Why Social?
Wednesday, February 23
It's easy to sell people on SEO or PPC, you know? It's hard to argue with the concrete numbers and the real results that a robust SEM program provides. But social--social is weird. It's hard to quantify, constantly in flux, and often completely by the seat of one's pants. Some clients get it off the bat, but sometimes it's hard to explain the value of a well-run, optimized, analytic social media program (the sort of thing that we provide). "Why should I pay you to get me friends on Facebook or write me a blog," they ask, "when friendship and articles don't equal sales."
And we understand...it's hard to see what social media can do for your business on the other side of it. But our social media guru Lindsay has a saying she likes to use:
The ROI of social media is that your business will still be around in five years.
Remember back in the nineties, when a few stickler businesses tried to make a go of it without websites? How many of them are still around (or, at least, are still around without websites)? Much like the website, a social media presence has become part of the cost of doing business. And much like a website, it's very possible, even easy, to do it wrong. Social media is a conversation, and like any conversation, if you're too pushy, too self-interested, or just too plain obnoxious, you'll turn people off. When it's an individual, it's unfortunate. When it's a business, it can be devastating.
We don't necessarily think social media is right for everyone. Right now, super-niche, business-to-business companies can easily get by without a presence on the major social media platforms (though pretty much everyone benefits from a well-thought on-site blog), and we don't like to sell our clients on anything they don't truly need. But if you find yourself asking "why social?" start thinking "why not?"
Because you need to be part of the conversation.
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