a Global Bridge

So today, as part of my tweeting for charity campaign, I was asked by a new friend at one of my local charities to write a little bit about Social Media strategy and how to go about developing your Social Media marketing strategy.

Even it you're not an MBA, I'm sure you know about the traditional marketing 4p's - Product, Price, Place and Promotion.  These 4ps can easily be applied to any Social Media marketing strategy and implemented without too much trouble (it will take a lot of hard work and diligence on your part, though).

Product:

The product can be a traditional product (like a new iPod), an organization or company (like the Red Cross), or a personal brand (such as yourself or your neighborhood reading club).  You should have a clear picture of your mission/vision, your objectives, and your long-term strategic goals.  If necessary, get your decision making group together and write these things down, if you haven't done so already.  Contrary to popular belief, there's not much difference in social media marketing whether you are a corporation, a charity or an individual.  All you need is know-how.

Price:

Is there a cost associated with your Product?  If not a direct dollar amount, is there some thing that you want from your new followers - i.e. joining your club, supporting your cause, or something along those lines?  Maybe you're just a person trying to brand yourself and your name online.  Then perhaps what you want is increased visibility and credibility.  Know what you want from your Social Media marketing campaign. Only by having a clear picture of what you hope to gain - will you then see clear results!

Place:

For Social Media marketing, the "place" for your campaign will be the Internet, of course.  You should have an idea of who your audience is - or if you're just starting out, who you want your audience to be.  Check out the places that they frequent online.  You might have to ask around to find out where you're target market "lives" online.  Are they traditional business types?  Check LinkedIn.  Interested in the Apple Jet Set?  Better start tweeting. Is your target market international in scope?  Try Ecademy, Xing, and Orkut.  Once you've established the "places" that you need to target, then you're ready to move on to the final phase.

Promotion:

Obviously, the first step is to have active accounts on all of the social networks that you hope to target.  Make sure that you include relevant data about your organization or product with links to your website for all pertinent details.  Your senior executives and the PR person at your organization/company should have links to your most important social networks embedded in their email signatures.  If you're working on your own personal brand, then include your blog/website and links to your own personal networks (ie http://twitter.com/aglobalbridge). ; One great practice that I personally use is to include a link to my blog in my replies to all messages that I receive on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and the others.  This always generates a good bit of traffic for me.

Now you've got to get the word out to your target market or your audience.  You'll need to "work the room."  Get to know the people that show interest in your organization, brand and/or product.  Make regular status updates and post all pertinent events on your social networking pages.  Join related groups on LinkedIn and Facebook, use Twitter to follow people who are experts in your industry, and network, network, network.  Go to local Social Media events in your area and get to know others in your community who are active on the Social Media circuit.

By using the principles of the 4p's, which is just good business sense, you can drive your cause/organization/personal brand to the next level!