Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much!
In the Battle for the Hearts & Minds of
Social Media Addicts…
VERSUS 
There can be only one Social Media Blockbuster — You decide!
Glen Gilmore
@Trendtracker
* Photo credits: Flickr: Zuckerberg by Carlo Nicora; Dorsey by David Shankbone
“Oh come on!” the upscale fashion retailer said. He thrust his pointed finger toward to the daily newspaper spread out next to his cash register. “Look here, here, and here,” he continued as he pointed to three different ads by three different “big box” clothing retailers or discounters. “How many ads do I have to buy to get noticed? There’s just so much clutter,” he said while he smashed the paper into a tight crumpled ball and crammed it into the trashcan.
The Problem
The retailer’s problem is the same problem facing businesses of every size. Nate Elliott, analyst for the vaunted research firm Forrester, recently turned his research prowess towards the problem. In his blog post announcing his current research project, he asked, “How can marketers overcome social clutter?” He asked readers, “Do you feel it’s getting harder or easier for marketers to get a message to users through social media?” Readers responded with an overwhelming, “harder!”
The Villain
First, let’s define this villain called Clutter. Who is this black-hatted character bringing companies large and small to their knees?
To air traffic controllers and others who read radars, clutter is “a term for unwanted echoes…[that] can cause serious performance issues…” That’s a definition marketers can visualize, too. You’ll hear communications professionals talk about the “signal to noise ratio.” Everything that’s not signal, is noise—unwanted echoes, clutter.
The Faux Solution
Many marketers attempt to overcome Clutter by buying more ad space or airtime, sending out more direct mail pieces, making more cold calls, posting more tweets or updates. Instead of killing Clutter, they feed the sneaky villain.
The Hero
Squaring off against Clutter is our white-hatted Storyteller. The Storyteller is effective not just because of what he does, but also because of who he is. Through three key relationships he’s empowered to act effectively, slicing through Clutter and delivering wanted signal.
The mindset, or heart, of the Storyteller prepares him to take action to cut through Clutter.
Essential Elements
First, you need to know your own core story. Your core story is a narrative example of:
Second, you need to know your prospects’ core story. Their core story includes:
That means listening and paying attention to your prospects and customers is more important than ever. If you don’t know their stories, you won’t be able to share a story with them that cuts through Clutter.
Stories cut through clutter because, stories
Sharing your story
Adopting the mind of a storyteller, understanding your own core story, and understanding your customers’ core story are the first steps toward conquering Clutter and connecting with your marketplace. These foundational steps will take you far down the path of effective communication and engagement with the people in your marketplace.
Trey Pennington
In his recent must-read post, “The Dog Days of Social Media,” Drew Neisser reminds us that just because Facebook has lost some fans, and Forrester “recommends a cautious approach to Foursquare,” we shouldn’t panic and jump off the social media ship.
I agree wholeheartedly with Drew and appreciate his addressing such a timely topic. “Dog Days,” my ass! We are only scratching the surface here of social media potential! And even if your audience does abandon a platform “en masse”… so what? Scalable social platforms are not going away, migrations will happen — they always do eventually — but if it is not Facebook or Twitter it will be somewhere else you can still reach out, engage your audience, and interact with them.
So we need to keep in mind that, going forward, long-term brand success will not be dependent on a specific social media tool; it will be relative to the depth and breadth of the relationships built using the tool. Building relationships and interacting with consumers is where the commerce of the future is heading. Yes, real relationships = brand interest & loyalty = success (money). In fact, at OpenSky, we believe so strongly in the power of relationships as commerce that we have built an entire platform and business model around it.
Remember, though, that social media is a facilitator of relationships, but it is not the relationship itself. Use whatever combination of ways to interact works best for you and your brand. In other words, experiment! Use Facebook, Twitter, blog posts, and YouTube (don’t forget YouTube!), and use them each in several different ways. Notice what tactics engage your audience so much that they interact not only with you/your brand but with other people loyal to your brand. That’s where the magic happens!
Once you find what works for your audience, drive a truck through that opening. It’s not enough to drive that truck through and keep on going. You need to park that truck, and get out to interact with your audience. “Listen” to your market and you will be able to relate to and engage your customers, evolving with them as they evolve and change. Remember… relationships are never static, so your brand must be able to move along with the relationship or be left behind.
Bottom line: the more responsive you are to your audience, the more responsive they will be to you. Don’t wait for them to make the first move.
Ted Rubin
It has become very clear to me that listening is a more powerful communication tool than that of speaking (online or offline). I guess that is why we hear the expression we have “two ears and only one mouth” for a reason.
Think about it.
All human beings have the desire and need to “truly be heard”. In addition, human beings seek to be understood, appreciated and connected to others. Many painful times in our lives have come about because we said something we did not mean OR do not say something we should have said. Such situations often cause pain to both us and others. No good!
Does this apply to new communication mediums such as Social Media? You bet it does. In such new arenas- listening is more important than ever.
Missed opportunities for communications growth occur when we fail to further develop a relationship because we do not get to know a person better. In other words, we have “talked” to them a lot but have learned little about them– as we have instead focused on our needs, wants and desires.
The people I enjoy the most, in all parts of life, are those who are the best listeners. Why?
The reason is simple– these people make me feel important. Don’t we all want to feel that way? Don’t we all, whether offline OR online, TRULY want have a meaningful conversation?
Our goal should be to consistently improve our listening skills. And, remember “hearing and listening” are two very different things. Such strong listening skills– will not only make you a better person– but also a better communicator, marketer and leader in all endeavors- online or offline.
What do you think?
Ryan Sauers