Social Media – The Great Magnifier

Too many marketers think that they can use social to create a brand position. But rather, social media magnifies exactly who you are, what you stand for, and the value you deliver to your audience.

The truth comes out. And social media is the channel that unveils the truth. Marketing executives cannot use social platforms as channels to create facades for their brand position. Audiences can see authentic care and value versus gross marketing fabrication.

Have you ever had a “friend” that has made promises of help and then never really come through for you? I’ll bet you consider them phony. Well the same happens in brand social marketing.

Consider the following ongoing concern when thinking about social media as the great magnifier. Some people emphasize that social media has certain detrimental sides to it, for example, online bullying. Yes, this is a horrible byproduct of social media. But the reality is that these well-illed people that use social media to further bully innocent victims are no good bums to start with. Social media magnifies their poor judgment and inexcusable behavior. Conversely, good hearted people have used social media to raise awareness for people in need. They have advocated and acted on their behalf. Just look at many of the good social uses to rally support for the victims of hurricane Sandy.

All technology innovations have their plusses and minuses. Take automobiles for example. You can say automobiles lead to increased deaths … true. But they have enabled a cultural evolution of increased productivity and connections. The same can be said for social media … it has its negative aspects, but used correctly, in can promote greater brand success.

So what does this mean for brand marketers? Last week, I talked about the “3 Key Elements of Social Media Marketing Success.” It starts with commitment. In the context of social media execution, I highlighted the need for commitment to socialize, listen, engage, and take action. But commitment starts way before social media. The company/brand must have a true commitment to the needs of their target audience, continuous product/service innovation, and ultimately delivering an exceptional customer experience. Assuming this is in place, social media marketing will be a most imperative and successful channel. Social media will magnify the company’s commitment – not only from the brand’s owned social channels, but in the entire social space. Brands will witness people magnifying their value in the form of word of mouth marketing and advocacy. And yes, brands can see measurable results of this outcome.

As I work with a number of brands, I can categorically tell you that the ones that are sincerely committed to their audience and product innovation have a much greater success rate in the social strategies, plans, and executions I deliver for them. Thus the message to you – there must be a corporate culture in place that is committed to delivery of superior value to the target audience first. Then social technologies can be exploited.

Make It Happen!
Social Steve