We keep receiving calls from our clients with deep concern about the social media strategies of their competitors. Just because their competitor has started with a new social media strategy, they also want to move in with the same approach and want to get there, where their competitors are.
Another social media strategy followed by few of the big brands is to create Social network that focuses their target audience. Sean P. Aune wrote about 7 top brands that created a Social Network to engage present fans and convert visitors to fans by getting inspiration from the top social networks like Facebook and MySpace. While their approach was inspiring, it did not succeed as expected. These are:
GoRunEasy.com by Reebock,
Think.MTV.com and Toyota Hybrid.
To your knowledge, these are all big brands that are relatively successful but looks like they jumped onto the social bandwagon without any thought as to how they can engage their users.
Tom created a Facebook page for Popular, The UK’s no.1 hits. Although he knows that he needs to be on Facebook, he doesn’t know what he should use it for.
Here is what he posted:
“I have built a Facebook Page for Popular. I will freely admit that I have not much idea of what I will USE it for. I’m thinking about links to the entries, alerts to particularly interesting discussions developing on older entries, and any other material I happen to find of interest to fans of #1 hits.”
The conclusion that can be drawn from above examples is that to ensure your success, you need to focus on your goals and need to know how your company should respond to the competitor’s decision.
If your competitor has created a new online community, may be because its goal is to research responses or do survey. Your company’s goal may not necessarily be the same as your competitor’s. So imitating your counterparts just because you think their strategy is thriving, is an inappropriate reason for you to follow them.
To develop your own winning social media strategy, you need to identify your objectives and identify the reason for joining Social media. There can be hundred different ways to enter Social media. You need to identify the right way for your company. Following is a list of steps to guide you to develop your strategic goals:
1. Understand the need of your customers. Assess what they demand from you and what social activities and tools can engage them with your brand by analyzing their current activities.
2. Outline your goals. What are your objectives that you want to achieve through social media? Do you want to increase your sales? Or do you want to spread your brand awareness? Or are you interested in tapping into the minds of your customers to know their opinion about your brand.
3. In social media it’s all about relationships, not your brand. Identify what kind of relationship you want to develop with your customers and how you would utilize those relationships to your advantage. Do you want them to promote your brand through word-of-mouth? Or do you want them to stick to your brand for years? Answering to this question will enable you to change customer-brand relationship in an effective way.
4. What applications can get your users activated with your brand? After deciding the demands of your customers, your objectives and relationships, identify the technologies that can help you fulfill your goals while imparting the needs of your customers and building the relationships.
Essentially, the ultimate goal of all brands is to reach out to their customers via Social Media tools. You need to determine what way you can interact with them. This way you can define goals for your company for getting on to Social media.
