “new media.” Abby served as a reporter for more 6 years covering topics ranging from highlighting the latest gadgets and applications to the more serious news of online consumer privacy concerns and the potential of cyberwarfare. She has also secured and conducted interviews with Vint Cerf, the Vice President and Chief Internet Evangelist for Google and who is recognized as one of the “fathers of the Internet;” Matt Cutts, Senior Software Engineer for Google; actor Jake Gyllenhaal (Jarhead, Love and Other Drugs, Prince of Persia, etc.) at the movie premiere of Source Code; comedian and radio personality Adam Carolla; former NBA star and actor Rick Fox; as well as other known personalities and Internet industry experts. By being actively involved in the Internet industry during the social media boom and working directly with many of the social media "early adopters," Abby's transition into social marketing came naturally. She now serves as the Social Media Coordinator for SugarSpun Marketing as well as Manager of Communications at design-build firm Gray. In these roles, Abby creates original content, produces digital strategies, handles media relations and blogger outreach, implements social media campaigns, and more. Through her consistent high standards and driven approach, these campaigns have resulted in meaningful conversations, relevant brand positioning, and achieved goals.

All entries by

Everything I Need to Know About Running a Small Business, I Learned From Firefly

This week is a bittersweet one for fans of what can be argued as Joss Whedon’s most beloved show, Firefly. Today is the tenth anniversary [...]

SugarSpun: 4 Ways (with Recipes) to Tailor your Content

I met with a friend regarding blog content for her website awhile back over lunch. Part of it was an excuse to talk about content [...]

SugarSpun: Ice Cream and Content Management – What Not to Do

What feelings do the words “summer” and “ice cream” invoke for you? For me, it’s hot summer days traipsing to the ice cream store down [...]

Mega Content Part 2: Boost Long Term Leads Through Compounding Lead Generation

It’s a long recognized fact that corporate websites that include active blogs generate higher volumes of traffic, leads and conversions. After all, a steady stream [...]

Understanding the Three Primary Goals of Social Media

It seems a little funny to think that five years ago I was writing about the need for businesses to recognize that their social media investment needs to be about more than the teenage “everyone else is doing it” mentality. Why is it funny? Mostly because three years later we still have that conversation with prospective clients on a regular basis