We tend to work best where we have a client that understands that something important is happening in the way user behaviour is evolving online, but that they are unsure as to how to start or even what to do.
The first thing as to understand is that although social media is free at the point of engagement - it can turn out to be far from free - Dan Martell from imediaconnect has a really good article - http://www.imediaconnection.com/content/27981.asp - on this. That everything is free is also a temptation to try everything out. In many ways this can be worse that not doing anything as the message gets diluted and confused, platforms are seen as not working and are abandoned half finished (the issue with this is the amazingly persistent memory the internet has! Your half baked experiment on Blogger may be around for very much longer than you would like - and what message does that send out to potential clients?
So here is a five step plan for developing a strategy that moves your web presence forward and ensures that you are communicating with an increasingly connected and interconnected audience.
1. Research and assess.
Don't rush in! Make sure that you have had a good look at what your competition is doing, the best examples in each platform and a good idea as to which platforms are most relevant to you.
2. Be realistic.
Your time and resource is not infinite, dont kid yourself into believing that you can service all platforms, start with what you enjoy. This is more likely to be something that you will regularly update. This is vital, updating a blog every six months or so can actually work against you, ensuring the platforms have regular, frequent updates will ensure that you have a noticeable heartbeat online.
3. Be sceptical, but be positive!
Make sure that you read through everything you write with sceptical eyes - why would anyone want to read this? Is it useful, is it engaging, pretty common sense stuff - but it is amazing how often I read articles and tweets that are either so personal as to be slightly wince inducing or so esoteric as to be baffling! It is tempting to get a little Victor Meldrewish with blogs - its human nature that to criticize is easier than to praise, but try and be positive and uplifting!
4. "Only connect"
E.M Forster had it right in more ways than he realised! Ensure that all your platforms are connected and that you are connecting externally, each connection is an important part of your overall online structure - your skeleton.
5. Engage!
Meanwhile life goes on...try and integrate these platforms into your life within and outside of work - a good idea is to install Tweetdeck - http://www.tweetdeck.com/ - on your phone. In this way you will be constantly connected to those writing stuff that is interesting and relevant to you all the time, responding to blogs, tweeting, retweeting etc... will become second nature to you. Like so much in life the more you do it, the easier it becomes!
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