(Reading time: 2 – 3 minutes)
One of the biggest complaints about using social media is that it leads to incremental, rather than exponential, gains.
This means that building recognition and reputation in social media takes time, and is most often a series of small actions, applied over time, rather than one grand push which suddenly makes all your business goals come true.
This is an important consideration, because it goes back to an earlier post on investing in social media and comparing the time vs money of doing so.
Think incrementally
While not all social media gains are incremental (think about viral videos on YouTube or viral applications on Facebook), for most of us, we’ll gain followers and notice one person at a time.
The incremental approach isn’t really favored in online marketing circles. Better to have a grand product launch, flashy hype, and over-the-top promises to drive your marketing message home. This is the direct antithesis to what works in social media.
If you, or your company, is thinking of investing in social media, be prepared for incremental gains, for the most part. (Unless, of course, you have a video that goes viral or an application downloaded by millions!- but these can rarely be planned or predicted. Fans are fickle.)
Make regular investments
A better strategy is to invest in social media regularly, and to focus deeply on a few of the hundreds of sites. Focus in on the sites which have the greatest numbers of your desired demographic. (You can get data on this from places like compete.com or quantcast.com). Laser in on the greatest concentrations of those in your target demographic and psychographic market, and then show up regularly, contribute intelligently, and continue to do so over time.
Bringing it home to the blog
Social media is not a one-time, one-size-fits-all approach. You need to craft a thoughtful strategy, execute it diligently, and track relentlessly.
Look for incremental gains, and be ready for exponential ones. That way, you’re prepared for every outcome, because, after all, fans are fickle.
Rachna Jain is the amazingly energetic entrepreneur driving
Social Media Marketing Strategies,
where you will find in-depth discussion of the latest technology
and techniques in social media marketing.
Any gains you make from social media is the same as blogging…it takes time to build a reputation, credibility and a real following.
There is no ‘silver bullet’.
Andrew
.-= Andrew @ Blogging Guide´s last blog ..Premium WordPress Themes For Free… =-.
Andrew,
Thanks for taking a minute to read and comment. I totally agree with you- there is no silver bullet, and it takes time to build up meaningful results.
Rachna it’s wonderful – a pleasure and an honour – to see you nesting here at WiaW.
The sooner people figure out that social media is nothing more than a platform on which to build your relationship strategies, the better. Or tools with which to create community, if you’re a lumberjack.
A slowburn approach as you advocate is the only way to make these tools work for you.
I have to make reference to (Dr) Rachna’s amazing post at Social Media Examiner on thinking scientifically about how to best use these tools. I think you’ll get a lot from it:
http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/7-ways-to-use-psychological-influence-with-social-media-content/
.-= Dave Thackeray´s last blog ..The Secret 2.0 =-.
Dave,
Thank you for your very nice comments and for facilitating my ‘nesting’ here at WiaW. :) You are absolutely right on about social media being a platform for facilitating relationships. Thanks for sharing your ongoing brilliance.
I agree, which is a big reason why no two social media campaigns can be the same, no two businesses can use it exactly the same either.
Part of the reason all these 2social media experts” make me laugh. :)
.-= rob sellen´s last blog ..Love is underrated =-.
Great spot there, Rob.
What’s worrying me most about today and social media is that businesses in the main are becoming more desperate to leverage the tools for commercial reasons, rather than as part of a community building strategy which ultimately will drive incremental commercial gains.
I think this will increasingly become the case. That’s why I increasingly believe we’ll be looking for other shiny tools to sate our lust for technological silver bullets sooner rather than later.
Rob,
I agree exactly. I also laugh when I read about people being “social media experts” based on taking just one class. There are people who have been using social media for many years and they still wouldn’t call themselves “experts”. Thanks for contributing!
I like the incremental approach because I think it creates results that are more lasting and go deeper than traditional methods. Plus, I really like the fact that when you create a solid relationship with a few people, they end up telling their friends, and it keeps magnifying.
.-= Jean Sarauer´s last blog ..The True Story Behind Virgin Blogger Note’s New Look =-.
Jean,
You have a well balanced and healthy approach to the process. More people should be like you. It is definitely slower, and can take longer, but, as you said, I think it can also create more meaningful and solid relationships. Thank you for reading and commenting.
Both approaches can be good depending on what your objectives are really. Incremental works better if the idea is to build long lasting relationships and rely on people to help build your credibility. Exponential on the other hand can be interesting for something specific, and normally has a small period of fame, that is if it ever happens.
Absolutely- I agree that both approaches have merits. I think the slow and steady approach is easier to work with on a daily basis, though, of course, exponential results are wonderful when they happen. :) Thank you for commenting!
DiTesco, techniques for catching big traffic spikes would make an excellent blog post! That’s part of the reason I don’t bother that much, seems like a lot of effort if I can’t convert.
.-= Dave Doolin´s last blog ..If You Want to Be a Better Blogger, Write Better =-.
Rachna, thanks so much for joining Website In A Weekend.
I am absolutely in total agreement with you on the incremental nature of social media. I know that some people chase the big spikes, but that’s not my style. At least, not yet! I may go after that kind of traffic when I feel comfortable that I will retain at least a few of the readers that surf this way on a big traffic spike.
.-= Dave Doolin´s last blog ..Secrets of the Tomorrow Blog, Today =-.
Dave,
Great to be here. I think the people that chase the big spikes just like the adrenaline rush. The problem, as you know, is that it takes every increasing amounts of traffic to get that same rush. :) And, of course, all that traffic doesn’t do you any good if they never come back.
Thank you for having me!
Hi, Rachna.
Great article, with points some people really need to consider. I am one of the build long lasting relationships type. For me, this just seems to work better and its a lot more fun. Not to say I won’t use a flashy, attention getting campaign at some point…but for the long haul, the former works best, I would think. The latter is great for getting things going fast, but the momentum will stall and some point and you will need something to fall back on.
.-= Gurl´s last blog ..Why Blogging Scares Me =-.
Gurl,
Yes- I think, in the long run, building long term relationships makes the most sense. There is a place for flashy, as you point out, but substance will always win out over style. Thanks for your input!
Like any other business or job, we always have to make a good strategy, benchmark our current position and report the gain or lose after each month and then modify the strategy if needed. I personally believe, every strategy should tested at least 3 month before someone going to imply any major changes.
.-= Arafat Hossain Piyada´s last blog ..Split search result for more productivity with Split.ly =-.
Arafat,
You are absolutely correct. I, too, believe the 3 month strategy is a good testing paradigm. Thank you for commenting!
Yes! It’s definitely not an overnight solution to your marketing woes. It can take months to see results. I think a lot of businesses simply don’t have the patience for it. It feels like you’re wasting time, unless you have a clear strategy in mind.
.-= Kathleen O’Connor´s last blog ..Friday Link Lounge – May 21, 2010 =-.
Kathleen,
I completely agree. I’ve had clients expect that they start with social media and they’ll be turning people away. As much as anything, we have to be realistic about what social media can (and can’t do.) Strategy is incredibly important, as are benchmarks/metrics along the way. Thank you for adding to the discussion.
Short. Simple. To the Point. When I first started reading this article, I though “not another social media article”. But you really put it in perspective for me. I’m sick of knowing how cool it is. I want to know is it really working. Thanks for helping me understand it a bit.
.-= donnie@web design chattanooga´s last blog ..MCA of Chattanooga Launches New Website =-.
Donnie,
I laughed when I read your reply. I know the feeling of “not another social media article”- so I’m glad you found this one useful. I agree that the cool factor can only take you so far. Thanks for taking a minute to comment!