Talk to a normal human and ask them how much of their day-to-day activity is controlled by Twitter, Facebook and other social media tools. They’ll likely back away from you slowly while offering you a nice tinfoil hat to wear.
This response isn’t because you’re crazy – or because anyone who leverages, relies on or works solely with social media is foolish or ill-informed. It’s because a lot of the world still doesn’t pay attention to or understand the ways in which social media tools can be used.
I usually tell a story during my SPJ trainings. It pertains to how everyone should approach Twitter…with no expectations. This is because you can never tell if anyone is listening before you foist a message upon them. The story goes like this…
One day in Boston, a couple friends and I decided to go get coffee after filming an episode of NomX3. We thought that Starbucks made good coffee and agreed to walk to the local ‘Bucks for a cuppa. While walking down the street, I Tweeted out “Going to Starbucks near Borders in Downtown Crossing – join us!” That message got one taker and the gentleman who saw it showed up and we all enjoyed marvelous conversation and beverages.
But the point of this man’s appearance was what he told us when he showed up.
“Guys,” he said. “I almost missed your message. I had Twitter open on my screen and had just gotten back to my desk after lunch when I saw your Tweet. A few seconds later and I would have never known you were here.”
To that point, a few seconds earlier and he wouldn’t have known either. And that proves my point. Which is….
Twitter and many other tools are haphazard in how they engage people. If you are not already having a direct conversation with them, Twitter often fails as an information-sharing tool. You can’t depend on it to share your message with all your followers because at no one time are all of your followers paying attention to your missives. Not everyone gets that.
Not even Leo Laporte. He of the mini media empire. He of the 24-hours-a-day podcast network simply didn’t understand that what he experienced this week was exactly how social media behaves all the time. And the fact that he didn’t know how social media works really scared me.
But then I turned the lens on myself. I have expectations that are also out of whack. I need new tires. I know a guy who runs the Twitter account for Sullivan Tire. I sent them a note either earlier today (August 23) or yesterday (August 22) announcing that I’d be going to their Nashua store on August 24 for new tires and other work. And I asked for their help. Take a look at this picture taken at 10:30PM on August 23.
If you can’t read the tiny type, their most recent tweet was on August 18 – FIVE DAYS AGO!
What that shows all of us is that even companies that believe in social media either fall down on the job or come to the realization that they can’t be online all the time. Sadly, all it takes is the one missed Tweet or the missed engagement to put a chink in the social media trust I had in that brand.
I’m still going to get my tires and my brakes and even my oil changed. But I’ll probably be more hesitant to share Sullivan Tire’s Twitter address now that I know they let days go by without any engagement.
Worse are the companies that get into social media and then back off. These are the firms that went whole hog into Facebook and Twitter and started offering specials and events and then decided that since it wasn’t working they were done conversing with customers. That’s idiocy.
Take Summer Shack for instance. I was excited to go there for dinner tonight (and we did go – and spent $70 by the way). But before we went I hopped over to their Facebook and Twitter pages to see if they could save us a seat at the bar and if they were offering specials.
Not since July 14 (Twitter) and May 21 (Facebook) had they conversed using these media.
So, what’s that mean for social media? What’s that mean for consumers? What’s that mean for businesses? A lot. With the proper education, there are companies and brands that are selling more products and making more money than ever because they are reaching out to consumers using these tools. There are also legions of consumers who have moved away from traditional information sources and now rely on the Web and social media to inform them of deals, events and happenings in their physical community. And these same folks are focused on only buying from companies that have a social media presence.
It’s a new kind of activism I suppose. Where you might have only bought milk from the guy who had the farm in your hometown, you know only buy groceries from the shopkeeper who shares coupons online. And you might only get your tires at the place that would give you 10% off when you Tweeted their name. And you might only eat at the sushi place that shares its specials on Facebook.
I’m not saying this revolution is full-fledged or that it will have a significant impact tomorrow or the next day. But we’re moving to a time when the business that ignores communication channels will get left behind because its competition will understand that online works, and works well.
Social media might be about timing, in fact it often is. But I believe the time for social media is now. I just hope the brands I liked before are listening.
Jeff,
I do the tweeting for our company and your post is an excellent reminder to me of the importance being active and engaged. I always learn “good stuff” from you!
No, Jeff, socialmedia is not a waste of time. Rather, organizations on average don’t understand it. So it is up to people like you to help them understand.
.-= Ari Herzog´s last blog ..Help Me Find My Next Job =-.
Excellent post as always, Jeff. A few comments:
1) It’s been clear for a while now that nearly all active folks on Twitter use what I call “the dip model” as opposed to “the inbox model” to read Twitter. Thus the point that it’s all about timing is correct, though a bit misleading. There is absolutely a randomness to it – but a brand can’t go crazy over that, as there’s no way to ever know the “right” timing of something. Serendipity will always play a role, it’s true in life and reflects into social media channels.
2) Managing social media channels properly for a brand (i.e. engaging via Twitter, Facebook, etc) is very time-consuming. Nearly all businesses, small and large, assign these responsibilities as extra side tasks for people in marketing roles who have otherwise very busy jobs. This is unfortunately a reality of today’s economy…
3) For Summer Shack (and for many other restaurants in Boston on Twitter that I’ve seen), I’m willing to bet they put some effort in to social media (weeks, maybe even months), but saw little or no payback from these efforts. Perhaps their customers or potential customers weren’t using social media? Perhaps they struggled with finding the right communities to engage with? Perhaps these channels just weren’t as productive as other traditional channels such as Google adwords, TV, etc? Whatever the case, I am definitely seeing more of this, and no longer than surprised when I see it.
.-= Eric Andersen´s last blog ..eric-andersen- @juliacantor and you know I already brought that up with @dens - =-.
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Depending upon your brand, products and services – any particular social platform may not work for you. Case in point – Hubspot knows this terrritory well, and they state that Twitter converts very poorly for them, while LinkedIn does very well.
For the record – Called the manager at the Nashua Sullivan Tire this morning (August 24) and made sure they knew Jeff was coming in and to give a Twitter discount. We have definitely NOT backed off of Twitter or our other Social Media channels, but it does get difficult to monitor each and every day. We do our best.
Jeff – Thank you for the business as always!
Mark Gillard
Sullivan Tire Company
Eric Anderson,
That was a great post. I especially agree with point 2. Well said.
Mark
Great post Jeff – but what’s with the confusing ‘not sure i want to give out their twitter address, here’s their twitter address’ — is that supposed to be ironic or something?
also, btw, did you go to high school in NH?
I’m increasingly aware that the timing of random social media engagement is just that…random. It’s hard to guage the reaction to broad ideas or concepts you tweet when you’re not sure exactly how many folks you’re really reaching at any given moment. But, that changes when you choose to interact directly with a brand. Tweeting to a brand’s account should always be the start of some form of conversation, and it always amazes me (though still doesn’t surprise me) when a brand I tweet doesn’t respond. Why are they there? You could argue they tried the channel and found it delivered less than their expectation, but I’d say that’s a poor excuse. For one, it may not have succeeded because the brand didn’t put enough time or energy, or a targeted strategy, behind the effort. There are many reasons for an initial lackluster experience, too many to get into here. But, even if those were valid, what could possibly be the excuse for not engaging when a customer (or potential customer) chooses to use that very same channel to proactively reach out to you? Would you ignore a customer who walked through your store’s door? Would you not answer the phone when a customer calls? Do you send a customer away who stands at your register with their wallet open? No. So, why would you ignore a tweet? Not only did you lose an opportunity to make a new customer relationship, but you may have done some damage by leaving a bad taste in the mouth of a tweeter with access to hundreds or thousands of eyes and ears.
So, yes, I engage with brands (that exchange with CarissaO and SullivanTire above is me), partly because I’m hoping they’ll talk back. And I’m hoping we’ll both gain something from the experience.
And for the record, Mark, I didn’t get my Twitter discount this time around, but I have before and I’m sure I will next time.
This is a great post! Twitter is a strange combination of scheduled posts, randomness and direct conversations, which is probably what frustrates companies who do not see immediate payoff. They don’t have the time, energy or, in some cases, the know-how to find their community and stay actively engaged with it (which Eric Anderson highlighted as well- great comments, by the way)
What I think is an important take-away here is that these channels are social and unpredictable but should be approached with a near-term and a long-term value expectation (http://bit.ly/9x0inJ). Immediately, tweets can provide you with direct conversation, the possibility that someone will follow a link you’ve posted, etc. Long term, you can establish a reputation, whether that be as a strong social media customer service brand or as the go-to Twitter for industry news.
“Worse are the companies that get into social media and then back off.” – dead on: nothing depletes credibility like a ghost site a company has given up on!
Keeping in mind the balance of Eric’s “dip model” which is an accurate portrayal of how people use social media, and the benefits long-term of a continuous presence is what takes the frustration out of the randomness!
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Sites like Facebook and Twitter are very poor channels to discuss information. I always move customers who contact me through these sites to better tools like email or phone. Social tools are nice for short announcements or questions. But to upgrade to worthwhile conversation, email and the telephone are still best.
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