The other day, as I usually do, I was browsing the web and came across a lead capture sign up form for a social media focused research paper written by Forrester Research. I don’t know what it is about these types of offers, especially those focused on social media, but I always provide my information in exchange for the free piece of material. Yep. I admit it. I am a sucker. The same way my one friend swears every girl who has a pulse (hell even some that don’t) “wants” him. Generally speaking, these types of marketing materials are valuable. They may not go extremely in depth with analysis, but you can learn something!
For the PDF download visit Accelerating Your Social Maturity.
As I was reading the PDF while basking in the Newport Beach sun (BOOM! I’m living the dream), I realized that some of the material I really enjoyed and found beneficial. The majority of the content I believed to be common sense, but for the social media newbie, or a company that is struggling to understand the social media spectrum, it was helpful. Let me take the time to highlight my favorite section of this interactive marketing document; The Socially Dormant Laggards.
Well I’m sure you can tell by the previous statement these organizations are well, lagging behind the competition. The social media focused research paper states that 1 in 5 companies are not using any social technologies. I am not convinced this is accurate because it really depends on the industry, size of organization, etc. Regardless, I didn’t do the research so I’m going to run with it. I do agree with the sentiment that some organizations are hindered by their target consumer, conservative culture, or regulations imposed on their specific industry (i.e. financial). The article does a great job of explaining how to get your ass in gear. So an organization can move beyond being a laggard and advance toward having a presence in the social spectrum.
The research paper believes that following these three key points will help your organization move towards social maturity:
1. Use the POST Method
This means that each organization should start with people (p), objectives (o), strategy (s), and then choose the technology (t). I absolutely LOVE this. Maybe because I POST blogs and other content daily. Or, maybe it is because this is so critical. It takes more then just sending some tweets on Twitter or throwing the Like on a few Facebook pages. A company must go beyond that to succeed and have a presence.
2. Focus on One Simple Application First
Rather then doing what everyone else thinks is cool and loading up your shotgun to let social media bullets fire, FOCUS. Don’t just sit around as an organization and talk about social media. Go do it. Make a Twitter account or Facebook page and start communicating to get your feet wet. You won’t drown. Or will you?
3. Conduct a Listening Audit (Well my take on this)
Listen, listen, and listen. The beauty of social media and coming up with a social strategy is to listen. Find out what your customers want. The research paper recommends identifying key metrics and then presenting those to decision making leaders. This is fine but if you really want to make an impact, go out there and do a web search for your company followed by the word “reviews” (or a variety of other similar words). Then read the negative reviews about your company, product, or service. Then go take this to your decision makers and say “look what our customers are saying about us”. That will have more of an impact.
The research paper is a great read. It really will open your eyes about social media, where your organization stands, and a number of other great points. Check it out and go get your free download. The internet doesn’t need any more laggards, so go make a change.
I pulled the Youtube video about the research piece which can be view below:
Keep up the great work Forester Research!
About the Author
