<<< Return to Newsletter Archives
|
|
|
|
|
 Social Media:
Whose Job Is It?
|
|
Everyone wants to be a part of the social media trend, especially businesses that want to use everything from Facebook to Twitter to reach out to current and potential customers. Three-quarters of small businesses have a company page on a social media platform like Facebook or LinkedIn, and more than two-thirds regularly post "status updates" on those platforms, according to data from eMarketer.
But when your marketing, service and sales departments' all want to reach your customers, their social media could overlap - resulting in confused customers and damage to your brand.
So whose responsibility is social media? Most often, this job falls to the marketing or advertising departments, but in many cases it helps to get other departments involved.
Ford Motor Co. traditionally has left its social media efforts to the marketing department. Last summer's auto bailouts and hearings on Capitol Hill forced Ford to make some changes. "We had very little interaction with public affairs, but ever since the congressional bailout for the other two automakers, we needed to combine marketing and public-affairs forces to get the right message out around Ford so we didn't get dragged down by GM and Chrysler," Scott Kelly, Ford's digital-marketing manager, told Advertising Age recently.
If several departments are working on your social media efforts, taking the following steps may help your employees avoid stepping on each other's toes - or on those of your customers!
Brainstorm and strategize. Decide which social media platforms you will use to reach out to customers, considering carefully the positives and negatives of each platform. For example, Twitter may be the hottest social media tool right now, but you are limited to 140 characters in each tweet and not all of your customers may be using it.
Make assignments. Make social media outreach and interaction a part of somebody's official job. Two or more people may be assigned to take part, especially to cover different platforms or time periods. (Make sure they are working with each other closely.)
Set a content policy. Keep your tone and messages consistent. Social media is an extension of your brand, and you want to make sure your content is professional and accurate. Set policies on when and how to respond to individual customers - remembering that social media can be a conversation, not just a one-way message.
Analyze and make changes. Periodically, review your messages, look at how customers react to your social media presence, and change your assignments and policies to maximize efficiency and impact.
~ Adapted from Small Biz Doubles Social Media Adoption (eMarketer) and You're Using Social Media. But Just Who is Overseeing it All? (Advertising Age) Advertising Age and eMarketer
http://adage.com/digital/article?article_id=142221
http://www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?R=1007538
|
|
|
|
