There are so many articles, and self proclaimed “social media gurus” online that every time I read one blog article the very next one seems to contradict it in more than one way. I am not a social media guru or expert. I can tell you that I have successfully used social media to promote events that have drawn crowds over 600 people, this is a case study that will be published in the coming weeks.
To be an “expert” in my personal opinion means that you have a proven track record for success. That should be backed with some sort of measurement that people can take a look at and decide for themselves. This article is not to bash those that make this proclamation but simply to inform the ill advised when taking advice on how to engage their audience online.
I honestly had no intention in writing this article but in preparation for a presentation I’m giving this evening on the subject, it got me thinking that someone needs to stand up and say, “wait a minute, what constitutes someone being a ‘guru’?”
I used to be a UNIX admin for many years and let me tell you, you knew who the gurus were. If you weren’t one you simply referred to yourself as a “Jr. Admin” and then just kept your head down hoping no one would throw a manual at you.
I’m going to get to the point as I am not a big fan of articles that go on beyond 5 or 6 paragraphs. So here it is my Internet friends colleagues and future networking friends. It is important to understand who you are engaging before you write anything. If you are blogging / tweeting / facebooking / tumblring / bit.ly linking or doing anything to share information, thoughts, rants, or advice be sure to think about the impact it has. Consider creating a separate account for personal rants so that subscribers and readers don’t take offense from your company brand for making an assumption or judgment. I find that credibility is fairly easily given online, but once lost, it is either lost forever or takes a very long time to regain. Most social media articles talk about communicating with your fellow online friends and that is very true. It should be a two way conversation, which usually means you talk about others more often than yourself. That’s very true. No one wants to go to a cocktail party and converse with new people and listen to them talk about themselves all night. That’s talking at someone, not with them.
I’m attending the New Media Atlanta conference tomorrow Friday September 25th, and I fully expect to engage in conversations that encompass dialogue from many sides, not just one side. Treat the online conversations the same way and you will be successful in your endeavors. So here are a few tips that I have learned from my experience:
- If you have any social networking accounts for your business, go ahead and also create a personal identity that isn’t as closely tied to your brand.
- If you have something to say that could be construed as negative, think before you post.
- Don’t post SPAM links, ever. This is a sure way to lose credibility.
- If you are an online marketer, market yourself and others, not just your shortened URL in every post.
- Comment on blog postings that you find interesting. Let people know that you care that someone took the time to express a concern, or writing a how to article.
- Don’t take things to personally, but remember who your loyal core is. Stick up for them when needed.
- Enjoy yourself with offline conversation as well, sometimes we forget that with the twitter streams, those are real people at the other end.
I don’t know exactly what kind of response if any I will get from this but I hope that you found some value in here to take away.
Have a great day.
Josh
