April 29, 2013

Social media: imagine nothing has changed

I keep running into people who are mildly terrified of social media, social media marketing and all the other buzzy-buzzwords that are being attached to this mashed-up online world we all do business in now.  It is scary.  It is different.  It is fast.  But:

My main advice remains: imagine nothing has changed.  Imagine that you are simply doing what people did before social media came along.  In other words: creating businesses with strong ideas, and something to say about their point of difference, their work and their view of the world.  Because that is still what matters most.  Social media are just media.  Not messages.  

Imagine what you would have been talking about before the “post”, the “blog”, the “tweet” and the “tag” were invented, and then talk about that.  Only now use this new digital stuff to do so.  Play about with it.  Find a focus.  Don’t be scared.   Like I say: imagine nothing has changed.  Because, at the very deepest level, nothing really has.