3 Goals of Social Media for Companies

Tonight I am speaking on a panel at the first ever Boston meeting of the Social Media Club. I’m definitely excited as there seem to be some good panelists who will be joining me. If you aren’t already coming to this meeting and are interested in how Social Media plays into marketing and PR of your company, make sure to sign up for the next one.

I have been given the topic of how to integrate social media into product offerings. Obviously this is a huge subject, and one that can’t be completely covered in the limited time I will have. But I will be stressing three purposes that companies should keep in mind when exploring the possibilities of Social Media.

Expressing Personality

Social Media is an incredible way for a company (or person) to express personality. By having personality people can more easily identify with you or your company. There are countless corporate blogs out there, but the ones that are most successful in gaining an audience are those that bleed personality and creativity. A blog, vlog, or podcast are very similar to real life conversations. How much do you think someone will want to talk to you if you are dry and straight forward all the time?

Engaging Your Audience

In terms of marketing and PR, Social Media is a pioneer at engaging the target audience. Regular advertising (tv ads, newspaper ads, banner ads) and PR (Press Releases, Articles, etc) don’t engage an audience. Social Media should be used to reach out and encourage active communication between the company and the target audience. For example, blogs and comments, sponsored groups in social networks, etc.

Smart Exposure

With any form of marketing and PR, exposure is always the goal. But with Social Media there should be an emphasis on smart exposure. By smart exposure I don’t mean mass exposure, because exposure to a niche audience can be just as, if not more valuable. Social Media does a much better job of allowing a company to target a niche audience with valuable content. If the goal is to reach the largest amount of people in a short period of time, Social Media is not the answer.
[tags]Social Networking, Social Network, Social Media, Social Media Club, Brian Balfour[/tags]