Yakiji (Yah-key-jee)

Social media presentations, articles, blog posts and the likes are a dime a dozen these days. Of course this is great news because it means that awareness is spreading and corporations are investing in social engagement. While the rules for engagement are still loose, corporations must be sensitive to the reactive nature of their customers. The rules are different in social media (as opposed to traditional media) and today I’ll explore 4 common misconceptions in corporate social media.

1. “Dive in and ask for forgiveness later”
   If you’ve attended social media presentations or read from the experts, then you’ve likely heard this line before. It sounds great and enticing, but it should (and typically does) come with a disclaimer. The problem with this idea is that “diving in” shouldn’t mean bypassing the planning stage. Without a plan, campaigns are susceptible to derailment and/or abandonment. So, while the “dive in” approach isn’t terribly wrong, it needs to include some direction. When considering this approach, consider the people, objectives, strategy, and technology (or the POST Method) and create a basic plan behind this. The plan might not be perfect at first, but that’s OK because you can always change it later.
2. “Set it and forget it” **
   In the corporate environment, it’s easy to jump from project-to-project. Many marketing campaigns follow the process of “create, deploy, measure and move on”, but this approach is not effective in the social channel. For corporations to simply move on from a social campaign, they risk diminishing the trust of their loyal customers and brand champions. While it goes without saying, corporations must embrace a plan for the long-term and continue to nurture their social strategy along the way.
3. “We are in control”
   This is another way of looking at the improper evaluational of the risks. In some cases, there are corporations that give up too much control with a false sense of thinking that they are in control. Do I dare bring up the Skittles social experiment? While corporations can control the message, the audience will do whatever they want with it. In most cases, the more control you give up the bigger the payoff but the risk will be high as well. With that said, corporations must consider the risks and be prepared to take action if needed. Either over-prepare or think through if it’s really worth it.
4. “The campaign must be successful”
   Measuring ROI in social campaigns isn’t always cut and dry. Short-term measurement can be especially difficult and can be easily diagnosed as a failure. Corporations must not get discouraged by this and must realize that short-term setbacks are inevitable. Allowing these set-backs (or failures) to happen are a part of the process. Progression in the social space, requires a bit of trial-and-error and the reaction to these failures will dictate the long-term success. Addressing these failures to your audience allows for a great opportunity to humanize the company and build even stronger trust among the customers. Corporations must avoid succeeding from a social strategy at the first sign of failure. Keep focus on the overarching social strategy and long-term success will be achievable.

** If you remember Ron Popeil, he caramelized the line “Set it and Forget it” with his infomercial of the Showtime Rotisserie Oven.