Starting Your Social Media Case

October 7, 2009 · Comments

classroom

If you have to convince the boss or the establishment that your organization would benefit from social media, you might want a plan. Here’s a very simple one you can copy:

  1. Do your homework by growing bigger ears and make a little map of what people are saying about you, your competitors, the space, and where they are.
  2. Find a reasonable case study to match the organization’s interests.
  3. Write a one page doc that has: the main goal, the approach, the resources required, the tools required, and how this ties to the larger business goals of the organization. Be sure to compare the cost (including employees) to the cost of current marketing or business communications methods.
  4. Write a one page doc that outlines a non-threatening, finite pilot that lets you “try before you buy” with a clandestine test of the tools and methods (for example: set up a blog about your passion for bowling, instead of your company’s dental practice).
  5. Present this is one, brief meeting where you ask them to listen to all parts before they offer feedback. Give yourself less than 20 minutes (it takes even less, to be honest).

See also: If I Started Today.

In a nutshell, that’s how one might convince one’s boss or the team at large to think about social media, should they already be even vaguely interested.

What do you think?

Photo credit Cornell University Library

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  • The biggest challenge I run into with potential clients is convincing that they the employees or the agency is not playing all day.

    Good points to stress and show.
  • ha, I have seen brands really getting stuck in-between being more personable and being resourceful and valuable to followers. Some really struggle to strike a good balance, and I think Chris has certainly helped to guide their thinking through his step-by step guide!
  • the key is to make a plan that is more relatable to their business and show them how they can do better.
  • Another great post, Chris! I'm going to do an intro talk about Social Media for small business to a local chamber of commerce business building group. I'll be checking out your case studies and some of the other great posts on your site. And I'll be using you as a resource the attendees can explore for follow-up (if you don't mind!).

    Thanks once again - perfect timing for me (and many others I'm sure).
  • I work with local COC's quite a bit, and it does great things for a community to have an engaged chamber! I always start with Twitter. I show them how easy it is to target local folks using apps like Twellow, and nearby tweets....and this ability usually interests them. Most COC's send out weekly or monthly updates, it's easy to show them examples of what types of relevant content they could be putting out there. If you are one who is a voice for social media in your community, hosting events and working with local COC's is a most excellent place to begin!
  • Thanks for the great ideas about Twellow and nearby tweets, Georgia! I think I will start with Twitter as this makes the most sense as a useful tool for local businesses. My goal is to become a voice for social media in my area (North Central Mass. and Souther NH). I appreciate the feedback.
  • Best of luck with that. I like the sound of local social media initiatives. Someone who is a guiding thought leader for small local business is an incredibly important asset for a community!
  • I do this for several in my area of Southern Illinois as my father is president of the rotary club in a nearby area. Most of the owners I have met through previous jobs during college or when I switched to online courses since I am a mother. I have been doing social media practices since 2004 and for locals, especially for those in smaller towns, you really have to work to break it down.

    It is really a different mentality when breaking it down from large city (900K or greater) to small town/city (20K or less.) Most of the people on the chamber come from various backgrounds from poverty to rich, and from hereditary rich.

    However, in connecting to both, is your plan to explain to them how to spread their content, even on a public widespread level. For example, Centralia, Illinois has the Balloon Fest every year. It is huge and draws crowds from all over the US and sometimes the world. The key is to plan to market in a way that attracts not just visitors online, but offline to the event. Centralia is in dire need of selling tickets online for possible goers or even donating towards the event as there are many booths provided by the state of Illinois (example: Children identification programs to help in case a child goes missing.) There is a lot.

    This is just a mere example to get ideas going. If your area has main events...that is how to focus more.
  • I have partners, not a boss, but they are in no way as "hip" to social media as I am. I did dedicate quite a while to building a presence for us before I tried to show them the validity of social media as a method to market ourselves. I wouldn't go this route with a boss or an employer, but for your own company, I'd suggest getting in where you fit in, and soon! The "If I Started Today' post linked to above is a great read also for those just starting out. If I had to suggest an approach not already mentioned by Chris here, I'd suggest the power of Facebook. Chances are, that most who would be listening to a short presentation as Chris described, would already be Facebook users to some extent. It's not a hard to show someone what they already know...the networking and viral nature of Facebook is easy to point out, even to a casual user.
    In Atlanta, Chris made a good point that applies here as well....and it goes hand in hand with the case study he suggests....show them that their competitors are doing it!
  • The thing is, that you can apply some of these ideas to anywhere. You really have to have an open mind and be willing to think about your area and how you can expand those ideas.
  • mmyerspalio
    Makes too much sense...I've found that one of the biggest hurdles is people's fear/lack of understanding of social media in general. Some still view it as a toy for the younger generation and are wary of the technology required to dive into the stream. As you've outlined, the business case can be made. The realities of overcoming the apprehension may also warrant some discussion as well.
  • As an online marketing consultant, this is a very useful formula for putting the case for social media to clients. I think the map of existing conversations is especially powerful cause it says 'hey, people are already talking about you'.
  • I've found this strategy works with schools too. We took this approach to convince management at a Swedish senior high school to develop a Facebook presence, YouTube channel and get on Twitter. The results have been exciting as we've seen a 200% increase in traffic to the school's website since the summer; the school appears to have more personality now and social media is helping to make transparent the great work the teachers and students are doing.

    Trust Agents was given to the school principal as a final piece of encouragement :=)
  • Great tips Chris! I would like to list out a few tips too. Since the senior management is usually concerned with ROI, give them a list of tools that will measure social media activities. This will help prove the effectiveness of social media. One of the reasons why the senior management resists social media is because of the lack of control. Talk about how your competitors or companies in the same vertical are embracing social media. It's important that the company jumps on the social media bandwagon before its too late.
  • We've been thinking about how to think about the use of social media - depending on your brand situation - and have a created a model that may have some application in how marketers approach social media before they go in to their boss.

    http://weplayintraffic.com/2009/10/06/a-simple-...
  • Absolutely! The 'bare bones' one might say, but a great starting point, especially for the many small to meium-sized companies I work for who are stuck in the Web 1.0
  • Thanks for the post Chis, it's extremely valuable to see the "pitch" from the perspective of someone who's seen it hundreds of times.

    The very first question I received after making my initial social media pitch was "What problem will it solve?" Answer this question in your presentation and that will make your case much stronger than if you *only* focus on potential opportunities.
  • Jesse, I have never quite seen social media as directly solving problems. It contributes to being more aware of company mentions, and being a great conversation starter for consumer to consumer discussions on brand. I would interested to hear what you mean by "solving problems".
  • Thanks for sharing a simple, feasible plan. It's still not easy to do well, but your post kick-starts the process. And the links are great! They turned what I thought would be a quick read into a complete tutorial....
  • A friend of mine mentioned recently that he needed to do some job related work using linkedin on his lunch hour. We have a ways to go yet in this social media space.
  • jeffgibbard
    Great step by step. I particularly like starting the conversation for blogging in a non-threatening way instead of a company blog, a blog about bowling...Brilliant!
  • Now that was super useful. A lot of smaller firms are put off by hearing social media ballyhoo that they (correctly) realize is out-of-scale for them. This is a doable and pragmatic starting place.
  • Wonderful Chris! Social media has long been associated with "younger" generations, though that has been steadily changing. This is a great way to introduce the ideas to an older audience and settling some of that fear they might have. In fact, they might have a little fun.

    Thanks for the great post, as always.
  • Chris, this is brilliant information!

    After heard you speaking at #izeafest I'm become even a bigger fan. Your information is really of great value for a newbie like me.

    I liked how you connected it here with some cases studies that you had bookmarked through Delicious.. really cool info and tip there.

    Plus you link it through a another article to back up the info here... guess we all have a lot to learn here..

    Keep up with the great work Chris..

    Cheers.. Are
  • Social media is definately something that small businesses should consider. Even the larger companies are involved in social media sites like facebook and twitter. That alone should convince them.
  • That seems so simple to me, but more and more, I'm realizing just how much I have been taking all of this technology for granted. This stuff is 100% normal to me — only now am I seeing how much value there is in it for people who don't have a clue.
  • I don't have a problem with clients wanting to get into Social Media, I have a problem with them continuing.. I think most times clients here the hype with Social Media and think they are getting left out, when in reality, they are getting left out because they don't follow through and keep it up. Like a relationship, you have to keep working at it. You have to keep on the social media and online marketing to keep the constant contact and exposure or it will fade away.

    Great post.
  • The only set back is,it is very time consuming
  • melissabarker
    I would add one other point to convince management--if you decide not to participate in social media marketing, the online conversations about your company, brand, products, and services will continue anyway—the only difference is that your voice won’t be heard. Users will assume you either don’t care what is said or you implicitly accept the current consensus. In other words, not engaging in SMM is a decision the (likely negative) consequences.
  • Many key stakeholders don't even use social media casually, so selling them the business value of social media is a bit like selling cake to a person who's never eaten before.

    I think that education is a key ingredient in warming up the organization to social media. How about implementing a reverse mentorship program? Pair decision makers, who don't "get" social yet, with younger team members and show them the ropes.
  • Interesting and practical. I especially liked point number 4. It seems like an example of getting exposure in a friendly, relaxed atmosphere. Breaking the ice so to speak. Sounds like words from experience. Thanks for the post!
  • Another great post Chris.

    Most of the clients I speak with think Social Media is for teenagers or scam artists. They always ask, "how is that going to help me and my business?"

    They think it is a bunch of people playing around all day chatting and not really doing anything meaningful. Adding more information and a process from this post will surely help with those conversations.

    Thanks Chris.
  • greeblemonkey
    So wild - I was part of a panel last Friday here in Denver for Foid Bank of the Rockies, talking to non-profits getting into social media and we discussed all these things. Thanks for the validation. :)
  • greeblemonkey
    Oops - Food Bank of the Rockies... Typing from my iPhone.
  • JenHarris
    I think the blogging is one of the most important pieces to a SM Strategy, but the ultimate question is always "what do we write about"?
    It's great that you suggest to test write about what you love first to work out the bugs.
    I have a 2 hour down and dirty session with clients where we have come out with 2 months worth of posts (2-3 a week) where at the end they say "now I get what I have to write about...I can do that!"
    thanks
    -jen
    @jenharris09
  • nice post, worth reiterating. i think it comes down to (a) costs and (b) how does it fit strategically within the company's goals.
  • Jen, I totally agree.. When I tell my clients they need to blog they say "but I don't have that much to say". I say really? What about the field your business is in? What about being the expert in what it is you do.. Only when I ask them these questions does the light go on and they say... Oh Yeah! I can do that....Now will they??
  • I like what you said.
  • jwestera
    I like where you're going with this. I'm my experience companies need an advocate in Senior Management to help push social media through the ranks. This person can sometimes be hard to find. Try asking around about what people think about social media. The right person should surface if you look hard enough.
  • I'm trying to figure out a way on how our company can generate B2B leads from the social web. Is it possible to do this via Twitter or should we be focused on LinkedIn? Does it even matter?

    Our management is very interested in utilizing the medium but we're a bit lost on where to start for the B2B aspect of our marketing.
  • jwestera
    I like where you're going with this. In my experience, companies need to find an advocate within senior management to help push social media through. They might be hard to find at first. Try having conversations with your co-workers or members of the senior management team. The right person should surface over time.
  • Simple but easy steps. Make sense and helps to have it laid out in an outline form like this. Plus this post becomes a reference point when presenting as well.
  • Simple. Short. Effective. Personal. Presenting to a boss with some pros and cons and case studies will get them thinking, even if they don't agree right away. Sure there's some time involved when it comes to social media, but why not do it? The cons can't possibly outweigh the pros of social media.
  • Jen Bosanko
    I definitely agree with the basic step-by-step plan, and I make a point of printing out the final one-pager and posting it above my desk to continually remind myself of the plan I've made and sold to the client.

    The biggest problem I've confronted when persuading a social media non-believer is in the question of ROI. Especially for small businesses, with tiny budgets for marketing, it's often difficult to sell someone on the idea that ROI for social media marketing can be indirect, and that that's okay and still valuable.
  • annenwood
    Nice simple plan, Chris, and I agree with you. One of the things I did with my company, The Carphone Warehouse, was just to start! Took a risk by not asking permission but starting listening to online comments about our company. Began small with a corporate Twitter account @carphoneware, keeping this slightly formal and posting links to content published by our press office etc. Picking up comments of dissatisfaction from customers prompted me to get my team to create several @nameatcarphone accounts where we could respond as individuals, take accountability, be human, say sorry, show humour etc. We quickly had a lot of success and then had evidence to go to the Board and prove that being 'out there', listening, responding and having positive success is well received by our customers.

    The Board agreed, our PR agency concurred now we're flying and not looking back...
  • Chris, in 3. "Write a one page... main goals, the approach, the resources..."

    What do you mean when saying the approach? (examples works wonders for my understanding of things)
  • This is really good advice for companies that want to start experimenting with social media. The only thing missing is ROI. I think many companies still have to see 'I will do X and you will get Y in sales'. It's not how social media works, but it's what many people need to see.
  • Amen, Chris. RT-ed article.

    This is something that should be considered from all people who want to expand their experience in marketing online (aska for some, social media)

    BTW, Chris... why not explain why social media is basically marketing? Marketing and social media is a hand-in-hand procedure.
  • Get my business to use social media? I'm still working on stopping them printing all their e-mails and keeping them hardcopy in a ringbinder!!! Good post though.
  • How do government consultants best use soc. media strategies to interact with their (exclusively) government clients? Our "customers" aren't you and your friends; its bureaucrats and agencies.
  • tiffany1111
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  • Would you alter that at all if you're presenting to someone who has no presence...and isn't your boss...YET?
  • Great post which force me to think about your dedication on this,I think you are a creative worker and giving full time to this site.Thanks for the informative and fabulous one.Its really one of the best tips for starting social media business.Keep up post continue and stay tune with us.
  • Great, easy to implement tips Chris! It's scalable and it opens the dialog needed to understand the value of social media and best of all simple!

    I agree with many comments here, too.

    Getting companies to start is easy; but to keep it going and commit for the long haul will be the challenge. But we'll keep trying! Thanks for your great blog.

    Ed
  • omg.. this is really inspiring! been blogging for a year or so but it was only now that i thought i should monetize my blog and be serious with it.. thanks for this post.
  • Thanks for an insightful post. These tips are really helpful. Again thanks for sharing your knowledge with us. Keep blogging. Looking forward to reading your next post.
  • marryroy01
    I like the sound of local social media initiatives. Someone who is a guiding thought leader for small local business is an incredibly important asset for a community!Some really struggle to strike a good balance, and I think Chris has certainly helped to guide their thinking through his step-by step guide!

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