What is Success in Social Media Use?
Not too dissimilar from asking “What is Networking?” and “Where is my Target Market?” at the same time.
The problem with most interpretations of what Social Media is and what it can do comes from a lack of understanding as to where Social Media is going. Facebook for personal use and Facebook for business use overlap considerably, but their goals are uniquely different (or should be). LinkedIn takes us out of the network bars and events, but will it replace, enhance, or diminish the importance of face-to-face contact over time? Do we consider the expansion of mobile phone visual recognition software part of the Social Media world, or is it just a neat technical tool tied to our social activities? If everyone who posts to your blog has something negative to say, does the popularity of the blog count?
It all falls under the large umbrella of Social Media, and yet how could we possibly measure “success”? Gathering more connections or entries into networking groups? Opening conversations with hard-to-reach audiences? Levels of exposure of our corporate or personal activities to scrutiny to build trust? More positive posts than negative? Expanded exposure of our brand?
Each would be considered a measureable marketing or sales component, and each can have success in numbers and/or quality, but where is the tipping point – what is the 50% line we need to cross to see that we are gaining and not losing ground in whatever it is we are trying to accomplish?
As complex as the problem appears in the abstract, it really is a simple matter of defining the gold ring before you start. And that gold ring can be anything you think might benefit your business: 100 connections a week for exposure; acceptance as an authority in various networking groups; 2,000 monthly comments on your products or service (good or bad); length of engagement with your blog for the average visitor. The fact is you will not know what is successful until you track the affect on your business, and then once you find that gold ring value, you need to be able to repeat it or beat it as a marketing goal each month.