Social Media’s Two-Way Street

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By Ravi Singh

Over the past few years, countless brands and communicators have made the move to social media. Few, however, have successfully devised a unique plan or strategy for employing these platforms and realizing their full potential for a brand or organization. Instead, what we’ve seen from most brands is an embrace of social media as a new way to do something old. That something old is advertising. What far too many Facebook or Twitter feeds boil down to is “Buy my product!” repeated countless times. There is little to be found on these platforms other than links back to an organization’s own website and the call to action to purchase their product or service.

In a previous position as a copywriter, I was managing and developing social media strategies for various clients and it was here that I took away an important lesson that all communicators should keep in mind when venturing into the still largely unpredictable waters of social media. The lesson was this: on these outlets, you are no longer simply an advertiser or salesperson, but a member of a community and a media outlet unto yourself.

Users now have a greater amount of choice than ever when it comes to where they invest their attention. The web is not a passive form of media like television or print, but one where users can more easily choose to ignore your message or respond directly to it. As a result, they need something worth engaging with in a positive manner, something that will keep them coming back. Simply shouting “Me! Me! Me!” on your feed will probably not accomplish this.

The solution was surprisingly simple, but requires organizations trying something that doesn’t always sit easily with traditional notions of communication, namely promoting something other than yourself. For example, among our clients was a large homebuilder. Rather than simply linking back to their website, we bulked up our feed with relevant homeowner news and advice from a wide variety of sources. This did not necessarily benefit the client directly by bringing in hits to their website, but it did serve as a good starting point for giving users more than just a sales pitch.

The ultimate goal was that each social media profile would serve as a one-stop shop for users to find information on home ownership, real estate, home décor, etc. This gave users something to engage with and a reason to check in more regularly. They may not have been in the market for purchasing a home at that moment, but in the meantime our client’s name would register with them.

It’s imperative that communicators embrace these platforms as something different and an opportunity to do something other than immediately profit or contribute to the bottom line. It’s a slower and more gradual manner of building capital with users, but it’s necessary for a brand to thrive in this new environment. Communication now runs two ways, and simply shouting at the user will no longer work so get conversing. It’s different, but far easier than you might think.

Ravi Singh has recently completed his master’s degree in political studies at Queen’s University with hopes of entering the communications profession. He has worked as a technical writer for a software startup and a copywriter for a small public relations firm in Toronto, where he developed and managed social media strategies and profiles and helped with online ad campaigns.

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