Framing Your Social Media Efforts

February 1, 2010 · Comments

house being built There are three main areas of practice for social media that your company (or you) should be thinking about: listening, connecting, publishing. From these three areas, you can build out your usage of the tools, thread your information networks to feed and be fed, and align your resources for execution. There are many varied strategies you can execute using these toolsets. There are many different tools you can consider employing for your efforts. But that’s the basic structure: listening, connecting, publishing.

Listening

Listening tools have more than one application: they’re useful for customer service. They’re good for PR & crisis management. They’re also good for marketing opportunity discovery, and finally as an R&D lead source. Realizing that there are many applications for the same category should give you a sense of what needs doing. Again, let’s look at this like a frame for your efforts. Once you’ve decided to take on listening, you’ll have to answer the following:

  • Which tools should I use? (Free? Radian6? ScoutLabs? Sysomos? A combination?)
  • Who should do the active listening?
  • Where do we route the information?
  • What are we doing with analytics tools? (Hubspot, Google Analytics, etc)
  • How do we measure success?

Listening is primary to many of the other areas of practice, because it’s your primary instrumentation. As you can see, I include mechanical “listening,” the use of tools like Hubspot and Google Analytics, into the space of listening. This is normally bunched up in company’s web departments, with an SEO person. And yet, I believe we should align it here.

Connecting

Connecting embodies all the points of social presence and outreach, as well as community building. This is your Twitter and Facebook usage, your commenting on blogs, your building of private communities or your nurturing of other people’s communities. This is your HR hiring process as well as your lead generation. This is where all human interaction opportunities are routed. Even when listening detects some action to take, it should be handled by whoever is assigned to connecting. (Note: this could and might likely be the same person.)

Tools for connecting (just some serving suggestions – don’t use all of these):

  • Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn
  • Blog accounts like Blogger, WordPress, Tumblr, Posterous (“passports,” as I mentioned in my personal branding ebook).
  • Bookmarking accounts like Digg, Reddit, StumbleUpon
  • YouTube, Flickr
  • Ning.com
  • And what do you do on these? Who do you connect with? What are your contact policies? What are the rules of engagement?

What you do in connecting is very important. Here’s where social media really shines. Connecting and making it a two way street is such a big opportunity. It’s a chance for your customers/clients/prospects to feel seen, heard. It’s the essence of giving people what they really want most times: an interaction where both sides feel heard. It’s also the primary place sales people will find value in social media. It’s also where new blood is found for projects and initiatives. It’s where databases grow. It’s where you can nurture your organization and its connecting points. It’s where community can happen.

Publishing

The last of the three areas, but no less important, publishing incorporates how social media does what it does best. The ability to blog, make video, share photos and audio effortlessly, and do so for free or cheap is one of the reasons people come to the social media shores. Once you see the value in content marketing (organic SEO results, the opportunity to connect, the ability to share news in a non-email way, the chance to tell stories that matter to you and your organization), you won’t want to stop.

Publishing has many tools:

  • Blogs such as WordPress (either hosted for free at WordPress.com or hosted on your own site, using WordPress.org), Moveable Type, Posterous, and more.
  • Video platforms like Blip.tv, YouTube, Vimeo, Viddler, and dozens more.
  • Audio platforms like BlogTalkRadio.com
  • Live video like Ustream.tv, BlogTV.com, and more.
  • Photo sharing on Flickr.com

The trick with publishing is to make the information relevant to the consumer of this media. B2B has great opportunities in using publishing to improve the communications/sales process by making simple, short videos instead of simply lobbing white papers. Customer service can create behind-the-scenes blogs to show how to better use a product. Smaller businesses can capture their best customers in a photo or quick video. People can record radio shows that cover what matters most to the business. The possibilities are endless, and the opportunities to promote great content are equally dizzying in their promise.

Tying It All Together

It’s in how these tools are all used, in the nuances of good etiquette, quality content creation, effective promotion, useful policies, and a myriad of other pieces that the details become important. We’re all chipping at this stuff in some way or another, and this part’s where we work on tying it all together.

At New Marketing Labs, we have worked with companies in all these areas, but it’s fun how there’s always a variation on the emphasis. In some projects, we do much more publishing work. In others, we’ve done almost all connecting. Blending these areas and fitting them appropriately for our partners is what is most exciting.

Your Take

Does this lay out the way you see it? Are you working in these three areas? How are you working on these projects with clients or inside your own company? If you’re a smaller business, how does this translate?

Photo credit pdz_house

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  • so thanks i enjoyed this work.so thanks again
    http://www.ecougg.com
  • Chris, great intro of how companies need to best utilize social media today! Listening is huge in relation to social media usage. There are positions now called Social phone operators who serve as the ear and eyes of the company to see and monitor what customers are saying about them. I have begun to personally use several of these techniques in the past few months to brand myself online. Thanks for the additional information!
  • Great post. Very helpful.

    @Worob
    PR at Sunrise blog - worob.com
  • Chris, these are my favorite posts--few good points, each with lots of meat!
  • Real Estate Listings from Turkey Alanya
  • Great construct here, Chris. Having spent a career in publishing and building publishing businesses at Elsevier and others, it's mostly in the last few years that we've begun to achieve the model of connectivity that publishing has for so long aspired. Interestingly, it's the connecting that has extended the world of publishing; that connectedness serves to further build out and add maturity to what, at first, could be early thinking. This process has created an entirely new model for publishing. And, for those with perhaps only tangential interests in some topics, the listening is as much intellectual stimulation as it is sometimes entertainment.
  • I agree, Mitch. It's strange-but-fun times for publishing for those who are willing to give it a new try.
  • Great post for someone who is always looking for a simple way to present the components of Social Media. Lately, I've been trying to encapsulate the value of Social Media succinctly, yet still cover all the basics. I love the way you break this down and keep it simple, while tying it back to familiar constructs. As a "former" teacher, I know that's the best way to teach new concepts: Relate it to something they already know. (e.g. "...This is your HR hiring process as well as your lead generation.)

    I used to teach teachers how to incorporate technology into their lesson plans. I tried to communicate in terms of "do what you are already doing - and then just apply these new tools to it." Educating businesses as to the value of SM is not that much different: (e.g. "...short videos instead of simply lobbing white papers.)

    Obviously, using Social Media effectively is a bit more involved, but the ability to start simple and tie into current trends and practices is a great approach for showing meaning and value to this still somewhat confusing arena for many.

    Thanks Chris for breaking it down for us!

  • dominiq
    Interesting framework.

    I think you're missing an important step: Decide who to listen to.

    Marketing is all about choice and it's critical for brand to decide who matters, who they should listen to, interact with and develop value proposition for.
    I see many brand becoming marketing stupid when they move to social media. They forgot the very basics of segmentation, positioning and customer value as if "social" would made that irrelevant and then wonder why there is no ROI.

    If they were spending 80% on who matters, the figures would be way different.

    Best

    Best
  • Great point. This saves alot of wasted time and effort. Got my best info from an Interactive Marketing Course I took last year.
  • You're absolutely right. It's important to find the right person for what you're selling.
  • TaylorEllwood
    Good framework.

    I use all three and advocate my customers getting involved in all three as well.
  • ca_license
    Ohh, the picture just brings back a lot of memories. I use to work as a framer years ago until a back injury. Anyways, back to the article topic.lol I lake the way you laid everything out. Social media can make or break your success these days, most large companies are using it and it can be pretty confusing at times.

    Kris
    California Real Estate License
  • dannyjacks
    I like the way you've laid this out. Anytime you can take something and turn it into a three or four step process it really simplifies it for all parties involved.

    At the digital agency I work for I can't say we've managed the whole process, from listening to publishing, for our partners. For the most part I find that we step in with our partners and focus on an individual step within the process.
  • I read the post and I've just realized that I spent 80% of my time listening, commenting and connecting. Is that a bad sign?

    Brilliant post, thanks for sharing.

    Regards
  • As a public relations student, I have been learning a lot about how social media is changing the way business is done and the way people interact. For me, it has been interesting to watch companies that never had a large online identity suddenly become social networking specialist. I believe that the information you have provided are things that people need to begin to understand in order to make both their online presence and existing relationships better, more effective. One of my PR professors, Barabara Nixon, has done a good job of making sure as graduating seniors we understand the importance of all of the things you have mentioned especially trying it all together. It's important for people to not just focus their efforts in one central area but to be present in all of them and use them correctly. A lot of times I see smaller companies that have a Facebook profile/page but have no idea how to start a blog or use video. I appreciate how you have outlined all of this information.
  • Nice layout in the right order. Right order is what is important, doing all 3 but doing publishing without first listening is bad.

    So doing all 3 in the order you laid them out is th4e best way for success.
  • If I have enough time, I would use all these tools on one blog or website. The fact that I'm a part time blog entrepreneur, I could only be selective with what I use. And I have to be specifically good on the few of these especially Twitter and FB. If only I have my resources, i would hire staffs to concentrate on all these tools, while i enjoy my content writing.
  • julito77
    This is so spot on, Chris, and your information is always helpful. One thing I would add to the publishing section is to suggest to brands and businesses that publishing content is now part of the overall scheduled tasks you need to do as business. If you are going to post content, do so on a consistent basis, as you always say. Thanks again for this great post.
  • Brilliant post Chris, this is Social Media Strategy Made Simple.

    Henry Ellis suggested we should listen twice as much as we publish, but how should be divide our time between listening, connecting and publishing?

    I probably have got it wrong by splitting it 40:20:40 ,

    What are your thoughts on getting the right balance of listening, connecting and publishing?
  • I think the balance depends on what you're getting for results. Frankly, any mix or combo will work if it works for YOU. Does that make sense?
  • roywells
    Chris,

    Just wanted to thank you for continuing to put your content out there for all of us to share. It doesn't matter how many times I read one of your posts, I always walk away with something of value. Trust Agents is an excellent book, and I have been able to adapt a number of key concepts into my company. In the past three months, we have established a solid social media strategy, and have been able to monetize that strategy by marketing it to our clients.
  • You're welcome, Roy. I'm just glad you're here to be part of it
  • Thanks for the tripple-framework Chris.

    Could it be that listening, connecting and publishing reflect qualities of social leadership as well?

    My best friends are great listeners. Besides that they allow me to connect to others, to new ideas, new insights, new experiences thus being great facilitators. And they do stuff which makes our world more meaningful.

    I don't know man, but you may have touched something deeper here than just social media... :). Thanks for the inspiration.
  • When it comes to the first stage, I find the old but still very true from Epictetus helps:

    "We have two ears and one mouth so that we can listen twice as much as we speak."

    Great articles by the way
  • Chris-
    I always love reading how you put things together. I worked in Radio and Television for over 19 years including Sales and On-Air, before going solo and working as my agency. My last job in radio was the Non-Traditional Revenue Manager for a big chunk of radio stations in California. I looked for opportunities to revenue that were non-spot. As you can imagine there are only so many commercials we can sell.

    What I am learning is to take the same principles I used to write copy for commercials, design campaigns for clients, look for revenue opportunities and help clients define themselves through a commercial. How I help people define their "Socialality." Once you define your goals, determine strategy and maintenance the biggest thing you have to consider is how will I represent my brand. What is my "Socialality"? Just like your Personality, your Socialality should reflect you or your brands unique attributes including behavioral, temperamental, emotional and mental that give you character!
    I often speak with people who think that they need to have separate accounts for different parts of their lives. What I have found to be the most beneficial to my use of Social Media is the combination all of my quirks and the different things I do that give me character.
    Picture this: You are at a Networking event talking to someone, they mention that there is going to be great weather for the NASCAR race this weekend. A few things could happen now…your eyes might glaze over and you hear something that sounds like the teachers voice on Charlie Brown "waah wah wah, wah wah wah waah" or if you were to meet me, we would soon find out that I am a huge Motorhead and plan my trips around the country by NASCAR races. Now were talking.
    Then the next person you talk to mentions that she used to work at her College Radio station. You relate to this because you used to work as an On-Air Radio Personality before getting into outside media sales.
    And the person after that also breeds Pomeranian-Chihuahuas. And then the next person drinks the same brand of Wine you do.
    The point is we naturally filter the noise of our personalities with each other.
    Social Media does the same and by its very nature is meant to be Social. You have to realize that you can be Personable without being to Personal. Give a little of yourself...listen to what others say about themselves and then find out where your common interests lie. I think it is great that someone is a film making, pirate radio'ing, Pilates instructing, Parrot breeding, Phlebotomist!

    I also refer to myself as a SocailMediologist...it is so fitting Social, meaning friendly gathering ; Media, a form of communication and the suffix Ology derived from the greek term field of study.
  • Thanks for sharing these real cool posts, I have not read the ones from Chris Brogan and John Jantsch yet, will be doing that now..specially the pie model should really work for people in social media because people have already started complaining about the information overload.
  • You asked for our own practice point of view...well here is mine...Its great to have a road map... listen, connect and publish. But then what when you are a small business? (lets put some context here...6M$ year/20 employees small mfgr...lets say, staircases and fireplace mantles...nice..niche stuff)

    They read the buzz around social but are unaware of the amount of time and effort required to build this kind of presence. It is a big time burner...they are also used to pay for it, not get involved in it...big difference.

    Take someone who is used to pay for a few adds and does a couple of trade shows in a year. Did all this in house, the owners doing the foot work in the shows. Those are finite events, once they are done, they are done. Changing this marketing strategy to one that requires constancy and engagement, day in, day out...not an easy task. You just can't convert business owners or sales people into web socialites overnight. And besides, they have a company to run...

    Who does what? Small companies with no dedicated marketing staff are having trouble putting their heads around the work involved. Its new and its not in anyone's task list...

    I just can't pull a blogger out of a hat when I need one. Or a twitter fan or facebook aficionado or a amateur video buff...The interest has to be there also for it to materialize...

    The small businesses is in a funny position with regards to this social web. Its new, and they have to adapt the way they do things to this new reality. It took them a while to understand websites and seo and pay per click...and these are all things you can throw money at to fix...This social and trust agent thing is just too much for some to digest right now.

    How do we go about getting them in...

    Just two cents from the trenches...
  • Great post, Chris. Sometimes its easy to see such a breakdown as overly simplistic but these core skills are critical and warrant a lot of consideration and practice. In the end it's little more than the fundamentals of human communication with a mass audience but learning how to do that effectively online is deceptively hard. Great breakdown, many thanks.
  • It's so easy to want/try to do everything, but we all have to pick and choose our battles to discover what works for our style, time commitment, and objective.
  • miguelacorona
    While I've only been blogging for 6 months now, I find these three factors incredibly effective in getting my online presence off the ground. Thanks for sharing them once again!
  • rob
    Hey Chris, there are many pearls of wisdom in your blog. It is clear to me that everything we have access to is a facility that aids us with accomplishing our aspirations and aims. Being 'a listening' is a powerful facility that enables us to connect through many mediums, of which one is 'publishing'. The key to retrieving our personal power lies in our ability to see everything as a facility toward progress with our aspirations. You are a generous facility for offering your wisdom.
  • I really like your approach, Chris. Although, the tools are complex, I think the concept is simple. I like to compare it to a real-world conversation. We listen to what the other person is saying, while at the same time publishing our own information. Somewhere in that process we find some commonality and we connect. In my ideal world, business relationships should be the same way. I want to work with people who will listen to me, meet me on my level, and tailor their information/product/service to meet MY needs. When engaging social media, I try to flip that around and provide the same treatment to my audience.
  • This is a great framework.

    One of the main issues that my clients (and myself) have is using the right platforms and sticking to them. We tend to float into different arenas without letting the seeds we plant to sprout.
  • This lays out exactly the way I see it Chris and I work on these three areas. I'm really and deeply talkative about listening because a lot of companies and individuals overlook it a massive amount! Sure, you can do everything else right but if you're just talking at instead of talking with, you're wasting your time.
  • Such an important distinction: talking *with* as opposed to *at*...thanks for your post!
  • What I find so gracious is the fact that you've shared these basic tools with anyone who wishes to do the heavy lifting of "doing." That's the genius of social media for me: collaboration and abundance. Each person is going to implement the tools a different way and to a different effect and so there really is room enough for everyone at the table, because outcomes are equally variable.

    That being said, the order in which these steps are listed is critical. Without listening (and more importantly *hearing*), social media efforts can be misguided, expensive and frustrating.

    As for your question, I'm implementing all three at the same time. It's like a vortex, and in order to be successful, I need to pay attention and trust my gut. Having guides like you and other voices in the social media space is instrumental to my progress. Thank you. Best, M.
  • Yes, listening is very important and often the first step in any type of human communication (on or offline). But I've also found that what makes social media such a powerful and exciting human communication tool is that the order of how you execute and practice "the 3" can vary depending on the client's needs and objectives.

    It's like cooking and experimenting with different ingredients. But the challenging part is to balance what's worked with trying new combinations of "listening, connecting, publishing." You could also add "patience, consistency and openness" to the list of things we need to practice with social media.

    Thanks for sharing Chris!
  • Re: publishing. It's also amazing how many companies have tons of great content and don't use it. Just sitting in the vaults waiting to be repurposed and given a fresh look. A good content audit can really help people/businesses who are perhaps a little intimidated by stepping into the game.

    Chris - also am really digging the Third Tribe approach that you're advocating along with Copyblogger. Really powerful stuff.
  • Thanks Chris. The area I think a lot of people focus on the least is Listening (I know I do). Connecting and Publishing are much easier because we control the medium and message. Listening requires taking pause and being open to what people have to say, however and wherever they choose to say it.
  • Chris,

    This framework is extremely useful. One thing I would add to the listening component(as I sat it on a demo with Radian 6 just last week) is that you can really use it as a competitive intelligence tool. When I started looking at our competitors I started to think about what ideas we could model based on what was already working well for them in terms of social media. I"ll be sharing your post with my CEO this morning. Thanks.
  • This is a good order. So many people want to publish first, not realizing that best connections and conversations are those where we listen first.
  • Chris, this is an excellent overview. The three step framework is exactly how our company is approaching social media, with a renewed emphasis on tying it all together. We have found that a vehicle: one blog or another (we have many), Facebook (our brand page or my personal page) and one Twitter account or the other, all speak to different audiences. It is important to listen so that we can determine how our messages resonate. It is a challenge to maintain our brand across channels while responding to why people are interested in the content we create.
  • To me the connecting is important, because connectors are needed to build influence, credibility if its marketing. PR is about listening, but for me the ammount of connections one can make is amazing. Producing content is important as it is part of the revolutionary part, that we can produce content cheaply that is sometimes broadcast quality.
  • lynnelle
    All good comments below. A testament to the fact that there is no one-size fits all. I love Chris' post because it gives a broad outline for an organization to use as a starting point. There are so many people / organizations who haven't explored the social sphere because they don't know where or how to start. Here's a good outline to begin with. Take it and - depending on individual circumstances, goals and objectives - mold it to make it your own.

    Those looking for something 'off the shelf' should hire New Marketing Labs - or me. ;)
  • I think such a simple approach is exactly what is needed by most people that do not fully understand the potential of social media or do not know how to use it.

    Your post covers in essence the base for any sound and effective social media venture and will be helpful to both individuals and organizations.
  • chipmccomb
    Chris, I like the framework... one thing that i find helpful is to also talk a lot about sharing. I think this goes a long way to building trust and is an important part of the "connecting" point you mention in your framwork. Do you have a cool visual to go along with this?
  • vishi96
    Really helpful Chris, but I'm sure there are many more out there, these are some parts of the framework in our social media effort.

    http://www.dumblittleblogger.com/
  • Batman
    I like what you've said here, especially the phrase, "Don't use all of these..." I used to believe that I had to be everywhere, however, I'm more concentrating this year on making specific platforms perform, while letting others fall by the wayside, as it were....
  • iancleary
    Hi Chris,
    I find that listening is also good to let people know that you are paying attention. If you don't listen to the conversation people feel they can say what they want. If they know you are listening in then they are a little more careful.

    After publishing I would link it back up to listening again. Was your content interesting? did you get comments? were people engaged? Was your content shared out? Listening is ongoing process.

    Ian
    Ian
  • bencurnett
    Hey Chris:

    Can't speak for everyone, but for small businesses, the free tools are key.

    And one on one training is better than reading a how-to blog or video tutorial for all but a handful.

    It's pretty cool to watch the lightbulb go on for a small business owner: "You mean I can do this?"

    Yup.
  • Marc Seyon
    I recently gifted a client with "Crowdsourcing". (Sorry, Chris - but I did recommend he read Trust Agents next) ;) Immediately upon reading the cover he looked up and said "the question is how do *I* get to the crowd".

    I'm forwarding this framework to him this morning as an excellent place to start answering his question.
  • Thank you!
    Great tips for understanding the full potential of social media in light of the dynamic development of the Internet!
    Therefore there are more opportunities for establishing online business now than it was a few years ago.
  • There are definitely more opportunities nowadays than in the past. If you ask me, these things are not going to stop here. The framework described here by Chris is just the basics that everyone should use for their businesses, on a daily and regular basis. :)
  • Hey Chris,
    My daily routine is mostly based on this type of framework. For me, Listening is pretty important when activating in such a field. Actually, monitoring my efforts and actual listening of what people have to say changed for good one of the chapters in, let's say, my personal strategy. More than that, as Mike points out, writing posts before publishing helps in keeping a regular activity on a blog, which actually makes you look active even when you're busy working on something else.
    If you're a smaller business, I think it is necessary to have at least one of the services listed in your post as part of your efforts, with the mention that LinkedIn should be a must while Twitter and Facebook could be either-or, depending on how those networks are developed in your country/region.
  • I think your three-pronged approach is a good one - Listening, Connecting and Publishing. Too many people and companies jump into social media without looking before they leap. Before leaping in, I suggest a bit of research and then brainstorming to put an initial strategy behind anyone's/company's approach to Social Media.

    For example - The two-step approach of really researching how your existing customers/clients (and prospective customers) use the internet and social media, and researching the demographics of the sites you are considering using can help an individual or company be more effective when they do jump in.

    I hear too many company executives saying, "Our customers don't use xyz site." On the other hand I also hear stories of the executive who comes back from a conference saying "We have to be on xyz site." All too often those responses are based on an assumption on their part, not based on research. In addition to your listening techniques above, I would add a slightly different approach. A couple f ways to do this are to survey your clients, read Marketing Sherpa and Forrester's demographics reports, perform searches for not just your company name, but your industry on various sites. Larger companies can put even more resources to this task.

    This research can then inform how you integrate your social media strategy into your existing marketing/PR plans. Finding out where your customers "hang out" online can help tell you were to first put your efforts, and clue you in on the approach to take. Listening to your customers concerns also helps indicate what type of problems they have, which in turn can lead you to ideas for what types of content you can publish to help meet their concerns.

    Cathy Larkin
  • My Take - The company I run is small and we are in the process of revamping our entire on-line presence including social media. For me the most important single component is content. I am fortunate to have almost five years worth of blog posts that I can to use to drive traffic to our web-site and ultimately convince the visitor (within three seconds) to stay and read more. My 20+ years of sales experience convinces my that after that it's just a numbers game and the dollars will follow (assuming you have a product of value that solves the visitors problem).

    Because people like you share what you have learned over the years none of this is rocket science. It's simply a matter of doing the research and then digging in and doing the work.

    The pay off in getting it right is huge. My goal is to develop revenue engines (I hate the word monetize) that generate cash flow just a effectively at 3am when I am sleeping as they do at 3pm when I am writing my next blog post.
  • Chris -

    This framework is helpful for organizing social media activity.

    A variation we've recommended at the start of a social media effort, particularly for individuals and small businesses, is to two-step publishing. It's helpful to create content that isn't published right away to get a feel for the nuances of communicating in social media channels. It's also helpful to get some content in reserve. For instance with blogging, the recommendation has been to figure out a likely posting frequency, and then to write a month's worth of posts before publishing. Doing this provides practice and a small stash of material for when time pressures are too great or creative juices too low to publish on the regular schedule.



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