The most frequent question I get asked about social media is, Why do I need to use it? It’s not surprising, because social media, for all intents and purposes is fairly new and hasn’t yet been tested fully. In a few years, people likely won’t ask this question, because they won’t need to. They’ll know what the benefit of social media is. It’s like when people used to ask why you needed a blog. Now almost no one asks the question, because blogs have become so prevalent that they’re part of the background noise.
Social media eventually will reach that point, but until it does, it is important to explain why it needs to be used, instead of assuming that everyone will see the benefit. Frequently what I hear is that the apparent benefit isn’t that evident to many people and they feel frustrated and overwhelmed by the idea of adding it to their business model.
A flippant answer isn’t enough and can actually be useless. Asking someone what the ROI of using a phone is in response to being asked what the ROI of using social media is, ignores the fact that the person may not know enough about social media or be that comfortable with the technology. In fact such a response is bound to come across as condescending, while also implying that the person is stupid for not recognizing the benefit of social media. Not exactly the way to treat other people, especially if those same people could end up as clients of yours.
Social media needs to be explained, because it is new, it is intimidating for some, and because in the end, however useful it may seem to be, it can also be time consuming and when you already feel stressed for time, you don’t necessarily want to give away anymore of your time than you already need to.
It’s true that social media can impact your marketing and help your business grow, but first it needs to be explained. The how and the what can follow, once you explain the why satisfactorily enough to demonstrate the value underlying social media.
What do you think needs to be explained in social media in particular?
