How do you commune with your community?

Recently, a client asked how we develop our social media marketing strategies. Our approach is based upon our Marketing Transformations Process, a 10-step program that results in an accelerated marketing plan. Today, I’m sharing an outline with you to get your input. While this is more of a checkpoint list to get started, I’m thinking about how the layers can morph into real communities.

Social Media Marketing Strategy 20 Step Strategic Marketing Approach

1. Capture the current conversation: tracking trends, Google, twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook

2. Assess current communications – brand, people and community to inventory what’s existing and can be repurposed via social media

3. Clarify communications, public relations, marketing and sales goals – what do you want to achieve?

4. Identify target talkers and existing communities on established sites – where do your people congregate?

5. Evaluate online social media position – where are you on your future community’s radar?

6. Determine your value – what will you bring to the conversation? How do you fit into your community’s life – information aggregator, problem solver, leader of achievers?

7. How will you contribute? Set interactive communication goals for each audience [we will watch for ________, respond to ___________ and inform about ___________]

8. Select keywords and craft key messages, based on the conversation that’s already going on out there and match them up with your company’s value

9. Design an interactive communications planner by channel, community, frequency, priorities and responsibility

10. Ensure that someone will [always, always, always, always, always] be watching and responsive

11. Automate, without being robotic if possible, across multiple channels

12. Produce and share engaging content that may include: success stories, case studies, white papers, videos, podcasts, surveys

13. Start a group on social media sites that leads into a membership site that gets you closer to your people

14. Be the leader that people want to follow because you are important to them

15. Build relationships with champions, ambassadors and evangelists

16. Be where they can find you – consider advertising on key sites or sponsoring events

17. Measure results and track stats that help you modify your marketing, sales and communications systems

18. Re-Align communications accordingly

19. Shift with your people

20. This point left intentionally open for reader input . . . 

What do you think? Does this draft work? What do you like? What would you change? Thanks for sharing your thoughts on our work in progress. And, if you need help with your social media marketing strategies just call 630.207,7530.

Ever go to an event, have a fantastic time and wish you could keep the experience going?

When you move the experience online, the event takes on an afterlife of its own.

Community PR Strategies: 9 Ways to Keep Events Alive Online – Even After They’re Over 

1. Assign a twitter hashtag for the event.

A “hashtag” is a simply a word or group of words with the # character in front of them in any twitter update. Assigning this code organizes conversations and collects all of the updates in a twitter search.

2. Tell people what tags to use.

Sites like technorati, a blog search engine, and flickr, a photo-sharing site, give you a place to “tag” your content. Suggested tags: location, group name, your name, subject and keyword terms.

3. Take pictures – lots of pictures and post them right away.

This is one time when it’s okay to be a poser, both in pictures and as a photographer. Just make sure that people are okay with being photographed, they like the pictures you take and you let them know where you’ll post them online. If someone objects, be respectful and don’t include them in any group shots. Then, post your pictures on Facebook and tag people. No matter how small your event is, ask someone to take pictures if you don’t want to do it yourself.

This image is from Social Media Club Chicago’s “Social Media Meets Chicago Media” event.

4. Search for your tags and connect with the people how posted the information.

For an example, go to flickr and search for smccchicago. You’ll see a few photographers. Find someone’s work you like? Be sure to contact them and let them know you’d like them to snap your next event.

5. Turn on two video cameras: one live and one recording.

If you’re broadcasting live your camera may not be able to record so set up another one to capture and store the video. A service like ustream lets you set up your own channel and it stores your shows. If you don’t want to broadcast the event live, consider sharing a best of highlights short video or interview people on their way out about the event. You could almost post a mini-series of shows from different perspectives. Here’s the video from last night’s Social Media Club Chicago chapter’s meeting. It was really noisy and hot at 312 Chicago, but you’d never know it from watching the video.

Live Video streaming by Ustream

6. Give people a place to get back together online.

A dedicated event URL can be redirected to a Facebook site, a blog post or become a sort of landing page that consolidates all of the links, both in and out.

7. Recognize ambassadors.

When you see people raving about how much fun they had online, gather their comments and thank them, either individually or collectively on your event site. This works really well for repeat events.

8. Track the talkers.

Listen into the conversation with Google alerts, twitter search [see #1] and check out these tools for reputation management.

9. Be a news breaker.

Send out a press release that announces your success, findings or news that came about as a result of your event. Include a link to your press page that includes event audio, video and photographs.

What keeps an event alive for you?