You may be all wrong about Social

Most businesses I know usually go into social media because they feel they have to. Phrases like "all my competitors do it" or "we will be left behind" are common grounds for developing some kind of social activity. Nevertheless, not many companies actually spend some time to think about it before they follow the trend.

Social is as any other traditional media channel included in the marketing mix (TV, Events, Newspapers, etc) but it requires a lot more work than putting an ad in any of the other channels. You really need to think through how you will deploy your social strategy.
Here's a few thoughts that I've learned throughout the past few years.

1. Establish clear objectives. What do you really want from Social? If you want traffic to your website then track it properly. Make sure you set targets and you work to achieve them. If you want brand awareness, make sure you have a way of measuring it (this can be tracked by online brand research, or establishing share of voice, etc.). If you you what you want, it's easier to decide what to do. And please... don't just do it because your competitor is!
2. Choose the right channel(s). As in my previous post, where I spoke about the need to understand your customer and see what he does/consumes in the digital world (see my article 'Digital is not a strategy'), you really need to find out which social channels is your target audience using and for what. We may all be on Facebook, but do you really want to buy industrial machinery supplies when you're reading your timeline? It's all about choice.
3. Choose one or two main channels. Effective social media is a full time job, so don't try to do it all. You don't have to be in all the channels because your competitors are. You have to be in the right channels for your target audience, your objectives and your plan. This will help you focus money and energy into excelling in that channel and achieving great results.
4. Make it someone's job. To think that social media can just be a side activity for someone else's job is to underestimate the real value of social media for your business. Sometimes you can find in your own company someone that actually spends all their time in their personal social media and knows the business. This may be a good fit if you find them some training and encourage them. There is no one better than a 'Social native' to manage your social media. Otherwise, try to find someone young (recent grads for example) which grew up in the social era and understand it well.
5. Get some expert advise. You may think you can do it all, but the truth about social is that it is a moving beast that no one has been able to control. It is growing, changing and adapting all the time. And this is hard to keep up as a business. That's where the specialized agencies come in. Their job is social, and they stay on top of it because that's their business (not yours). So stop thinking you can do it all and get some expert advise that will help you make choices. Nevertheless, be wary of many 'experts' who will try to sell you easy fixes. There's nothing easy or immediate on it. It is hard work!
6. Social is not free. The myth that Social is free is not true. Real Social requires investment, not only in terms of advertising to maximize the results and reach that you have, but also in terms of producing social assets that can help you deliver the message across the platforms that you have chosen. This includes videos, infographics, imagery, multimedia, apps, etc. Also, based on the amount of people and posts going on in each social platform, it is quite unlikely a large proportion of your acquired audience gets to see whatever you post. This is why all of them have created "Promoted" content. This now exists in almost all major social platforms and can be targeted at the people you are really interested in seeing the message.
7. Measuring is the key. With so much going on in Social, it is good to be obsessed about measuring. Try different kinds of messages, different types of assets, different ways of saying the same thing (ie. ask a question or make an affirmation). Whatever you decide, each platform has a metrics system that can help you identify what works well and what doesn't. Also, it helps you see who is following you and contrasting this with your target audience. You don't want to end up targeting the wrong audience!

Feel free to add yours or leave a comment. Remember, it's all about sharing!