I’ve been doing social media strategy for the past two years but a recent project gave me some new and valuable perspective on how strategic plans should happen.
The biggest lesson is how tightly-integrated social media strategy needs to be with a company’s communications, sales and marketing activities. It seems like a straightforward/no-brainer approach but one of the dangers of creating social media strategy is treating it as a standalone activity as opposed to something that is baked into a company’s operations and corporate DNA.
Many social media strategic plans pay far more attention to tactics and how different services and tools can be operated on a daily basis. I think a this focus happens because tactics are difficult to implement compared with strategy. Tactics involve time, grunt work and a savviness about the tools and best practices. On the other hand, strategy is more subtle and complex because it’s not a one-size-fits-all solution in which you simply do A, B and C on a regular basis.
When I completed the recent social media strategic report, it came after spending a lot of time with the client and its employees – both senior executives and marketing and communications people. In the process, I learned a lot about the organization, how it operates, the culture, the politics and the approach to marketing and sales. Some of the questions I asked about social media prompted the company to take a look at its overall approach to marketing and sales. This made my assignment more complicated but it was a positive thing for the company.
With in-depth knowledge the company, its people and operations, my report featured not only strategic recommendations but valuable nuances and details that could only have happened by investing a lot of time with people. At the end of the day, the strategic report was more comprehensive, more valuable and, frankly, a better piece or work.
Here are some of the key lessons that I picked up:
1. Learn as much as you can about a client’s operations, culture and current approach to communications, sales and marketing. It can mean spending a good chunk of time in meetings but it’s a good investment, and the only way to really learn what the client needs.
2. Don’t be afraid to ask a company why they want to do social media and what they hope to get out of it. They sound like simple questions but the answers are often more interesting and revealing that you’d expect. You may discover that parts of the organization are keen about social media while other parts are less keen or reluctant to jump on the bandwagon. Learning more about both groups can generate great insight to create a plan that takes into account everyone’s needs and motivations.
3. Focus on strategy first; then look at tactics. The strategic goals and considerations have a major impact on tactics so knowing why a company wants to do social media, what they want to get out of it and how they are going to measure success will provide lots of directions for tactical implementation.
4. Be prepared to offer a short-term plan and a long-term roadmap. In many cases, companies will discover that social media is more complex and involves more resources (time and people) than they expected. Rather than scare them away by delivering a plan that involves a lot of work, it’s easier for them to digest a plan that involves different phases.
For more on how to create a social media strategy, check out Pam Moore’s recent post.
