It’s not hard to over complicate something, especially if it’s an important something. Many business owners are savvy and connected enough to realize that they need to be involved and have a social media presence. I truly believe that the frustration and confusion that so many experience can come from the over-complication of a pretty simple concept. You’re not stupid. More than likely, you’re super-smart!
What if we break social media marketing down into a three piece puzzle made up of the words themselves? Could more success really come from a better understanding here? I think so, I really do. More often than not, what I hear from those who are overwhelmed and frustrated is a lack of understanding (sometimes read: over-complication) of one of these pieces.
“SOCIAL”
The “social” is sometimes an enigma. Connections are not being made. Many are using social channels merely as a megaphone to broadcast the awesomeness of their wares and services. These are often the exhausted souls you meet. Keeping up with pushing the same message 6 times a day across 117 channels and counting can grind anybody down. These wonder where the “friends” are, but really don’t see the need for them in the first place. You’ll not find these at a tweetup or a seminar, there’s just no time for this type of behavior.
“MEDIA”
The “media” is not understood as a necessary part of the equation, folks don’t want to create or make anything, but they want to play along and enjoy the same success as those that do create and share content that fosters conversation and relationships.
“MARKETING”
The “marketing” is often understood to be the comfortable advertising we’ve known and loved in years gone by. Without a strategy in place and an understanding of who we want to reach and how we’re to reach them, we stumble. Why we even want to reach them in the first place is often an even bigger misunderstanding.
So how about it, could it be that you need to step back and take a look at the simple? Analyze the few basic principles involved here and be honest with yourself. If you feel like you need to do some more research to gain a better understanding, go for it. We’re not going anywhere, come back with some interesting stories…we want to hear them, and we want to be your friend!
I think the frustration for many people comes from them getting too caught up in the numbers. I'm guilty myself at times. We understand that the true benefit of social media comes from connecting and forming relationships, yet we play the numbers game at the same time. I've recently learned to just slow down the pace. As the cliche goes – this is a marathon, not a sprint. We have to realize that while social media can speed up the relationship building process. So with that said… maybe the cliche could be that social media is a half-marathon, not a marathon…
.Good morning Chris! The numbers are important, just not the MOST important thing. Everyone wants to reach the largest audience possible! Businesses that are new to social media use the numbers as a metric, and rightly so, it does play into the whole story and benchmarks do need to be set. I agree that if one were to become obsessed with the numbers it would be an impossible circle to tend to, and much would be missed in the chasing. Thanks for taking the time to leave me a comment today!
I love this post, James. What a fun way to display the basic concepts. I was looking for an image of a square peg in a round hole under marketing.
I'm glad that you liked it Kathy! I really did want to make this a "simple" thing, so I thought about the cartoon option. I'm pleased with how it turned out and will likely use it more often now. Loved your "square peg…" remark! Thanks so much for your comment today. I always appreciate your input when you stop in!
This is a great complement to the webinar you taught James, I'm going to publish on my Fan Page. Very easy to understand and right to the point. Thanks.
Thank you for your comment Cristina, I'm glad that you like it and I appreciate you sharing it!