Getting up to speed with social media

Much is talked about in relation to social media, and the vast majority of us are familiar with such sites as Twitter, Facebook, Snapchat, Instagram, LinkedIn and many, many others. Keen to keep up with the times I signed up for many of these sites some years ago. Then, I opted out. The catalyst for me, was when on a rare last minute holiday, which I had not broadcast, several friends contacted me to comment on it. It turns out that the friend I had travelled with had alerted the entire world. I was furious. Apart from anything else it is well known that many households are burgled while their owners are away from home as a result of such posts. In addition to this, working my socks off most days, it became increasingly irritating when on a daily basis I started to get banal messages saying, ‘I have just had a nice cup of coffee’, or I would receive the latest batch of photos of someone’s grandchild who I neither knew or, to be honest, wanted to know. It was then I knew that it was time to beat a hasty retreat. The question at the forefront on my mind was ‘Who has the time to deal with this trivia?’.

What has also occurred to me, particularly with regard to corporate Facebook sites, is that they can often be used as an excuse for disgruntled people to rant and rave, posting unpleasant and often vindictive comments. This negative approach is not helpful and says as much about those who are posting such comments as it does about those they are commenting on.

There is no doubt that social media now dominates the way in which we communicate. Certainly for any business that wants to get its message out it is a must. As a marketing and PR professional what I find frustrating though is the relevance, or lack of it, of much of what is out there. It is for this reason that as a long standing trustee of Chard Museum I joined a group of others keen to promote their enterprises on a social media workshop. Never let it be said that although I am now in my sixties I have a closed mind.

The workshop was run by a social media expert from social enterprise Cosmic. What an eye opener it was. It was informative, interesting, and above all, deeply motivating. With the speed of lightening we were given an in-depth overview of the plethora of social media communication tools available. What quickly became apparent is that all of these methods are best used as a channel to build up a like-minded ‘community’, not as a sales tool, which is a mistake that many organisations make. 

Organisations such as Chard Museum have found it hard to get to grips with modern technology but we are moving forward; we even have over 300 ‘likes’ on our Facebook page.

What it all boils down to in the end though is knowing your customers, what communication methods they (not you!) prefer and what is most likely to make them respond, but above all remembering that communication is a two-way thing, not merely an excuse to blow your own trumpet. This is standard sales and marketing stuff. 

Certainly the workshop was one of the most enlightening I have ever attended. I am not easily influenced but after this I was hooked.  All I need to do now is to find the time to put it all into practice and hope that someday soon my internet access improves, or hire Suzi Ratcliffe!