Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, Pinterest, Digg, StumbleUpon, Google Plus etc are the the better known bigwigs of the social web and undoubtedly the first places that come to mind when you think about developing a marketing strategy online. Going purely by the volume of traffic they have, it seems obvious to spend more time and energy developing activity and outreach on the platforms that have the most traffic and give less priority to the ones that have comparatively less traffic. It seems like common sense that if you have target market of 20 million on Facebook, that’s where you should spend most of your online marketing focus and yet this isn’t always the case.

When it comes to online marketing and engaging people through different web channels there’s a lot more than quantity of traffic that comes into play. The same set of social sites and using the same outreach formula may not always work since every brand, business, target market and web user base has it’s own characteristics. Facebook may bring in 1000 fans and not a single conversion over 10 months. A small niche community site or online group on the other hand may bring in just 50 visitors in the same time frame resulting in 10 conversions. There’s marketing potential far beyond Facebook and the obvious social media super sites.

Just to be clear, we’re not saying don’t spend time on Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin and so on. We’re saying don’t restrict your outreach efforts to only these sites and look beyond the obvious choices because you never know what works best for your inbound marketing till you experiment.

Let me illustrate:

A new picturesque family getaway hill resort was looking to  increase their online visibility to drive more bookings and eventually to rely on inbound traffic and conversions to keep the occupancy charts filled. They managed to create a Facebook page and spread the word through family and friends touching 400 fans in their first 3 months however, there were only about 3 bookings that could be attributed to their activity on the Facebook page. Some weeks later, one of their customers submitted a review of the resort on TripAdvisor.com and resulted in someone else discovering the resort as a result of this review. From that instance, the resort decided to explicitly request their customers to add a review on TripAdvisor.com if they enjoyed their stay and customers did. The TripAdvisor reviews showed up well in Google search results for ‘places to stay’ related to the region and the bookings clearly saw an increase. Learning from the experience, the resort spent more time submitting their details to similar hotel directory sites, travel review communities and listings stepping up their activity on these sites and although the traffic increase was not huge, the conversion rate was growing and inbound bookings went up significantly as more people discovered the resort through their searches for staying options in the area.

A children’s clothing and apparel brand setup an online store in an attempt to break out of it’s local operations and look global for customers. They spent significant resources working on on-site SEO and creating accounts on Twitter, Facebook as well as setting up a blog which they could use to showcase their style tips and advice. They soon learned this is a very crowded and competitive space online and got frustrated not being noticed and getting the attention they thought they would. Their break came from getting actively involved on family and kids fashion sites like mykidsfashion.com, stylecaster.com, cafemom.com and others. People seemed to respond better to photos of their kids wear and gradually the purchases started happening. They were finally connecting to the right audiences in the right places and developing an influence there.

There’s a wide web of places online beyond the popular choices to develop an influence and reach out to the right people online and sometimes all it takes is a little will and effort to experiment and find out what works best for you. It can be a long process but well worth it in the end when you find the right mix and focus efforts on the ones that yield results.

A financial company had this big event planned which would bring down some heavy weight global investors as well as some key government leaders two months away. They planned to market this event in a big way to attract more attendees from the private sector and decided to use an integrated multi-pronged plan with email campaigns, a single newspaper advertisement, call in known press contacts for some offline PR and wait for it….social media marketing!

Now this could have been a great strategy to reach out and spread the word about the event inviting people to come attend but the catch was they didn’t have a social media presence or online engagement they could tap into so they decided to engage a social media and online marketing company that could help them create a web presence for them since they would be busy with preparations for the event. Now deciding to create a social media and web presence for your company IS a great idea. What was wrong with this particular case is the plan was to spend exactly 2 months engaging on social media, setting up a blog, a Facebook account, connecting with groups on Linkedin, Twitter…..and then STOP until much later in the year when another similar event was planned.

Social media can not be compared directly to television advertising or other offline media. It doesn’t work on the principle of flash a message to a known sized audience and pay accordingly (Online advertising does that but not social media engagement). It’s about constant interaction, communication and building that community / audience and that’s not a quick ‘put together’ and sell ….it’s build and nurture over a long time. Blog audiences are not built in a month or two, neither are Facebook groups or social influence on other sites. Not to say they can’t be done with a large budget and paid online advertising but you get what you pay for and to grow a social presence online organically and build lasting relationships with people online, that’s not a viable strategy.

Think of it as a conversation (which is exactly what it is). When you stop activity, stop publishing, stop updating, stop answering, replying or communicating online…..that is the end of the conversation. The other’s in the room with you have little option but to leave the room or move on. You can’t build a relationship based on a single conversation in any social situation online or not. Stronger relationships are built when you keep in touch, keep communicating and stay in contact. Social media and online presence is great for marketing – but it can’t be a seasonal strategy which can be turned on an off.

This company is not alone in their resolve to use social media and invest in online activity for a few days of the year only when it’s strategically needed for their marketing. There are sporting clubs and franchises that engage a million strong fan base for a few months of the year when the season is on and then cut off all activity when its done. Sure season is when the interest peaks and the sponsorship revenues come pouring in for the teams and clubs but what about the fans? Do they stop being fans once the season is over? Do they stop reading about their favorite players or not want to hear what is happening off the field through the year till the next season? There are businesses from every field occasionally dabbling in social media and then letting the activity slide like it’s a seasonal campaign but there’s no such thing when it comes to social media.

There’s always advertising to turn to for instant demand generation but inbound marketing and social media marketing is not about that and doesn’t fit there as a solution to short term demand increases. It’s about relationships and like any dating guru (or social media influencer) will tell you…you need to invest time and effort in any relationship and work at it constantly to strengthen it.

While we see some awesome and innovative things many companies are doing to engage with people on the web and “be social”, few still struggle with the idea of “being personable” rather than “sounding professional”. When I say “sounding professional” here I’m not referring to the true sense of the word but rather the ‘cliche’ of having to use politically correct and complicated business terms or corporate talk while interacting with online audiences. It may have been the proper way to conduct business in the formal corporate world where embossed letterheads on bonded paper were the medium of of choice but in the Social Media world…people prefer simplicity. Also, in the social media world – the people hold the power and decide what they prefer and who they like.

I remember the founder of IMG the late Mark McCormack and sales thought leader saying “All things being equal, a person would rather buy from someone they like versus someone they are indifferent to” so being like-able is a key factor in any buying process.

Nowhere is this more true than on the social web. Most people on the web have low tolerance (or attention spans) for complicated explanations, corporate jargon, advanced technical terms, business vocabulary or language they have to read over a number of times to make sense of. Social media loves and respects simplicity!

A single word best practice rule for communication, content, marketing or just about any interaction on the web to really connect with people – SIMPLIFY!

Things we like in our social web experience?

 Tweets & Short Status Updates

140 characters is a short space but it’s perfect. If you have something to say and you can put it 140 characters or less it forces you to be concise, clear and make your point quite simply. Little wonder why Facebook status updates and Twitter is so popular?

Introduction Videos That Turn Complicated Ideas Into Plain English

Gone are the long multi-page technical specification manuals or documentation that explain something complicated in even more complicated terms and language. Social media loves simple videos like the one below which can even have Grandma understand what this new age concept of CrowdFunding is all about.

Infographics

Well crafted visual representation of facts that you can absorb simply by looking at an image rather than having to read long texts of technical facts, survey results or statistics. They are simple and make their point!

Easy Registration & Calls To Action

Crisp, Short & Personal Direct Messages & Communications

Those are just some of the examples of how effective keeping things simple online can be just the way web users like it. When it Rome, do as the Romans do. When on the social web, think about what people love about their social web experience and tune your online communications accordingly.

Leaving out the unnecessary complicated bulls***t that aims to impress but no one really gets and simplifying will really connect well with online audiences and help not just get what you’re about but perhaps even grow to like you as a business. That in the online world…is a winning formula!

There’s been an awakening in how effectively social media can be used to engage with consumers and stay connected with them after they’ve gone through the “awareness” phase through offline marketing that many businesses still spend massive parts of their budgets on. It seems almost everywhere I look, brands are connecting their online and offline efforts well really implementing the concept of “Social CRM”.

It’s understandable that you can’t reach everyone online and traditional advertising and marketing channels like television, newspapers, magazines, events and more are still going to be a part of the marketing mix especially in the Indian context where the web market is still growing but not all-inclusive. However, brands are realizing that the offline channels mentioned above are strong in creating awareness, but then a lot of the research, comparison, deliberation and final decisions are made after moving online and the two need to work seamlessly together to get results.

Moreover, offline marketing is still considerably more expensive and buys less attention time with consumers so how do you keep them in the loop after they’ve heard about you?

Send them online!

Scenario 1

The 2012 Delhi Auto Expo is a classic example of an offline marketing channel that brings over a 1000 automobile manufacturers and brands together. They showcase their cars, unveil new launches, measure customer reactions and interact. Needless to say, it doesn’t come cheap and not every consumer that brands connected with that day are going to make an instant decision and become customers at the location itself. However this year, you will notice many manufacturers and brands have prominently displayed their social media locations asking consumers that have visited their stalls to go ahead and connect with them on their Facebook page, join their online communities or follow them on Twitter.

This enables them to stay engaged with those consumers much after the event is over and the tents are packed away, remaining connected with them and potentially see more of them turn customers at a much later date.

Scenario 2

I passed by a large billboard for a new shopping mall that’s opened not too far away. Unlike some hoardings which try to cram as much of a message into space one gets a few seconds to look at most while driving by, this one had the mall and invited passers by to come find out more about what they had in store directing them to join their Facebook page. Almost literally what you could remember in those moments when you glance at something and drive by.

Awareness through the billboard and engagement via social media. A perfect combination.

This process of awareness -> capture -> engage -> convert while moving from offline to online media has been evolving rapidly. From having static website addresses displayed asking people to read more about the company or brand some time ago, we now have more Twitter handles, Facebook page addresses and social media locations printed across on shopping bags, signboards, television commercials, shouted on radio, splashed across billboards…

The key difference?

We’re no longer asking consumers to come read some information about the organization or brand on the website. We are now asking them to come engage with us in a two way dialog, talk to us and keep in touch!

…. and that is a whole new dynamic in the relationship between organizations and consumers!

Overview

Volkswagen has been standing out in peoples mind when it comes to their innovative and often striking marketing campaigns both offline and online. Their marketing activity in India where they have grown very quickly into one of the most desired car brands has covered everything from The VW Polo Cup racing series to newspaper advertisements that had people drop their coffee and jump back. Remember when you opened the newspaper and it started talking about the VW Vento? From talking newspapers to some of the funniest viral videos, Volkswagen is one to watch when it comes to creative marketing ideas.

With the new launch of the 2011 Volkswagen Jetta, the VW brand has set the social media grapevine buzzing with another engaging and fun social media outreach campaign which has everyone on the social web talking about the new Jetta.

Challenge

The Indian car market has been very active with new launches with several manufacturers and and equal number of hot new launches taking place in the last three months with every model vying for attention both from the consumers and media. Car sales is a very aspirational space and the more people talk about a car, the more you want it! So just how did Volkswagen India get people online to talk to talk about the all new Jetta and capture attention?

Strategy – What Volkswagen Did

They launched the Anything4Jetta campaign and got people to talk about what they would be willing to do to get their hands on the all new VW Jetta! The online campaign is centered around a micro-site http://www.anything4jetta.com/ which is primarily Twitter centric…or in other words, you can login directly with your Twitter account.

Simplicity is key and the anything4jetta.com website gets straight to the point on the home page. As a visitor that would like a chance to win the new Jetta, all you have to do is Tweet what you would do for the new Jetta along with the hash tag #anything4jetta and your witty tweet may qualify you for a range of monthly prizes and eventually the grand prize of a brand new Jetta.

So that would get users thinking up smart tweets and tweeting but there is more. A clever point system explained here within the site would point out you get points for following @volkswagenindia, SMS tweets, voice tweets, uploading photos, uploading crazy videos of what you’re willing to do, retweets and other activity. THAT is what makes this a complete social media experience exploiting all channels to create buzz around the Jetta and the incentive… points (and the grand prize of possibly winning a car of course).

As a result Twitter is buzzing with chatter over the new Jetta, videos are being added, photos shared and ….they have out attention.

(The Anything4Jetta Online Campaign & Contest – Click Here To Visit)

(The Facebook Component – Click Here To Visit)

(The YouTube Component)

What’s Cool About This Campaign?

- It gets you to talk about the car by offering you a chance to win something you desire (the car) which instantly makes you an online ambassador for the product and has you saying good things about it

- It get’s users to do a lot of the creative work and come up with fun, catchy tweets that could draw further attention

- Very low entry barrier to get started with the campaign and competition. All you need is a Twitter account and add a hash tag to your tweet and you are in the running

- Great incentive system to drive more social activity like sharing videos, photos, voice recordings through the point system

- A smart system of having monthly prizes and a leader board to keep users involved and keep talking about the product till the winner of the grand prize is announced

- Doesn’t directly advertise the product since the campaign itself is fun and about coming up with crazy things you would do to win a Jetta. Yet the product is well placed everywhere, showcased on the anything4jetta.com site

- Integrates Facebook, Twitter well

To sum up, the Anything4Jetta campaign is just a very fun and engaging campaign which still gets people buzzing about the car. Isn’t that what it’s all about?

If you can’t take the heat get out of the kitchen! In fact, don’t walk into the kitchen in the first place.

If you’re pulling out the stops and taking the leap into social media …be aware that you are opening pandora’s box and you need to be prepared to take on anything that comes out of there!

This is what any experienced online community or social media manager would tell you based on their experience if you’re still watching by the sidelines and wondering whether to engage with your market via social media channels or opt for the safer traditional one-way marketing communications medium where “control” is possible. Taking the social media leap involves being ready to jump into a new world where people don’t give a hoot about the traditional rules of engagement that many business have shielded themselves with. Expecting old school PR and marketing communications methods to be applied to your social media interactions will get you nowhere soon. You see that form of PR and marketing communications had the following attributes:

• Every message that went out to the public was carefully crafted and engineered to strike a certain nerve or reaction.
• The image of the business is always portrayed in good light. Messages always portray how good things are, how well the organization is doing, how nothing is our fault, how there is always only good news etc
• Negative feedback, events, bad news, weaknesses should be hidden from the public eye and anyone catching sight of such aspects would see vulnerability.
• Messages need to be diplomatic so that they don’t come across too direct. There are a list of things which simply can not be said.
• Whatever goes out on behalf of the organization needs to be analyzed, edited, re checked, re-edited, follow a long drafting cycle and then be released for everyone outside.

Social media may be a new medium of PR and marketing communications but it works on a different set of rules contrary to the old ones:

• It’s anything but a one-way communication channel. It’s always a conversation so if you put something out there expect honest and free feedback, comments, love and hate in equal amounts. Be prepared for replies because they will follow anything you say via the free web.
• It’s not about crafty messages that took months to draft. On the social web, the audience appreciate honesty, human interactions, transparency, openness and all those other things that were taboo with traditional business communications. If you can’t openly express the good, the bad and the ugly and feel the need to filter and suppress every message that goes out from those within the organization, then social media is not a good option for you.
• Be spontaneous and be yourself. Web audiences are not fond of ‘official statements’ from the organization nor do they connect with those messages your specialists took 3 months to release. They connect with the business via people within your organization who can express themselves freely and seem accessible and human online whether it’s on the blog, Facebook page, Linkedin, Twitter or anywhere else.
• People rule the web. Give them the benefit of the doubt and let them decide what they think about what you’re trying to express as a brand or organization. There will be those who appreciate you and those who don’t. The key lies in being able to address the concerns of those who don’t and leverage the support  of those who do.

In short social media has it’s own rules which need to be understood well before you take the leap. When you do take the leap, embrace this new web culture and don’t hang on to the old policies and you’ll do just great! You’ll eventually see the pros far outweigh any fears you may have had going in. As long as you go in with a flexible mindset and keep the ‘human’ persona of an organization at the forefront you’ll take on anything thrown at you with ease.

PR, especially in the online context has changed considerably. What was associated with special PR firms who create a very long term plan for cash rich businesses or individuals who had large budgets to spend over time with these firms is now….well… a lot like what we do everyday. The difference is  it need not be expensive or only for those who can afford it nor does it have to be a slow long carefully crafted image building exercise executed slowly through the press or traditional channels. It’s now a more nimble process of creating conversations over the web through easily accessible channels like blogs, social networking, free PR distribution sites, Twitter, online communities and more. You can be a global banking corporation, a rock band, a t-shirt printing business or an individual working on a web application and you can still access the same tools and practices to reach out to online audiences and create your own PR engine.

The changing face of PR as we witness it today is characterized by:

Web conversations: speaking out loud about what you’re doing, what you represent and sharing your brand or message with the millions that are connected to each other via social networks, blogs and other tools. It’s no longer about publishing “one-way” press releases or publicity pieces with a formal declaration on behalf of the business or individual once in a blue moon. It’s about being upfront and sharing your thoughts and updating audiences online through a two-way dialog.

Speed & Spontaneity: Have something on your mind? Tweet about it. Have an important deal or event which you’d like to share? Draft a quick press release and submit it to the several free press release sites out there. Need a quicker way to share it? Do a blog post and get it published and shared instantly! The long turnaround times for acting on a message that needs to go out are no longer there. What happens today can be published today and shared right away.

Low / No Costs – Accessible To All: The playing field has been leveled and the tools that really matter when it comes to building a presence or brand on the the web are those accessible to the masses. From the enterprise businesses to a one man brand blogs, Facebook, Linkedin, Slideshare….it’s all at your disposal. There are startups and small businesses that have built larger followings and created more buzz online than global enterprises and they didn’t have expensive PR firms…just a determined effort to communicate frequently with others through their content.

If there is one significant change thats noteworthy about PR today is that it’s been thrown open to the masses. You can have an active PR campaign no matter what you do and who you are…in fact ….you should!

Reading has rapidly moved to the web. I personally do a lot of reading online every single day across a variety of personal interests from aquascaping, music theory, travel to social media, marketing and more. Even if i’m experimenting with dishes in the kitchen I have a recipe open on my netbook nearby. It’s only natural that we’re all going to take to e-readers and tablets sooner or later. From the current buzz, my guess would be sooner. So the question to start asking is not “should I go in for the iPad or Kindle? The question that urgently needs to be answered is “is my business publishing online and is it ready for the tablet boom?”

Online magazines, blogs and online publications are bound to be consumed that much more. If currently most reading is done while at your pc or at work, e-readers are simply going to ensure reading happens on the bus, on the subway, at airport waiting lounges and in bed. In marketing terms, it just opens a wider window of opportunity to have wider audiences discover your business. Online publications with compelling content will be key to engaging consumers and the earlier you can establish a leading publication within your industry space, the better prepared you can be for the inevitable boom. So how ready is your business on the online publication front?