Here is the modern version of advertising’s dirty little secret: Social media marketing is not for you. OK, that is not entirely accurate – let me temper the statement a bit: Most likely, social media marketing is not for you. It is time to put the brakes on the rush to go social – at least it should be, but with the projections of companies increasing their their investment in social media marketing by 34% over the next five years, such a pause for a reality break is not likely.

When you combine business leaders’ fear of falling behind their competitors along with a void of knowledge about the cultural revolution known as the social web, you find a goldmine for shady communication firms. It’s a simple equation: Smoke + Mirrors + Desperation = Big $$$ every time. “Anyone can do this. Social is cheap. Social is easy. You must go social!”, they say, but those are all lies told by lying liars who lie. There is significant cost and labor involved in effectively engaging the social web. My message to clients is that they need to know the truth about what will be required of them if they want to market via social media. These are the questions that I ask clients when they decide that it’s time to get engaged:

• “Can You Be Honest?” – Learn everything that you can about the reputation of your business and brand. Your brand is not defined by what you say; it is defined by your actions, and what your customers say about you. Customers are not a target audience – they are now participants in your marketing. Speak with a voice that is consistent with your brand, and let your personality flow through.
• “Can You Be Relevant?” – Treat people with respect. The social web is not for public relations, it is for personal relations. Consumers now choose the marketing to which they want to be exposed. Do not try to force your message into a conversation where it does not fit. Look for opportunities and join the conversation when opportunities naturally arise.
• “Can You Be Amazing?” – Create amazing goods and services. If your are not special, you will be invisible on the social web. Have a voice people value, and give people a reason to want to know what you have to say.
• “Can You Be Generous?” – Focus on the needs of your customers and the community that surrounds your brand. Share insight, information and benefits.

If they are dealt with seriously, these questions do not produce answers that fall into the categories of easy, cheap or made for everyone. If they are skipped over, organizations can cause major damage to their reputations. If a client can answer the questions well, that tells me that they are one of the few that do not fall into the most likely category, and that this really is for them.

Then I show them our pretty presentation:

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