Are you listening, or shouting?
Is your marketing department engaging in effective social media strategies?
A report out earlier this week suggests that one in three corporations is blogging to fill a niche that other forms of social media like Twitter and Facebook cannot.
Some of the most popular bloggers who have thousands of readers will tell you that they spend most of their time listening rather than writing and posting. That makes perfect sense, doesn’t it? My own philosophy about blogging is to make your blog posts less about you and what your company is doing and focus on what others in your industry are saying. I seldom write about what our consultants are doing or where I am speaking, and instead provide links and stories about innovation trends and practices that are changing the way other forward-thinking businesses and industries are capitalizing on innovative ideas.
I came across an article today that delves into that idea a little more, advising bloggers to understand that their best strategy for communicating isn’t really about their outbound messages but about the value found in interpersonal conversation. You might want to give this article a look, and find out how to effectively 1. Listen; 2. Surround; 3. Facilitate; 4. Participate and 5. Engage.
Bottom line is, social media is about listening more intently and being a part of something bigger than ourselves.