5 Ways to Market with Social Media Workshop

Mixing marketing with social media can be time-consuming, confusing and not very effective – unless you have an organized system that mixes search, marketing, social, community and planning. That’s why I developed the W-I-R-E-D system [(c) 2009-2011 Barbara Rozgonyi] for my clients, students and audiences. As I refine the next version, I’m ready to share it and get your feedback. Have you seen me present this program?

WORDS
Let’s start at the very beginning. Communication is based on language.

So is search. Sure, pictures are worth thousands of words – and that’s why I take thousands of pictures every year. But, words are how we convey messages and as importantly, how people find what they’re looking for online. Try searching by drawing a picture. You can’t.

What kinds of words do you need? Check out Google’s keyword suggestion tool for ideas.

INTENTIONS

One of the biggest mistakes most companies and organizations make is not being intentional enough about what they’re doing.

It’s business as usual, what ever usual is. What if the approach became business as unusual?

Wouldn’t that get more attention and better results?

Borrowing a tip from journalism classes, think about who, what, when, where, how and most importantly, why you’re in business or why you’re working where you are. If you don’t know why you’re doing what you’re doing – and for money or to fund programs is not a good answer – then maybe it’s time to be the why you want to be.

Then, how can you stretch your business out to reach your most profitable customer segments?

ROUTES

Communications, like water, flows through many channels.

The internet is a sea, twitter is a stream, Facebook is a great lake and LinkedIn is a well-stocked pond.

Internal communications are like backyard pools and PR rains stories.

One of the biggest objections we hear about new marketing is the sense of overwhelm and confusion that all of these options cause for not only the companies, but their people and customers. It’s true, there is too much information out there.

So, how do you keep track of it and stand out so people can find you? Social media is resolving this problem with lists, groups and feeds. Set up yours so you can find your people and they can find you.

EXPERIENCES

Stories are everywhere: do you tell yours?

Asking people to tell their stories, both good and bad, gives you insights into your agency you can’t get anywhere else. Capturing and conveying emotions in your marketing brings people closer. And, how people feel when they interact with your organization everywhere builds your brand. Inviting people to share their stories improves relationships and gets others talking and sharing your good news.

DESIGN

Now that you have your words, intentions, routes, experiences, you’re ready to design your 3D wired branding approach.

Think of your organization as a publisher. What news, special features and community events do you need to let people know about?

Plan your communications around the W-I-R-E-D approach, align your communications with your business goals, choose a few metrics to measure and get started. You’re on your way to successful social media marketing that conserves budgets, saves time and nurtures your in real life and online communities.

Image: [c] 2010 Barbara Rozgonyi from the Paris in English collection

Talk to Us – Which component – words, intentions, routes, experiences or design – do you find most important?