Yes, I admit it. I was one of those cynical communicators who just a few years ago thought if I ignored Twitter, maybe it would just go away. Like that monster in the closet when I was a kid. Or a bad smell.
Sure, I used myspace for my music - and facebook to connect with friends. But for my serious clients? Hah! What use could my insurance CEO, corporate security executive or automobile marketing director client ever have for these silly social sites???
But low and behold, the social web has not faded away. It has become the way of the future not only for people but for companies of all sizes - to connect, influence, research, improve reputation - and yes to sell and market products and services.
Now I am convinced it is time to expand my rudimentary understanding of it - and become a credible advisor and strategist on behalf of those that trust me!
To begin, I present for you some preliminary thoughts on why communicators like me need to take this whole facebook-twitter-foursquare-digg-myspace-youtube-linked-in nonsense seriously!
Seven Simple Reasons Communicators should WAKE UP to the SOCIAL WEB
1. It’s here to stay.
There are a gazillion statistics out there on the growth of facebook, twitter & youtube. Just this morning on Breakfast Television they read a list of Ten Things I Cannot Live Without. I believe the Internet and facebook were 2 and 3, - right after “air”
2. Companies that blog get 55% more website visitors than those that do not blog
- This according to a 2010 study by Hubspot. Are you going to let your clients lose out?
3. Consumers exposed to a brand on social media are 2.8% times more likely to search for that brand’s product on a search engine
- according to a 2009 report by Group M search. It is up to us as PR experts to ensure our clients services and products are present and accounted for!
4. You can conduct instant market research via surveys and polls
- Twitter is evidently specially great for that. I want to test it out soon. Have you yet?
5. Get valuable customer feedback - for better or worse
- It’s about creating a dialogue to genuinely find out what your company’s customers, employees and other stakeholders are thinking
6. Create a community of influence
- If you build it right, they will come - Make it compelling and engaging and you can create a tight-knit community of raving fans and influencers that spread the word about you
7. Remember, if you are not there - your competition will be!
