MARKETING EXPOSED

F-R-E-E, that spells “free” / Credit report dot com baby . . .

First, I apologize for getting that song stuck immediately in your head.  Because there’s little doubt you automatically started singing it.  I mean, damn, it’s catchy.  It’s a great tune!  Hell, it’s a pretty strong campaign. 

If only it wasn’t actually a misleading and rather undisclosed truth. 

Have you ever logged onto the site to check your credit report?  I have.  And I quickly discovered something.  Oh, there was some information for free.  But if I wanted to actually access my full actual credit report, well there’s this pesky little 3-month subscription for which I had to sign up.  And pay for.

So much for ‘F-R-E-E’.

Well, we could draw a social media analogy and get that guitar-slinging Ren-Faire-dude above to sing almost the same song:

F-R-E-E, that spells “free” / Social me-dia sign up baby . . .

And we’ll end up with the same misleading, and rather undisclosed truth.  Oh, you can sign-up for free.  But if you want to actually achieve some effectual results from social marketing, well there’s this pesky little thing called TIME that you will be required to invest. 

And last I checked, whether it’s yours or that of your employee’s, time is not F-R-E-E.

An introduction to someone at a mixer with a quick hand-shake and exchange of pleasantries does not mean you’ve got a new friend.  Or a sudden new business advocate.  There is a process involved that requires energy, time, and effort.  And the same can be said – MUST be said – with regard to social marketing.

On Twitter you need to contribute to the conversations, be engaged, share information.  With a Facebook page you need to pay attention to, and respond to the comments on your wall, and continually refresh your page with information and responses.  With a blog, it’s all about regular contributions of content that is useful and/or compelling.  And all of this means a solid investment of time.

So, when you do all this, surely the “hugs” start coming free?

Well, there’s still more to truly effective social marketing then even just the time on the websites.  The sites allow you to connect and converse and collaborate and exchange.  But how do you start getting those “hugs”? 

There is a new term that has cropped up in this social marketing world: “freeconomics”.  Yes, as in, “F-R-E-E -conomics”.  It’s one of those shifts in business thinking that you should start trying to get your arms around.

This new shift in thinking (be sure to give me credit for resisting use of that insipid 80’s buzz phrase: “paradigm shift”) means that you demonstrate or prove your value by your willingness to give something away for free that you might once have sold.  Ouch.  That’s a tough one.

In retail, maybe you offer a product for free as a way to introduce new customers or thank existing ones.  (Remember the old “loss leader” strategy?)  In service, you could put on a free workshop that shows people how to do themselves the very service that you might otherwise sell!  (Building trust and assuming that there will always be a certain amount of people who, even though you show them how, still aren’t sure they actually can.)

Beyond these “freeconomics” tactics, social marketing can – or even should – involve taking those connections you’re building even further by finding other ways to bring face-to-face interaction.  Hosting a social event or taking an active role in a community or charitable cause, for example.

The point is this: There is a social marketing track-able cost of time, plus a definite cost of products or services or events.  You put forth these for free to truly make social marketing hum.   Keeping in mind that none of these strategies will result in overnight sensation.  Focus, time and consistency are all a part of the investment equation. 

Times are tight. Social media is hot.  But don’t get caught up in doing it just because it seems like it’s free. 

Traditional media gives you broad coverage of the market.  And you directly pay for the traditional media to do that.  Social media gives you one-on-one connection to customers within the market.  And though you don’t directly pay for the media, you sure do so indirectly in the actual time and tactics that grant you those connections!

F-R-E-E don’t spell free / Remember that going forth baby . . .

- Steve

Photo Credit “Free Hugs” – PutYourFlareOn