Social media marketing has been touted as a “cheap and easy” way to to spread your company’s marketing message.
Social media marketing is ideal for those businesses who:
- understand their customers GDP (Goals, Desires, Problems)
- are able to articulate how their business helps customers to achieve goals, satisfy desires and solve problems
- have customers who are already “fans”
- whose customers are technically savvy.
While it can be a bootstrapping marketer’s dream come true – it’s important to remember this fact:
The internet never forgets.
What this means is that any “mistakes” you may make definitely have the potential to “live long and prosper”.
Unlike other media – marketing message delivered via the internet are indexed and saved. (This is a good thing if it’s a message you want to live forever.) However, in addition to the “permanent” nature of your internet marketing messages – these messages always have the possibility of going “viral”. While going “viral” is a good thing when it’s a message you WANT to spread quickly – this phenomenon is as welcome as a nasty flu virus when it happens to a message you’d rather didn’t see the light of day.
It can be the best of times – or the worst of tines.
When a marketing message strikes a wrong chord – and goes viral – it’s a company’s worst nightmare.
Social media marketing has “raised” the stakes in the whole “marketing” game. See, when your “poorly executed” radio or television spot airs – it’s quickly forgotten. Likewise, your “poorly executed” newspaper ad will quickly find its way to the bottom of a bird cage.
While “poorly executed” advertising attempts may be a waste of money – they won’t do lasting and permanent “harm” to your brand. You can always “correct” a past mistake with a new campaign and a new message.
However, when your message is taken to the internet, the stakes are raised significantly. A mistake made online may live on for as long as the web pages are live and indexed.
Take the case of Pepsi – when they ran the now infamous “Pepsi Suicide” ad campaign. What ad executives thought was edgy and thought provoking turned out to be positively offensive. Pepsi was put in the unenviable situation of apologizing – but the viral effect was in full swing. The controversy spread and Pepsi found out too late that such viral campaigns often become a permanent part of a brand’s DNA.
Fortunately for Pepsi- they have deep pockets and if anyone can “buy” their way out of poor social media strategy – it would be Pepsi.
While the Pepsi debacle made national news- if you’re a smaller company – and you don’t have pockets as deep as Pepsi – you can’t afford to play with fire.
That’s where a strong social media strategy comes in to play!
Crafting a strong social media strategy isn’t difficult if you already have a solid, comprehensive marketing strategy or communication strategy in place. See, social media is just another form of communication – and so begin building your social media strategy using the “bones” of your existing marketing or communication strategy.
Crafting a social media strategy is essential to every business – no matter how big or how small.
This is not a “fad” or something to be taken lightly. This is your company’s reputation on the line here.
Remember – the footprints you leave on the web aren’t left in sand – they are left in cement.
Tags: flu virus, marketing game, media marketing, media strategy, nasty flu, television spot, wrong chord