Comments on: 19 Things Social Media Consultants or Agencies Can’t Teach You

By: Website Design

Website Design — Fri, 25 Nov 2011 07:44:17 +0000

Awesome post, great thanks for useful information…

By: The Social Den

The Social Den — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 19:10:00 +0000

I would add:

Be Helpful

and

Be Creative

By: dilandinga

dilandinga — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 17:26:20 +0000

etFzUN I bookmarked this link. Thank you for good job!

By: Daniel Pipitone

Daniel Pipitone — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 14:47:59 +0000

This is a great post. In my 9 to 5 job, I work with an organization who “wants’ to be leveraging social media, but I consistently see signs of some of these items you list above that prove to me that they just aren’t ready. Specifically your point about not being able to teach the “desire to be social” to an organization jumps out.
They want to be social, but resist the idea of “being social” stating the 50 million policies and procedures that will have to be followed / executed before a strategy can be rolled out. Essentially, they have not yet internalized the idea of having a social media mindset and are not yet ready to “be social.”
Thanks for articulating this.

By: Lebo Molefe

Lebo Molefe — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 12:41:46 +0000

Wow! too true… I’ve been singing that gospel to my South African counterparts… focus on adding value at first then the rest will follow naturally!!!

By: Cynthia Trevino

Cynthia Trevino — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 19:43:10 +0000

Insightful summary! One addition:
- To honestly evaluate the value of ALL current activities to identify resources to invest in Social Media

By: Social Media Evangelist

Social Media Evangelist — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 17:38:40 +0000

Simple advice necessary for not just Social Media marketing but for cheerful living too I must say!

By: Melissa Albano

Melissa Albano — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 16:54:36 +0000

Great post, Beth.
It’s the same as the difference between learning how to introduce yourself to people and understanding how to be a good friend. Success in social marketing is a direct reflection of the credibility, value, and transparency you provide in all areas of your business.

By: Beth Harte

Beth Harte — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 13:31:31 +0000

Hey everyone! Glad you liked the post… and thanks for adding some important items to the list.
My favorite: You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make them drink. (I love horeses and know how stubborn they can be!)
It will be interesting to see what happens in the next 1-3 years and if organizations begin to realize the shift.

By: Dallas Web Design

Dallas Web Design — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 03:22:18 +0000

Good post and a great read thanks for the info

By: Patricia Mayo

Patricia Mayo — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 13:10:59 +0000

Although this fits in with “Commit to transparent communications” it still bears a bit of elaboration – you must make it a habit to participate regularly in the community. Even if it is just once a week, at least be predictable!

By: Ann Peavey

Ann Peavey — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 21:28:02 +0000

Fantastic post, Beth! I’d say you’re preachin’ to the choir, but we all know that’s not the case.
Simple, clear, factual advice to help the masses – thank you!

By: Leigh Durst

Leigh Durst — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 13:04:45 +0000

Beth – I’d say that the SM consultant also can’t MAKE a company spend the time necessary to do things right or allocate an appropriate level of resourcing (time, people and money – although this stuff is relatively cheap).

By: OliverHunt

OliverHunt — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 10:43:13 +0000

Make a decision about the message, be clear and communicate it well across the platforms without going off topic.
If a client doesn’t know the message and isn’t clear about it, then you’re in for a struggle.
It’s back to school but, Keep It Simple Stupid; Social Media isn’t rocket science but it needs dedication.

By: markwschaefer

markwschaefer — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 02:39:04 +0000

I have a bit of a debate going on my blog about the ability to out-source social media activities. I think you just answered the question.
Good article, Beth. I’ll probably reference this in a future post!

By: Strategic Growth Advisors

Strategic Growth Advisors — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 02:28:00 +0000

Thanks for the splendid post, Beth.
In my own viewpoint, this relates to the adage that “you can bring a horse to the water but you can never force it to drink.”
Social media consultants/agencies only do fifty percent of the job by providing helpful tips and pointers.
It’s up to the organization how it will sincerely harness these bits of knowledge. That’s where the other fifty percent comes.

By: Ted

Ted — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 18:58:04 +0000

Be Unusual.

By: Elaine Fogel

Elaine Fogel — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 18:23:07 +0000

So true, Beth. Basically, being good at social media marketing means having an authentic brand and living it in all communications.

By: Kim Kolb

Kim Kolb — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 18:18:25 +0000

Beth,
Great Job! You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink.
We can talk until we are blue in the face, but all the talking may not be motivation enough for some to act.

By: Cassandra Vert

Cassandra Vert — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 16:17:18 +0000

You can’t teach the value of long-term gratification (brand building) to a company with a short-term numbers mindset.
You can’t teach nonlinear dialogue to a company with linear communication cycle-deadline brains, and you can’t teach them to value dialogue even when it it produces results.
(Yes, I’ve tried.)

By: Susan

Susan — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 15:56:18 +0000

Beth – I really like this post. I would offer up, “It’s not about the project, it’s about the individuals.”

By: Ann Handley

Ann Handley — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 14:34:03 +0000

Great post, Beth. This reminds me of Mack Collier’s “Five Reasons Why No One Likes You on Twitter”
http://mackcollier.com/five-reasons-why-no-one-likes-you-on-twitter/
and its sister post, Rick Liebling’s ‘Seven Reasons Your Brand Shouldn’t Be on Twitter”
http://www.rickliebling.com/2009/07/14/seven-reasons-your-brand-shouldnt-be-on-twitter/
My favorite line happens to be from Mack’s post, but I think this nicely sums up a lot of what is expressed here and from those two guys:
“…you’re in it for the numbers, not the people.”
(Which is not to say you shouldn’t measure what you do there, but is to say that Social Media starts with “Social.”)

By: Jeremy Meyers

Jeremy Meyers — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 14:06:40 +0000

Absolutely Beth. That’s why it’s so important for companies (and people) to Get Their Own House In Order before attempting this stuff.
Communication being treated as a shiny object leads to people getting into it without really committing to the precepts behind it, which leads to the failure of the attempts at engagement which leads to the writeoff of communication (SM) as a tool.
There is a wide open space for true talent to enable places and people to fight their internal momentum in the wrong direction.