I am a CEO with major constraints on every moment of my time, and I am sure that this is the way most CEOs probably feel. Along with the stack of duties I must take care of, I also blog, I podcast, I am active on LinkedIn and Plaxo, and I Twitter a few times a day.
Should I be, though?
Social media tools are easy to use, but it's not always so easy to get value from them. In fact, it seems that other CEOs are weighing the pros and cons. Surprisingly, I just read that not many CEOs are participating in social media, according to this Reuters news article:
http://in.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idINTRE55O0FA20090625
But it makes sense for CEOs to stay off Twitter, stay off the blogs, and keep quiet on LinkedIn unless they are ready to commit and provide value through these tools. Would you pay fees and travel costs to go to a trade show in another city and show up without anything to give people? No, because you’d be hard pressed to get much attention or interest. Many social media tools are free, so there’s no fees to pay, but if you show up without anything to say, the same principle applies – people won’t pay any attention to you.
How companies represent themselves on social media is a hot topic right now. But there are a lot of distracting bells and whistles that make it easy to forget that the social media universe is made up of tools that let you facilitate conversation.
These tools have a purpose other than being fun or cool, or a place to see and be seen. Just having a profile setup somewhere online doesn't mean you are doing something right. You have to be aware of the applications of the tool.
It is hard work to create good content to put in your blog, or your podcast, or whatever you use. Fortunately, I have been writing books and articles for a long, long time now, and Tompkins Associates is constantly focused on helping to educate others and share our expertise as global supply chain consultants. We have a wealth of knowledge that is an easy fit into social media tools that help us reach bigger and better audiences. We’ve been doing this for a while, and now we have some new tools that make it easier than ever for people to connect with our content. Even better, these same tools allow the audience to respond back to us.
These tools are fun, but more importantly, they fill a niche for me. I can share my expertise with others, teach, and pick up on new trends. I can also learn from listening to others I'm connected with on those same tools.
My advice to the CEO who is considering a leap into social media: Think about what you want to accomplish first, then decide which tools you should use. Here’s a couple of examples.
Do you want to talk to your clients or customers about what it is you do in your industry each day and how you are working to make your business even better? A blog may be right to document your ideas, news and thoughts in chronological order and provide people with a place to comment back and forth with you.
Do you have a new set of products coming out every few months, and you want to share the announcement and your thoughts on it when they are ready for market? To reach your audience, you could showcase the new line using photographs or video, and include your own comments, then set it up so people who like your company can link to it all and comment. Maybe a YouTube channel or Flickr photo set would be best.
Think of the tools last; think of your audience first. This is really not much of a different mindset one would use with traditional marketing tools. Have fun out there!
Go!Go!Go!
Jim