Tag Archives: community management

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5 Questions to Ask Yourself Before Implementing a Social Media Strategy

by: Jamey Brown

In my head it goes: goal setting – brainstorm – idea pool – checks and balances – strategy – tactics – finished plan. This has been my process for developing strategy plans thus far. Everyone’s strategy development is different, but the overarching themes can be applicable to all. Oh yeah, and strategy (since I see it everywhere and no real description attached) is the high level plan(s) that’s built to achieve certain, pre-determined goals. Tactics are the executional steps that help achieve the overarching goals of the strategy. So, before you make the jump to executional, think of these five questions while you are developing your overarching strategic plan.

1. What are my goals? Short term? And long term?

It’s all pointless if you are not striving to hit certain goals you’ve set. There needs to a be a concise list of short term, immediate goals you want to knock out, and then a concise list of the big, 6 month-ish goals you want to achieve over time. Determining goals is the very first step.

2. Will I need 1 overarching strategy? Or several?

Sometimes, multiple strategies are needed if the client you are working with is a large one and has multiple large goals to achieve on a more corporate branding level. That and the fact that they could have a campaign that seeks to accomplish two very different things. Do I recommend them implementing a bipolar campaign? No. But sometimes several strategies are needed to accomplish different sets of goals.

3. What tactics do I need in place to fulfill the goals of my strategy?

VERY IMPORTANT. These are the mechanical pieces that keep the big machine running. You need actionable steps that say, “this is how you are going to actually do it on a day-to-day or week-to-week basis.”

4. Is my strategy fulfilling BOTH my long term and short term goals?

Always go back and double check yourself. Asking this question forces you to keep your goals on your mind at all times. Sometimes “creativity” can blind people’s strategic thinking and “cool” can take a front seat very fast. DON’T let this happen. Goals are always #1! Let cool and creativity come naturally.

5. What is the lifespan (timeline) of this strategy? 

Simple. How long will this plan be in place? Again, determine how long you think it will take to accomplish the long term goals at hand and build a strategy that reflects that timeline. It could be three months; it could be one year. Give yourself checkpoints along the way.

What are some other steps you implement before developing a new social media strategy plan? 

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“The Hard Is What Makes It Great”

by: Jamey Brown

 

The life of a Community Manager, Strategist or Director is a hard one. One that sometimes has weeks where you want to pull out your hair, click “hang up” on a conference call and power off all devices. These weeks entail late nights, constant writing, and organizational skills that some think don’t even exist.

But when it’s all said and done, and you’ve put in the time and the hard work, watch this clip after each of these weeks. Make it a ritual. Exhale, because these weeks are the hard weeks. The ones that separate the good from great. And as you exhale, know that you conquered the hard, you achieved Community Manager greatness. Because in the end, if it wasn’t hard, everyone would do it. The hard is what makes it great.

 

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Don’t Let Content Overwhelm You

by: Jamey Brown

This morning as I arose with the sounds of Atlanta’s Midtown outside my window, I already had social on the brain. Today is a busy day in terms of monitoring certain communities and tidying things up simply to be prepared for this week. So, per usual, I got up, flipped on the coffee and plugged in.

Right now, at this very moment, I have six tabs open. One is Gmail. Four are social networks. The last one is WordPress (I guess technically another social network, but let’s not pick over small cookies). With this plethora of content at my fingertips, how do I filter it all to what I want? How do I not have a panic attack because there’s. just. so. much.? Well, it’s easy, manage yourself, not the networks.

Right now, I have too much content available at one time. Space things out into small segments of time. Overload can be detrimental.

Schedule what you want to get out of the next hour. I need to reply to some e-mails. I need to check my Google+ Communities and I need to monitor two specific LinkedIn Groups. These three things are priority for the next hour. So, I can remove my Twitter and Facebook tabs for now (and the WordPress one after I finish writing this on my break! Ha!)

Take your time. Content is much more effectively absorbed if you actually slow things down a bit and digest what you are reading AS you read it. Say it back to yourself.

Take small breaks. Now this does not work for everybody, but I am much more effective if I review something for 30 minutes and then take a 5-10 minute break. Rinse and repeat this and you will be surprised how much you get done by the end of the day.

Breathe. Remember, there’s always a tomorrow. Knock out what is priority for the next 24 hours, breathe and begin to schedule into the week.

What are some other content management tips you’ve found to be useful?  

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An Ode to Community Managers

by: Jamey Brown

You’re a creator. A curator. A communicator.

You’re an editor. A director. A writer.

You’re an analyst. An interpreter. An advertiser.

You’re a sun up to sun down (and then some) worker. A “not leaving till it’s done” researcher.

You’re an orchestrator . A leader. A helper.

You’re a contributor. But most importantly, a listener.

You’re a doer. An observer. A specialist.

You’re a linker. A connector. A seeker.

You’re a Community Manager 

Congrats on being awesome 

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When User Generated Content Goes Too Far

by: Jamey Brown

Ok, so a Community Manager walks into a bar… no, just kidding. But a Community Manager really does walk into his or her office, sits down and looks at the calendar. It’s THAT day. You know what day I’m talking about… the day where you click open the Excel (or Google Doc) content calendar for the next month and a slow tear comes down your cheek as you stare at the unbranded abyss. That lack of future content makes you even more nauseous than the two grande coffees you just had. But then you remember, “hey, we are now crowd-sourcing content from our online communities” (and yes, I will use that buzzword only once. Apologies). The flashbacks of your meeting with the Strategy Director and CMO are coming back to you and the words “we need to start incorporating more user generated content from our fans and followers” blink in bright neon lights. You then take a look at next month’s naked calendar and attack it with no fear. Well, before you do this you need to read the below tips on how to not go nutzo with user generated content. Because as transparent and effective as it can be, it can also be lethal to your brand or organization if overdone or done poorly.

1.  MOST IMPORTANT Research Where Your Content Is Coming From: I know there are other things to do on your list, but take a few minutes to make sure the content you are using is from a credible source. Believe me, if you publish content that is from a sketchy source fans and followers will call you out on it. And you don’t have time for that.

2. Do Not Forget Regular Content Strategy: user generated content can become addictive, especially if you have a large brand who enjoys tweeting, posting and producing videos about that product. Stay the course with your brand’s marketing strategy! Content from the community is an add-on, the icing on the cake. It is a strategy that should be periodically tossed in to spice things up and show everyone that “cool, they are listening to us and publishing our content.” Don’t fall into the trap of becoming addicted to your online community’s content. If you get hooked then all of your walls, streams and pages will become flooded with fan and follower content. Your brand message will be lost, thus creating confusion as to anything you were actually trying to push.

3. Make It Exclusive: this is the point of it all. Make your community members feel as though they are part of the VIP section at the Viper Room when something of THEIRS is published by YOU. To that person, it’s a stamp of brand approval. They will say to themselves (and their friends) “yeah, that’s my video that was RT’ed.” But if your consistency amps up and everything becomes user generated content then this exclusivity is lost. It is no more the “secret lair” you wanted it to be. The zest, the rush of it is lost.

Now, as you put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard), remember these tips when implementing a user generated content strategy (wow, I’ve used this word a lot. Please comment on another word for this. I seem to be getting buzzword syndrome). Finally, have fun with it. That’s the bottom line with all of this. Content, branding, online communities, etc. are supposed to be fun and engaging. Don’t forget that when making things shareable and RT’able.

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Should All Brands Be Onboard With “Real Time Marketing?”

by: Jamey Brown

I was reading a good piece by Scott Monty yesterday on what exactly “real time marketing” was and if it should even be a term. After taking 24 hours to digest the piece and digest the comments, I woke up with these thoughts about the newly slated strategy:

- I like this term, but it will soon be overused by every marketer out there and will then die a tragic, buzzword death.

- No, not all brands need to adopt this style of marketing. It needs to be applicable to A. your brand and B. your brand’s campaign.

- Don’t forget normal marketing.

- Not everything has to be “live.” I swear, as soon as a harlem shake comes down the pike it’s off to the races on who can push out the fastest blog post. And half the time, they aren’t worth the keystrokes that went into writing them. When something viral hits and I read these immediate write-ups on it, they usually just say that it happened…and that’s it. Is it too much to ask to be informative these days?

- Force messaging is not the answer. During the Oscars I saw SO many brands pushing campaigns that had no business being lumped into this stream of conversation. Again, don’t compromise your brand’s mantra just because a big event is coming up.

Bottom line: Real Time Marketing can be effective, but under the right circumstances and for the right brand. Always be wary of marketing trends before decisions are made.

Do You Know Brands Who Are Doing A Good Job With “Real Time Marketing?” A Bad Job? 

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3 Social Marketing Lessons You Can Learn From ‘Road House’

by: Jamey Brown

There’s nothing wrong with tossing some bacon, roundhouse kicks and mullets into your day. To break up my day I will, from time to time, watch clips from the Swayze classic, ‘Road House.’ In watching these clips I could not help but think “what if Patrick Swayze was a marketer? What if he had access to social media?” My dwellings on this below…

1. Be Nice 

You are going to encounter A LOT of personalities you don’t like. Big ideas will float around that are terrible. And you will butt heads with people who work close to you. When these times arise, be nice. When there are too many cooks in the kitchen, be nice. When a campaign gets a green light that you don’t like, be nice. Now, I’m not saying have no opinion and bottle everything up. But handle things that are out of your control with the attitude of being nice.

2. When Someone Calls You A Name, Be Nice

As Community Managers we all know there’s going to be people out there who bash your brand – some brands more regularly than others. It happens. Deal with it with transparency. When tackling negative feedback from people, it is essential in my opinion to be nice. Having been a disgruntled customer before (who hasn’t?), I have been completely won over by kindness and brand’s willingness to help. When brands become human and are nice to their fans and bust their ass to help them, it typically results in winning that person back. If that person is not completely sold they will at least have something good to say about your customer service. Remember, wins don’t have to come from just a sale.

3. When The Time Of Being Nice Is Over, Stand Up For Yourself (Or Your Brand)

This is a VERY rare circumstance in social media. I repeat: this is a VERY rare circumstance in social media. When a brand has been nice, accommodating and given all 120% of themselves to helping a disgruntled person and that person continues to come back with bash after bash after bash about the same situation then it is time to stop being nice. THIS DOES NOT MEAN BE OUTRIGHT RUDE! But it does mean that brands, on occasion, need to stand up for themselves and their content. Defend your castle! A brand can simply say something like “Sorry, [insert name]. We have given you every possible resource at our disposal. If you continue to use graphic language or rant on our comment threads you will be reported and banned.” Don’t be afraid. Stand up for your kindness and willingness to be good at customer service. Because that’s exactly what you’re doing.

When have you had to stand up for your brand? Or continue to be nice?  

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Social Marketing Isn’t Branding

by: Jamey Brown

Social media is a touchpoint for marketing; it is not marketing, nor is it branding. Rinse that and repeat. So many people throw a hail mary with social media expecting it to be this saving grace that brings their brand or organization back to life (if it even needs it in the first place). Social media is an extension for your brand’s image and voice. Don’t ever ever ever try and brand yourself with social media. Your voice and message will fail because people will immediately detect your brand’s incoherent and inconsistent voice. Believe me, I have seen startups think social is the key to success and then their brand falls flat. Why? Because there was no brand in place prior to.

When I tell people social media is a touchpoint for brands, organizations etc. I sometimes get bug-eyed looks accompanied with “wait, isn’t that what you do for a living? What exactly do you do with your days if it just a touchpoint?” Well buckaroo, that little touchpoint is actually massive. There are infinite ideas, strategies and tactics that go into socializing a brand. And those tactics will not only fill up your day but swallow it whole.

Understand that branding and social are two very different things – think of them as peanut butter and jelly. Let social bring our your branding and allow it to flourish and gain reach, engagement and word of mouth. Just remember to make the divide between these two…always.

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Dear Young Social Marketer…

by Jamey Brown

Dear Young Social Marketer,

You are entering a world of conversation, clicks and CTR’s. Don’t be scared, if you do your research you will execute all of these things just fine. Social media is nearing its end of “the new way to market” and is becoming essential to how a brand markets its message and content. You must value time management, creativity and collaboration. If you have an ego problem then you can go ahead and check that at the door – no room for that in this industry. But guess what? You will have to learn how to deal with others who don’t value that. Hard? Very. Good experience? Like you wouldn’t believe.

Know that your days will be spent on a timer and that you will have to not only execute your creativity, but execute it at hyperspeed. Oh, and it has to be good. You will have to write, write and write some more. Content creation is fun, but wait till you sit down to a blank editorial calendar. Get the ink ready! You will enjoy the creativity, but you better love it enough to have days where ALL you do is brainstorm, brainstorm and brainstorm some more. Trust me, midday coffees will be your new best friend. And just when you think you are about to leave, you will have a “quick” stream of work come down the pike that has to be done by EOD.

Be ready to handle a lot of money that is not yours. You will be running multiple social campaigns that must have good CTR’s and engagement. Tell that to your friend who says, “uh, you play with Facebook and Twitter for work?” Don’t worry, they still won’t get it. Be prepared to be on the ground floor for live events that revolve around your social media pushes. You will have to be the most charming person in the room, while also being the best marketer in the digital space at the same time.

But you know what…

It’s all so worth it. When you see your social campaigns surpass their numbers. When you see twitter streams light up like Christmas trees. When people give you feedback that says, “wow, thank you.” At the end of the day you live for this. You are a connector. A creator. A marketer. A master linker between brand and consumer, bridging the two dimensional traditional gap with the three dimensional injection of the all powerful social media. So, pat yourself on the back Young Social Marketer and know that all good word-of-mouth starts with your passion for social media marketing.

Best,

@JamesonGBrown