I recently tweeted this post from Malcolm Auld…
“Why Labor’s social media failed…”
…because it contains a number of very interesting points for marketers considering how to use social media.
(For non-Australian readers, the context of this is the recent Australian Federal election.)
Point #1:
“(Obama’s Director of Direct Marketing for his first election) …revealed that social channels were good for getting people to identify themselves and their issues, but this was only the start of the sales funnel. The real engagement with those who registered with social media came from email, direct mail, telephone and events, not the social channels.”
Point #2:
“Around 90% of Australians cannot be bothered with Twitter.”
Point 3:
“Westfield announced it was pulling out of Facebook advertising as it doesn’t pay. They have tracked all their channels and their magazine is the most powerful media for engaging customers and generating sales. Who’d have thought – a printed publication that shows a range of retail products and the related prices, would perform better than social media? Gosh what a surprise.”
Point 4:
“Which is exactly what Forrester Research revealed when it researched the world’s top online retail stores – less then 0.4% of links to online retail sites come from social media.”
In summary, the message from these points is that social media is certainly no “magic bullet” for marketers.
Now the point is not that you should avoid social media. Rather that, as with any marketing activity, if you choose to use social media do so strategically and with a clear purpose.
Here’s Dan Kennedy…
…from the September 2013 issue of the “No BS Marketing Letter”…
“…you need to own a SYSTEM that can be counted on to consistently, steadily, reliably produce new customers (and another SYSTEM that produces revenue from established customers)…If you do not own such a thing, then you just can’t afford to be wandering around the media playground, fooling around with different toys, just enjoying recess. You can’t bank on hope.”
“In the micro, if you don’t own a sales letter that you can use every month or week or day applied to some list, that works – you have no damn business monkeying around with Twitter or Pinterest until you get to first base.”
And yet, all too many business folks remain entranced with the lure of social media. From an April 2013 study by Manta (ironically a social network for small businesses)…
“61% of small businesses see NO return on investment from their investments of money or time with social media.”
In essence, social media is simply another way to get in front of potential customers and start a sales conversation. It’s a traffic source …and potentially a way to get people into the start of your marketing funnel.
Social media can also play a role in building credibility and authority. Also, of course, it’s another channel to distribute your content.
But note that all this needs to be done strategically and with a clear purpose in mind. Remember you’re investing time and possibly money on any social media activities. Always consider if that is the best use of those precious resources.