I’m coming to you this week from the Women’s Business Symposium, sponsored by Comerica Bank, and benefiting Girls, Inc. Last week, I held the event that I’ve been talking about for months, the Social Tools Summit. It really got me thinking about why it’s important to be unique in the world of business and social media. When I was planning the summit, I got lots of social media advice from my peers about how I should run the event. Yes, it’s good to listen to advice from peers and role models, but it’s also good to know that you don’t always have to take that advice. And, in fact, there’s a lot of social media advice that you should ignore.
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In This Episode:
- Sometimes it’s best to ignore everyone else’s advice
- If you’re doing what someone else has already done, you’re not going to be successful
- You have to do what is right for you as a business
- When someone says “You should do this” or “You should do that,” know that you don’t have to do anything
- You have to be real to what your business is, what your resources are, and what your strategy is
- There’s no need to rush in, you can start slowly
- Use social media as a complementary vehicle
- If your product or service isn’t successful without social media, it probably won’t be successful with it
- Social helps amplify and complement what you’re doing
- I’ve always been a big fan of a data driven approach
- Those that have more business experience will tend to leverage social media as a tool more effectively, which flips the logic of having young interns who know social media on its head
- Don’t try to copy what others have done! Your strategy should be unique to you
- To be successful, you need to do something different
- There is a case for role models, but whatever you do has to be true to your brand
- I want you to become a leader, I want your company to be the one that rises to the top
- My advice to you today is to lead through innovation
- If there’s something you want to do, but you don’t know how or don’t know if the tool exists, reach out to tool vendors – they’re a great resource with a lot of experience
- Leverage the tools to help you do what you want to do, but do it more effectively
- My goal with the Social Media Center of Excellence is to provide something unique, something that hasn’t been done before, and to provide it the way I think is best, no matter what other people are telling me to do
- You have to start from scratch, forget about the legacy of content and tactics
- Keep your eyes peeled for the Social Media Center of Excellence as well as the next iteration of the Social Tools Summit in the fall in San Francisco
Resources & Links:
- Start getting social by building a comprehensive social media strategy
- Now that I told you not to listen to others’ advice, here’s some advice on making your social content worth sharing
- As a social business, it’s important to be on the most popular platforms, so create an Instagram strategy that works for you
- While you’re building a social strategy, it’s important to know there are tools to help you, like Likeable Hub
- If you think your social media strategy needs a reboot, start by asking yourself these 10 questions
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Stephen Lahey says
Know your business, your strategy, do what’s right and lead. Love it, Neal!
Vatsala Shukla says
If I were to follow every bit and piece of social media advice that I read, I’d be doing nothing else and yet get no results because the posts talk of times that mean being up at 4 am in the morning (I can always schedule) but may yet not reach the right audience, Neal. Love the fact that you are encouraging us to lead and yes, when I do things differently without social expertise, I seem to do better!
Cynthia Collins says
I fully support your position regarding customizing social media solutions based on your brand needs. Do NOT blindly follow trends and advice without carefully assessing how it fits your company.
But starting “tabula rasa” can be a little time-consuming (and confusing + intimidating for new biz owners). I personally think that you treat social media advice as you would an eat-all-you-can buffet fare. You don’t devour everything in sight, but you’d carefully pick a bit of everything that is agreeable to your palate.
Neal Schaffer says
That’s a great way of putting it Cynthia!
Lisa (@Lisapatb) says
Neal, great advice. Not all advice is one size fits all. Being unique and focusing on your goals is key to any success including social media.
It’s so hard via social to really compare apples to apples. Each niche has their own social channels and tactics. Add individuality and no two are the same.
Neal Schaffer says
Indeed Lisa – thanks for your vote of support!