Organize Your Social Media Thinking
Social media is rapidly changing how people communicate, collaborate and associate.
Popular sites like Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn, provide a great way for individuals and businesses to stay connected with friends, colleagues and customers.
There are also countless blogs, wikis and the other sites designed to empower people to share, publish and comment on information.
Social media has become a highly effective tool for increasing brand recognition and awareness for people, products and services.
It allows us to strengthen relationships, make proposals and pitches, and collect information about our customers and clients.
For business professionals with an online presence, it's becoming increasingly necessary to join in on the conversation.
While social media tools are powerful and pervasive, leveraging their power effectively and efficiently can be a challenge.
With so many sites, technologies and tools to choose from, it is easy to find yourself caught between "I don't have time for it" and "I can't stay away from it".
As with any business or marketing tool, it's important to have a strategy that works for you.
Organizing your social media thinking to include purpose, objectives, priorities and tactics will help you make the most of your time and energy.
1) Purpose: Your effectiveness with social media will depend on how well you define your "who", "why" and "what".
Who is your target audience? Are they colleagues, associates, clients, customers? Why do you want to engage with them? What do you want to communicate or accomplish? 2) Objectives: Think about and write down the specific objectives and goals you want to achieve.
Are you looking to strengthen existing relationships or build new ones? Do you want to market your services or share information? Would you like to gather information about your customer base or share information with them? Set goals which are measurable so you have a clear way of knowing when you've achieved them.
3) Priorities: Your social media strategy should involve managing and prioritizing the activity which supports your objectives so you don't become overwhelmed or consumed by the upkeep.
Remember, just because you can do something doesn't mean you should.
Be smart and intentional with your planning.
4) Tactics: Take the time to investigate the best social media tools to accomplish your purpose and objectives.
Begin with two or three of the most appropriate tools and build from there.
Determine the amount of time you can realistically invest to support your objectives.
Decide how you will manage your time and create boundaries to keep you focused.
Both consistency and flexibility are needed to maintain a solid social media strategy.
Once established, the purpose and goals will remain fairly consistent.
However, priorities and tactics will change over time.
Technology is constantly evolving.
Know what's working and what isn't and adapt when necessary.
Popular sites like Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn, provide a great way for individuals and businesses to stay connected with friends, colleagues and customers.
There are also countless blogs, wikis and the other sites designed to empower people to share, publish and comment on information.
Social media has become a highly effective tool for increasing brand recognition and awareness for people, products and services.
It allows us to strengthen relationships, make proposals and pitches, and collect information about our customers and clients.
For business professionals with an online presence, it's becoming increasingly necessary to join in on the conversation.
While social media tools are powerful and pervasive, leveraging their power effectively and efficiently can be a challenge.
With so many sites, technologies and tools to choose from, it is easy to find yourself caught between "I don't have time for it" and "I can't stay away from it".
As with any business or marketing tool, it's important to have a strategy that works for you.
Organizing your social media thinking to include purpose, objectives, priorities and tactics will help you make the most of your time and energy.
1) Purpose: Your effectiveness with social media will depend on how well you define your "who", "why" and "what".
Who is your target audience? Are they colleagues, associates, clients, customers? Why do you want to engage with them? What do you want to communicate or accomplish? 2) Objectives: Think about and write down the specific objectives and goals you want to achieve.
Are you looking to strengthen existing relationships or build new ones? Do you want to market your services or share information? Would you like to gather information about your customer base or share information with them? Set goals which are measurable so you have a clear way of knowing when you've achieved them.
3) Priorities: Your social media strategy should involve managing and prioritizing the activity which supports your objectives so you don't become overwhelmed or consumed by the upkeep.
Remember, just because you can do something doesn't mean you should.
Be smart and intentional with your planning.
4) Tactics: Take the time to investigate the best social media tools to accomplish your purpose and objectives.
Begin with two or three of the most appropriate tools and build from there.
Determine the amount of time you can realistically invest to support your objectives.
Decide how you will manage your time and create boundaries to keep you focused.
Both consistency and flexibility are needed to maintain a solid social media strategy.
Once established, the purpose and goals will remain fairly consistent.
However, priorities and tactics will change over time.
Technology is constantly evolving.
Know what's working and what isn't and adapt when necessary.
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