Communication

The range of results for companies experimenting with new types of communication can be astounding. Some companies, like Kogi BBQ or Ikea, can achieve huge returns from a simple idea; while thousands of other companies invest more time and energy to see 0, or negative, results. This makes it very hard to see where the hype ends and reality begins.

With more traditional marketing channels there are established returns. You know roughly how much traffic you can get from an EDM campaign, or how many people will see your billboard on the side of the highway. With social media, or any other new way of reaching potential customers, your audience estimates might be off by several orders of magnitude. So, how do we engage in social media without gambling?
 
1. Make it an essential part of the business.
One thing we have noticed about social media campaigns is that they work best when they are a part of the product or service they are promoting. Your use of social media should have clear benefits for your customers: whether that is more accessible customer service, access to exclusive deals, or a way to amplify the pre-existing social nature of your service. Treating social media as an add-on, like a radio commercial, misses the point. We look at social media marketing as being as much a part of your business as your telephone or credit card processor.
 
2. Measure everything
It takes a lot of hubris to assume that a viral marketing, or social media, campaign will be successful. That is why use web analytics tools to measure the results precisely and set specific goals for each campaign. If a campaign isn't working, we can change tactics before it's too late.
 
3. Know your audience
Online communities are like any other kind of community, they attract different groups and encourage different types of behaviour. What works on MySpace will likely not transfer well to LinkedIn. It is essential to match the content of your campaign with the use-cases for the service it runs upon. If you need to convey an encyclopedia worth of information, doing it 140 characters at a time on Twitter is not the way.
 
Demographics are also important. We take great care to understand who you are trying to reach and correlate that with the demographics of the available services. Finding the right fit is an essential part of any campaign.
 
4. Be Creative. Have fun.
 The goal of every social media campaign is to create something remarkable. By that, we mean something worth making a remark about to your friends. Successful campaigns spread because they are worth sharing, and attaching your name to. That's why our creative team is involved in every step of the social media process. It is why we hire young, fun, copywriters to give your work the right tone. People want something original and entertaining, and we can help you give that to them.
 
Following these four broad principles makes crafting a successful campaign far easier. We cannot say that they will guarantee success, but they certainly stack the odds in your favour. Social Media represents a massive opportunity to connect with customers, and every morning we wake up to find new ways of helping our clients do just that.