Head’s up folks: I am getting away from posting a pretty picture and talking about how much fun it is to be a photographer and going to shift focus to a subject that I think might clarify social media and it’s uses.
I have come full circle on the issue of Social Media and it’s use inside of personal and business communication. I immersed myself initially and studied all of the great communicators and hounded some of the pioneers of the upstart social media trends. One of the most interesting (and upsetting) things I discovered is that the pioneers are making it up as they go along. No one knows.. they just predict. OK… i am fine with that… new technologies invent new opportunities. What I didn’t expect (on both a personal and business level) is the asinine amount of white noise I was engulfed in trying to achieve the goals I set out for myself. I try to align my Facebook page to function solely on a personal level. (I only allow people I know and like on my page.) My Twitter account was established to discuss and follow photography and communication trends. My website, blog and Virb account all act as my marketing presence to cultivate interest in my photography through on-line channels. Each play a significant role in representing me personally and professionally.
The problem with that is that I spent so much time updating, following, and debating with my fellow peeps or tweets that I lost focus on what I was trying to accomplish. And then i shut it all off. I viewed the problem to be these channels of communication and I thought the best solution would be to just focus on my photography. But in doing so I realized a flaw in my argument in releasing myself from the clutches of the addicting on-line world. The realization is that the world is changing and that this is an extremely popular way of communicating. So I in effect, I took myself off the grid. (which isn’t bad sometimes… it’s like taking a vacation and not having cell service… you freak out but it feels good to get away)
I read an article recently that highlights a conversation that Brad Mays, the Senior Vice President of Digital Strategy at Fleishman-Hillard in Dallas, had concerning social media burnout and how to use it’s powers for good not evil. (Disclaimer: I consider him to be a friend as we had drinks on many occasions and we are facebook and twitter friends.. so that should solidify our friendship status!) He states that he found it more engaging to use Social Media trends to explore your interests instead of promoting yourself. Find ways to communicate with others that share similar interests and engage with them on a whole other level. I will post the article here. I encourage you to read what Brad had to say and apply it to your life… either personally or professionally. If you like what he has to say… then I recommend you stalk him on-line here. hehehe.. He is an interesting person. The business application, simply put, is to avoid blasting your message out to as many people as possible (I believe the equivalent to sidewalk hawking) and focus on tailoring your message to niche groups that have similar interests as your product or service.
– so apply niche marketing strategies to social media and there you go– (again strategy simply stated)
I am going to adapt my on-line persona to what I have discovered through Brad and my findings and hope to get rid of the clutter that is so prevalent in trying to use all of the Social Media tools that are available.
Personal Note to other photographers: Please stop using Social Media to promote seminars to other photographers… I don’t need 18 tweets an hour about how cool you are and when the seminar is. If you want to persuade me to check it out… put up a post and let people who have attended give us feedback on if it was good or not… If you tweet it a million times, all I think is you can’t get anyone to sign up for it and that you are desperate to get exposure…
Next post will be pretty pictures, I promise!!! I really do…
Comment
Thanks for the nod, Will. Great points, and not just the ones you attribute to me.
You’re absolutely right that most of us are making this stuff up as we go. That’s not to say it isn’t based in real-world experience, but there’s the ability to experiment right now that we didn’t have before social media. And, I think that speaks to both the individual’s ability to experiment with how they use these channels and a brand or bisiness’ ability to experiment with how they connect with individuals. And, what I’ve found to be true is that how we use these channels will continue to evolve. One evolution I see is the need for focus. Most of us are getting over the novelty of social media, what I call the Oprah Affect, and need more of a reason for being out of those channels. That reason for being may be connecting with auto enthusiasts who love Cameros. Or you might have an interest in pies - there is a nich out there for you. Or, like me, you might want to start a community devoted to taking pictures of beer. Whatever your passion, there’s a growing community in social media for you.
Now, at the end of the day we all need to earn a living. So, how do you translate the power of the niche into a social media strategy for a business? Maybe we can discuss that over a beer …
posted by Brad Mays on December 8, 2009 @ 5:38 pm