You’ve created your Facebook page, planned the series of tweets and have videos in production to be released on youtube. The social media realm is covered off in your marketing plan right? Not quite; sounds like you have the media part, but may need to regroup on the social aspect.
That section may have been missing in your marketing plan template. And without the “social”, facebook, twitter, youtube and any other social media tool is reduced to another one-way communication tactic just like advertisements on the radio, in print media and on the television.
In his position paper “Social Media and Communication” Rich Maggiani of Solari Communication outlines the “rules of social media” which essentially boils down to engagement. And engagement is the underlying success factor to social media tactics in a marketing plan.
So how do you generate engagement leveraging social media? As in any good marketing or communications plan, jumping to tactics is never a good idea. Start with clear objectives, a full analysis of who your audience is, and clear metrics that provide useful insight. With those three items clarified, you can customize tactics that may be a blend of traditional marketing tactics and social media tactics. Here are some examples:
- In “How Cadbury uses Facebook , Twitter, Pinterest and Google +”, David Moth tells us about Cadbury’s prolific presence on social media with many of its popular products. Engagement is driven by frequent new content posts, contests and for customized content, encouraging baking enthusiasts with a Cakes and Baking Community.
- David Moth also writes about something retailers have traditionally stayed away from on social media which is to respond to customer complaints. In the similarly titled case studies it’s exciting to see both Ikea and Coca-Cola are charging forward with quick responses to customer complaints which, from an image perspective, when done well can help elevate consumer satisfaction.
As social media progresses and new tools are introduced those core elements in the early planning process of a marketing or communications plan will continue to be the pillars of successful campaigns; remember, objectives, audience and metrics.
References:
Social Media and Communication
How Cadbury uses Facebook , Twitter, Pinterest and Google +
How Ikea uses Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Google +
How Coca-Cola uses Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Google +
Submitted By: Sangeeta Zilka, SMBP Student, University of Waterloo
To contact the author of this entry please email at: sanzilka@hotmail.com
If you have concerns as to the accuracy of anything posted on this site please send your concerns to Peter Carr, Programme Director, Social Media for Business Performance.