In my last blog post, I talked about how many social media efforts fail to bring profit because the small business does not ask the customers how and where they want to engage with their brand. Does your customer want to be a part of a community? A Facebook page? A blog? A Twitter follower? What is in it for them to engage with your business on one of those platforms?
Check out this blog post from Josh Bernoff of Forrester Research that I ran across this morning. It suggests your social marketing strategy must consider whether your brand is a “boring†brand or aâ€talkable†brand. Combining your knowledge of the type of brand along with the customer’s engagement requirements leads you to a better social media mix for your business.
For those who are developing a social marketing strategy for your small business, I highly recommend you subscribe to Josh’s blog. I further recommend you read “groundswell†by Josh Bernoff and Charlene Li. The book gives a great overview of social technologies, statistics, and case studies of companies who are winning the social marketing game. The case studies are primarily for larger companies and brands but you are certain to find great inspiration for implementing social marketing programs in your business.