3 Things You Must Know About Social Media

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I was recently asked to summarize the what marketers must know about social media marketing by Jay Levinson. I was about to answer him when he added a stipulation in, in 3 points, only 3 summarize what marketers must know about social media. I thought I would share with you what I shared with him:

It’s a conversation – As marketers in the past we have been awarded based upon our ability to craft messages and broadcast to an audience, a niche or a market segment. People no longer want to be talked at. In fact their conversations with each other on Twitter, Facebook, or even the videos they post on YouTube impact and define major brands. As social media marketers we need to get involved in those conversations if we want to effectively brand and market online.
It’s a listening tool – More than a conversation, social media marketing is about listening. We need to be listening for opportunities to engage with people that are talking about our brand. Social media gives us the opportunity to engage at the instant someone is talking about us (if we’re listening), and have relevant, personal and authentic conversations with our customers. Use tools like Twitter search, Google Alerts, and SocialMention.com to monitor those conversations.
Social media belongs to everyone, which is good and bad, it forces you to be different to win – As a marketer you no longer have control or a monopoly on a medium. Social media tools are in everyone’s hands. This is great news for anyone who wants to create a brand and generate revenues online. This is also a bad thing, because it creates a lot of noise. You must have a distinctive message, offering and leadership style if you want to get noticed online. To win you must be more engaging, add more value, and be more creative than everyone else if you want to rise above the noise.