ASMM-4-2014

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Where do we want to be in social media? How will we know when we get there? Where are we now and what must we do? How will we get to where we want to be? What may change the environment in the future?

Don’t launch into social networking without fi rst knowing

why you’re doing it and how to make the best use of

the tools for your business to achieve results. Combine

systems thinking with the journalist’s fi ve questions—the

Who, What, When, Where and Why—to ensure you’re

using social networking to your best advantage. See our

ABCs and top fi ve tips below for our Systems Th inking

Approach to Social Media Marketing.

TOP FIVE TIPS FOR SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING

What may change in the future?Systems Th inking begins by examining the external

environment around you so that you can make

informed plans and decisions. Th is phase is an ongoing

process. Researching social media will get you started

answering the journalist’s fi ve questions:

Who is your target audience? Start by identifying your target audience or audiences.

Th e tools they use and how they interact with online

websites and social media diff er by age, gender and

demographics. In order to reach your audience

eff ectively, you fi rst need to know your customers or

clients and fi nd out what they’re doing online.

An excellent resource for this data is Mashable.com, a top

source for news in social and digital media, technology

and web culture. Aaron Uhrmacher, one of the site’s

bloggers, provides especially helpful information and

resources for understanding this industry in his entry

“How to Find Statistics on Social Media.” In this blog,

he cites several resources for information about who

uses which social media sites.

One resource mentioned is a study of 49.3 million people

conducted by Rapleaf. Th e study identifi es each of the

social media tools most used by men and women in

several age categories. For example, between the ages of

14 and 34, women tend to be the heavier users of social

media sites. However, from ages 35 to over 65, men

are the heavier users of social media. Clearly, knowing

statistics like this will help your organization target its

desired demographic.

©2014 DO NOT DUPLICATE

SYSTEMS THINKING IN TODAY’S COMMUNICATIONAs the new-media representative for House Minority Leader John Boehner,

Nick Schaper was in charge of the communications team that rocketed

Boehner to the Speaker of the House in 2011. Schaper expanded Boehner’s

campaign through the use of social media, video production and custom

web development. He said the election “was a real spark for our members to

realize this needs to be a major part of our communications strategy. Th is is

no longer a gimmick. Th is is how the American people want to receive their

news and want to hear from us.”

Social media is now a part of business. Like any business structure, it needs to

be approached strategically to be used effi ciently and eff ectively to get revenue

and results. Applying Th e Systems Th inking Approach® to social media is the

diff erence between arbitrary web postings and connections and using today’s

means of communication to attract and retain customers. Social media

marketing is all about creating relationships with customers and potential

customers. Of course, the big question is when and how do you actually turn

social media relationships into sales?

Th e Systems Th inking Approach®—the Haines Centre’s Universal Framework

and Guide to work and life—allows you to build a strategic plan and direction

for your social media marketing. It involves fi ve phases that have fi ve questions:

PO Box 1132 Mayer, AZ 86333 • Phone 858-357-9600 • www.strategysd.com

Social Media MarketingThe Systems Thinking Approach®

Th is is no longer a gimmick. Th is is how ... people want to receive their news and want to hear from us.”

— Nick Schaper

By Jeri Denniston, Chief Marketing Strategist, Denner Group International and Stephen Haines, Founder and CEO, Haines Centre for Strategic Management®

Tip 1: Do some research.

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Another tool to help you identify the social media sites your

customers are using is the Social Technographics profi le tool,

which was created by Charlene Li and Josh Bernhoff of Forrester

Research Technographics as part of a promotion for their book

Groundswell. Th e tool lets users enter basic information and

see how participation varies among demographics worldwide.

Th e results give you a picture of whether your target audience

are comprised mostly of “Creators, Critics, Collectors, Joiners,

Spectators or Inactives” when it comes to using social media. (See

model to right. You can also view an explanatory slide presentation

on Forrester.com.) Of course, the big debate right now is how do

you translate this information into sales?

What are they doing online? It’s important to know what your customers and clients are doing

when they go online, not just which tools they’re using. Are they

blogging, searching for products and services, sharing photos

and comments on Facebook, or looking for jobs on LinkedIn?

You need to understand what they’re doing so you can meet

them online in the same space—providing coupons, special

promotional off ers and information they’re seeking.

Th ere are many websites that provide information about the myriad

social networking sites. Th ese resources can help you make the key

decisions about which tools to use to target which audiences:

• ComScore, Inc.—resource for statistics about the most popular

tools and what age groups are using them (comscore.com)

• Th e Future Buzz—blog by Adam Singer that provides useful

statistics on some of the most popular social media sites

(thefuturebuzz.com)

• Web Strategy—blog by Jeremiah Owyang (web-strategist.com)

• TechCrunch—technology media property “dedicated

to obsessively profi ling startups, reviewing new Internet

products” and breaking tech news (techcrunch.com)

• CNET—technology reviews and news (cnet.com)

• Nielsen Online—online measurement services (nielsen.com)

Nielson reported that social networks and blogs have surpassed personal e-mail as a popular online activity. Member communities

are visited by nearly 70 percent of the global online population,

with time spent growing at three times the overall internet rate,

accounting for nearly 10 percent of all internet time.

Th is increase in use oft en alters expected demographics, as Nielsen

reported: “Facebook started out as a service for university students

but now almost one third of its global audience is aged 35 to 49 years

of age and almost one quarter is over 50 years old. In the UK, for

example, if the average month-on-month audience changes over

the last six months were to continue; by mid-June 2009 there would

be as many 35- to 49-year-olds on Facebook as 18- to 34-year-

olds. Th e changing audience off ers advertisers the opportunity to use social networks as a vehicle for targeting all demographic groups. In

Italy, brands such as Maserati—traditionally marketed to an older

audience—now have fan pages on Facebook.”

When are they going online?It is also crucial to know when your customers and clients are going

online to interact with social media, so that you will be online at the

same time. Th is is a critical component of your social media strategy.

Gary McCaff rey, for example, has tracked the best times for

sending Tweets on Twitter to gain the maximum traffi c and

attention, based on the traffi c he’s seen to his websites. He reports

that early in the morning (5 to 6 a.m.) and midday (noon to 2

p.m.) seem to be the highest traffi c times.

Th e research resources listed earlier may provide insight about

when your customers are using social media. You may want to look

at similar statistics for traffi c to your blogs and websites as well.

Where are they coming from? A critical aspect of your social media strategy is to understand where

your customers and clients are coming from. Are they being referred

by other customers? Are they fi nding you through Google searches?

Are they coming to your sites because of your online presence, your

blogs or your links to other key sites? What other sites are they


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visiting and where are they buying? You’ll want to fi nd ways to link

to or advertise with those sites to entice customers to visit yours.

Why are they using social media? To successfully use social media, it is critical to gain an

understanding of why companies, clients and customers are

turning to social media. A scan of the environment around

you will provide some clues. For a holistic view, consider the

following Future Environmental Scanning categories grouped

together under the acronym SKEEPTIC (which is the new

industry standard copyrighted by the Haines Centre):

1. Sociodemographics: Consider how society is changing and will

change in the next 3 to 5 years, the possible exit of many boomers

from the workforce, the talent gap that will exist between the

30-somethings in power and the knowledge and experience void

boomers leave behind. Look at demographics to see how they impact

your products or services and your changing customer base.

2. Competition: Gain a thorough understanding of who you’re

competing against today, as well as who the new entrants might be

into your particular industry or market. For example, in banking

in the 1980s, the mentality was “build it and they will come.” Who

would have thought that retail stores like Sears and Wal-Mart

would enter the fi eld? Now we fi nd bank branches in grocery

outlets. Automated banking is now the norm for many people who

never visit any bank branches. Clearly, the banks had to change to

meet their customers where they shop. So consider—who might be

your next competitor?

3. Economy: Yes, the poor global economy is having a dramatic

impact on how people work, live and shop, and it’s aff ecting how

companies market to them. More dollars are shift ing to online social

media sites in order to establish relationships with customers.

According to a survey by Forrester Research Technographics, 48%

of company respondents said the current economy has made them

experiment more with social media to compensate for budget cuts.

Additionally, 22% said they would shift dollars from traditional

channels to online use and 20% said they would focus more on social

media then traditional tactics. Only 10% said the current economy

would make them cut back on all marketing activity.

4. Environment: Are your customers and clients concerned

about reducing greenhouse gas emissions, buying only products

and services that are environmentally friendly? What are you

doing or can you do to ensure your company is “environmentally

friendly”? If it applies, be sure to include this in your plan. Th ere

is a growing green revolution world-wide—are you a part of it?

5. Political and Regulatory Issues: Do you operate in a regulated

industry like energy, health care or the fi nancial industry? How

are the changing political and regulatory issues aff ecting the

way you do business and how you serve your customers? What

additional changes might take eff ect in the next 3 to 5 years for

which you need to prepare today, and how do they aff ect your

social media and online marketing strategies and tactics?

6. Technology: Th e world is changing so fast. What do you need to

do to ensure your staff has the latest technological tools in order to

do the work necessary to achieve your social media goals?

7. Industry: How will your global competitors and industry

change in the next 3 to 5 years? Who will be the new entrants

to the market—and who will be gone? What do you need to do

today to be ready for the changes, and what impact will these

competition implications have on your social media strategies?

8. Customer/ Clients: Today’s customers may not be your customers

tomorrow. Th e newspaper industry is a good example of an industry

that didn’t pay signifi cant attention to the changing environment.

Th ey continued to write for an increasingly diminishing market:

the baby boomers and older. While many have also gone online

to reach the younger audiences, they focused their major attention

on the print side rather than online. And we see what’s happening

today with that industry’s demise.

What about yours? Are your customers of tomorrow increasingly

researching and shopping online? How can your website(s) and

blog(s) become “trusted” sites to which your customers refer for

valuable information?

Considering the environmental around you is a critical component

to creating and successfully implementing your Strategic Social

Media Marketing Plan.

Tip 2: Have a vision and plan.

Where do we want to be in social media?Aft er considering the external environment, you need to determine

your vision. What is your Ideal Future Vision for social media

marketing? As Stephen Covey said, “Begin with the end in mind.”

Begin your Strategic Social Media Marketing Plan by detailing your

desired outcomes—what you want to achieve. Apply the research on

the Who, What, When, Where and Why identifi ed in the fi rst phase. Once you’ve created your desired outcomes, you can begin to

put them into action and be on your way to your Ideal Future

Vision. Th e next three tips lay out the framework for creating your

Strategic Social Media Marketing Plan.

Tip 3: Identify your key success measures.

How will we know when we get there?Once you’ve decided where you want to be, you need to

determine your own specifi c goals/ Key Success Measures for each

demographic you’re trying to reach. What feedback will determine

that your strategies are working and you are progressing toward

your desired outcomes? Customer comments? Th e number of

people that link to your information, websites, blogs? A percentage

increase in sales or customer satisfaction? Only you can determine

these measures, and they are critical to helping you to gauge the

success of your social media strategies. Make sure to include

fi nancial results, not just massive activity buzz.


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©2014 DO NOT DUPLICATEDenner Group Internatinoal • Founded in 1984 • www.strategysd.com

Another in the Becoming Customer-Focused Series.

DO NOT DUPLICATEWITHOUT EXPRESSED WRITTEN CONSENT.

For additional copies or a one-year unlimited INTERNAL REPRODUCTION ONLY (IRO) license,

contact us at [email protected].

For books and comprehensive materials, visit www.SystemsThinkingPress.com.

Tip 4: Understand your current situation.

Where are we now?Th e next step is a Current State Assessment in which you consider the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities and Th reats (SWOT) to your Strategic Social Media Marketing Plan:

Internal Strengths and Weaknesses: Honestly evaluate your staff ’s current strengths and weaknesses relative to social media use. How knowledgeable are you and your staff about the social media tools? Who will be using these tools and to what purpose? Will you rely on one person or department to handle all the social media marketing? Will you outsource the process or do it yourself?

External Opportunities and Th reats: Next, evaluate the Oppor- tunities and Th reats of your competition and the implications of your Future Environmental Scan. Know which of your competitors might be ahead of you in the social media networking arena—and which are lagging behind or still sitting on the sidelines. You also need to look at where new competitors might be springing from 2 to 3 years down the road. Th e world is changing so fast, and new opportunities are being created daily that didn’t exist a year or so ago. You need to be reviewing these environmental trends on a quarterly basis to stay ahead of the game. Be ready to act fast when the opportunities present themselves.

Tip 5: Close the gap with key strategies and actions.

How do we get there?Now that you’ve established where you are, you can close the gap between your current state and your Ideal Future Vision. Th is is where you start creating the strategies, initiatives and actions you’ll implement to reach your desired outcomes. Th is phase is also about

implementing your Strategic Social Media Marketing Plan.

For each target audience identify the social media tools they use: blogs, RSS Feeds, LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, etc. Are they creating content, uploading videos, reviewing and linking to other people’s content, or reading and commenting on content? Th is will determine how you and your staff participate and communicate with the specifi c target audience. You may want to assign diff erent people to focus their eff orts on diff erent target audiences—and you may also want to match your staff with the appropriate age groups so the language they use matches that of the target audience. Th ese are some of the key decisions you need to make as you develop your Core Strategies and actions. Resources such as Chris Brogran’s “Th e 100 Personal Branding Tactics Using Social Media” (chrisbrogan.com) and Bill Crosby’s “Twitter Traffi c Machine (twittertraffi cmachinethe.com) can help in this process.

If you choose to outsource the social media networking process, external consultants such as the Haines Centre would help you develop your 3 – 7 Core Strategies with a maximum of four key actions supporting each strategy. (It’s diffi cult to execute more than that in one year.) External consultants also help to ensure we have the right team of people communicating on your behalf with your specifi c target audiences.

Finally, set a calendar of key dates to track your progress and your staff ’s progress in executing the strategies and actions. If you don’t do this, other work will get in the way, and you’ll fi nd this plan falling by the wayside. Th is is one of the most critical aspects of putting your plan into action. People do what you inspect, not what you expect. Setting a calendar for progress review meetings and reports and holding those involved accountable is critical to ensure successful implementation of your Strategic Social Media Marketing Plan.

SUMMARYStrategic use of social media requires a Systems Th inking Approach® to guide you through the creation and implementation of your Strategic Social Media Marketing Plan. But remember that online use requires constant vigilance. Technology is created and updated at a dizzying rate. What is state-of-the-art now may be obsolete in six months!

To keep up with the pace, it is important to repeat the Systems Th inking Cycle, constantly scanning the future for changes that may aff ect your Strategic Social Media Marketing Plan. Doing so will keep you on top of the social media game. Clarity, simplicity and speed—and better fi nancial results—are the norm when you use Th e Systems Th inking Approach®.

For more information or help with your Strategic Social Media Marketing Plan, e-mail Jeri Denniston at

[email protected] or visit strategysd.com.

3/2011

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ASMM-4-2014