Is this the year of Social Media For Business?
As we approach the year mark for the Barack 2.0 Project, I am recounting the valuable business lessons learned.
Of the many, one huge lesson is not a lesson, it is actually a valuable distinction.
Hopefully, this will not unmask too many in the marketplace.
- The market conversation has changed.
- Marketing channels have changed.
- What worked in the past is not working as well now.
This is so obvious that it need not be stated. But just in case you missed it…
- The Internet Has Changed The Way People Access Information
- Social Media Allows For True Real Time Dialogue
- Users Can (and Will) Generate Content At A Rate Higher Than Any Single Source Point
- Search Engines Are Paying Attention To Social Media Conversation
- You Can’t Control All The Conversations
We know this already right!?!?!?!
So….Why is it that when I speak to business leaders on a day to day basis I am getting questions about impressions and ad buys.
That is an old model.
Further, larger organizations are not paying attention to the very listings and rankings that are the underpinnings of the internet.
Some still are running sites with no analytics. And, thus have no idea what is happening with their primary online (and offline) presence.
Is this a misunderstanding about the interconnected nature of…
- SEO
- PPC
- Social Media
- Social Networking
My question is…
- Is there is a magic number where profits are no longer the bottom line measurement for business success?
- When does the emphasis become spending the budget and not turning a profit.
- When does the model go from a sales and ROI model to the spend and “branding” model?
No organization is so big or powerful that MROI (marketing ROI) is not important.
Further, in this day and age where technology is moving rapidly and data is becoming more accessible, the smaller tech marketing savvy companies are gobbling up markets as quickly at they can find them.
And there is no amount of spending that will combat a sound trackable perfectly executed strategy. True social media business strategy is constantly getting meaningful feedback from the marketplace. Or in other words, knowing what works, when, how and why.
Warning To Business Owners : Don’t ever stop concerning yourself with the profits in your business. Profits not spending is the key to your marketplace success.
{ 8 comments… read them below or add one }
Too many CEO’s need to be sold on social media, they need to see financial return. The ROI is dollars. how many business owners ask you “will this generate revenue.” Revenue is good but its too often the first thought.
@Aj – I agree. The better question may be. “When is this going to produce revenue?” Or “Show me how this can produce revenue?” The end goal is the revenue and media as a communication device is the via to revenue.
As an insider you know that Web 2.0 is doing great since a while already but for most businesses “out there” it is still a mystery. They have no clue what it is or how to use it properly. I think it all is still in the beginning and the best times are still ahead!
Gunter
David,
Great post – certainly a lot to be thinking of, or have at forefront of our minds when going about of business.
Do you think that for a while the target or goal for organisations was to get ‘out there’, to open up their eyes to the benefits of social media, social networking, analytics etc; and therefore the goal almost was to spend the budget but not consider the ROI?
I’m thinking that the target may have been just to be seen to be engaging with new mediums even if you don’t fully understand or comprehend the potential benefit, and as such the goal of spending budget served to differentiate you from enough of your competition?
Whereas now, as more organisations are catching up to that curve, it is now all about ROI, as it ‘should have always been’?
Great post
I’m new to this Internet Marketing game and Web 2.0 world but as I am getting of the start line now my focus really is on taking advantage of the current landscape of social media because that is what is going to generate most of my customers.
I guess in many cases the use of Social Media for marketing is intangible if you dont understand how it and SEO, PPC etc all link together.
@Gunter I agree. This “space” is a new concept for many people. But also I am finding that the old rules of communication are coming through as we move to close to instant communication situations.
@Adam – Great ideas. ROI,reducing costs and increasing profits is the goal of business. The problem faces by most businesses is that ROI is a function of exposure and the media for exposure is rapidly shifting. ROI is coming more to the forefront, I think, because the ROI numbers are more easily accessible. The “blackbox” of advertising is becoming more measurable and therefore more accountable.
@Peter Exactly. SEO, PPC and Social Media can work together if you understand and use the media in tandem. Social media for business is a subset of a multichanneled marketing approach.