Does social media really push all the right buttons?

29Mar/110

Does social media really push all the right buttons?

Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter – we’re hearing more about how these are the essential tools for anyone running a business. In fact, we’re being told that these things are so important that people who ignore them won’t just be behind, they will fail.

But is this really the case? Panic-stricken MDs who are trying to handle paperwork, staff, production, marketing and sales are now desperately trying to find the time to update their status on Facebook, re-tweet a client’s message, and find some new business chums on LinkedIn. Or they’re paying someone else to do it all for them.

While it’s clear that we need to move with the times, and the internet presents a fantastic opportunity for a company who wants to broaden their audience, it is possible that we’re all getting so caught up with all these online trends that we’re forgetting about what’s really important.

At our recent Andover Expo, we learned about HooteSuite, a method of controlling all our social media endeavours from one (very wide) screen. We also heard that you can’t just write any old thing on these programmes, we need to think about key words, sentence length, and what you’re actually saying. We need to follow and be followed, and we need to not only update every day, but pay attention to what everyone else is saying. Don’t have enough time? I didn’t think so.

But the success of the Expo was in itself proving quite an important point. At both the North Hants and Andover events, people came in their hundreds for just a few reasons: to network, to generate new leads, to learn and to meet people. Many who visited already had appointments with individual companies, or wanted to see a specialist adviser about a franchising opportunity, or about pensions, or about business support.

Social media had definitely earned its place in broadcasting the event and letting people know where to find all these clever people, but it wasn’t enough on its own to make things happen.

One of the speakers on the day said: “All marketing tools are important, but they must be used as part of an intelligent mix. Some things don’t change, and you still have to be out there, in front of your prospective clients, in order to gain new business.”

Indeed, when it comes to Tweeting and Facebook-ing and LinkedIn-ing, it’s all very good at creating attention, but perhaps we shouldn’t consider social media as the be-all and end-all when it comes to creating new business. Perhaps we should see it as a handy tool, but not something we should spend all day, every day on – I’m sure clients would rather you were being productive, focused and kept busy running your company than updating your feed six times each day.

Marketing is crucial; there’s no doubt about it. Networking is equally vital. We all need new leads to keep our businesses going, and growing. But the fundamentals of business don’t change, regardless of how quickly technology advances. Business is about people. You have to spend time with prospective clients to build relationships. You have to believe in what you do, and conveying that passion is far easier to do in person. You have to work hard and realise that there are never any shortcuts to the basic formula. A bit of everything does you good, but don’t rely on one marketing tool solely and certainly don’t think that your business will fail if you don’t have time to make new friends on Facebook each night.

Instead, use every appliance in your toolbox to get you in front of people, but don’t underestimate the power of real eye contact and a firm handshake.