stay in your comfort zone

Recently, I talked with two companies that had decided not to do social media marketing at all because one specific aspect of social media was making them uncomfortable. So, as a social media marketing firm, do you think that I tried to talk them out of their concerns and get them to get into social media?

The simple answer? No. I listened to what is making them uncomfortable and helped them look at strategy, technology and policy that would avoid their concerns in the first place.

The first company is in a very competitive field in which a client list is kept confidential. Knowing that social media would allow their clients to follow them - while allowing competitors to see and communicate with their clients - they opted not to participate. Through our discussions, we developed strategies that would still allow them to take advantage of social media by better supporting their clients who use social media, rather than using it for themselves directly.

The second organization is a non-profit that does a lot of work with children. Their main concern was that they did not feel comfortable uploading pictures of the kids or allowing followers to upload pictures of the kids. As as result, we discussed how internal policy, privacy setting, and alternate imagery that showcased their attributes but didn't include the children's images could enable them to participate in social media.

What is most important to me in each case was that the clients did NOT leave their comfort zones just to use social media in their marketing plans.

For example, several articles I researched in the case of the confidential client list advised that competitors seeing your clients is just a side effect of doing social media. In our current eceonomy, where even one client lost can have a huge impact, that is not an acceptable answer. Same for the client who didn't want to put their kids' pictures online. It simply wasn't a way that they wanted to conduct business.

If it doesn't feel right to you, don't do it.

That doesn't mean that you have to eliminate social media from your marketing toolbox, it simply means you have to make it work for you within your comfort zone.

Here are some things to keep in mind:

Technology. Knowing what is and is not possible can be the first step in knowing how you will use social media rather than if you will use social media.

Policy. Before setting up even one social media project, determine in writing what your company's policy on social media is. Cover items like what types of media you will post, how you will document photo releases, if you will cover any sensitive topics such as religion or politics, how you will handle inappropriate comments, what permissions you will allow posters, etc.

Privacy. Determine the level of interaction you will allow participants and the extent to which you will share your organization. Document it, communicate it, share it, and stick to it internally. The whole point of social media is to allow communication between you and your customers, but you can achieve that within your comfort zone.

If you personally are uncomfortable with certain aspects of social media marketing - listen to that instinct and explore exactly what is making you pause. Write it down by bullet pointing areas of concern. By defining those issues you can then develop strategic social media marketing that keeps you within your comfort zone, while online and in the game.