In my recent post on why PR industry leadership should to take up the gauntlet to reinvent the profession, I reference the ‘grudging accepters’ of social media.
That’s one of five stages I use in presentations to humorously describe the journey to test, learn and understand social media. Some people breeze through, others take more time and still others get stuck along the way and never advance to GO (getting on-board).
Here are the stages:
- Naysayers – Life’s been good. You’ve risen through the ranks, had conventional success and are now an IP – that is, Important Person within your sphere of influence. You’re not about to be swayed by the untested and new. Your mantra is passively aggressive: ‘that’s how it’s always been done…that’s how it’s always been done…’ Social media is a fad. It’s going to pass.
- Grudging accepters – You’ve read yet another article in MSM that talks about how social media is a game-changer. You heard the same hubbub about raves and young people a few years back. So you plug your ears. There’s no business case for it. At least not one you buy into. But you hedge your bets so you add social media to your suite of services, while taking every opportunity to trash and deny it.
- All-talk – You get that social media is important, but you just don’t have the time or inclination to actively engage with anyone other than your friends on Facebook. You’ve set up a Twitter account and lurk mostly. You’ve seen presentations on social media at various conferences. You’ve skimmed the surface enough to talk a good game: Bla-bla-bla…you’re good at pretending.
- Some action – You feel like you’re always playing catch up, RT’ing @mashable long after a new app is old news, reading blog posts after hours as opposed to when they’re published, commenting occasionally because you never have much to add (but actually, you do). You like the concept of curation but wonder how much time is involved. Hey, you’re almost there…
- SMAddict – You follow and are followed, friend and unfriend, share, create and curate content. 24/7 isn’t an expression, it’s your reality. Beta is your middle name. The dark Google+ circles under your eyes are a testament to that. Your online personality is way more engaging than you are IRL. You’re an addict. Now take a few steps back and reconnect with reality.
Does this sound familiar? What stage are you? If I look myself in the eye – honestly – I see a borderline number five and think 4.5 is probably a better place for me to be.
Martin, as always, a thought provoking note. I think you missed the category I am in – call it six. I recognizes the value of various social media channels and that the value proposition depends on many factors including who you are and what you do.
I doubt I will ever be a five. The value/time measurement of participating in social media scores below a variety of other things I do with my business time. An hour with a client in person is always going to be more rewarding than an hour tweeting or reading tweets.
Thanks Guy. You make a great point about how you value your time. Ultimately, that’s the personal choice each of us has to make. And as far as six goes… I’m open to that.
Hi Martin, I’m still stuck at 4. It’s easy to get engaged when business is a bit slow. But how do folks (especially in small businesses) manage when work is really busy? I’m still trying to find my way by bookmarking blogs I like and setting aside some time every day to review them. But as much as I’d like to do more, I have to admit it’s tough.
That’s a great question – time is a premium for everyone. I think it comes down to picking and choosing where you want to be active and putting some time away. That’s easier said than done… sometimes we all get lost in the stream of social consciousness…
Since I posted my question, I’ve given this issue a lot more thought. When time is at a premium it really comes down to why you want to use social media and how you want to engage with the people you meet there. I use Facebook for personal stuff only and Twitter for my business (some personal stuff usually trickles in). As part of the latter, I’m also reading relevant blogs in order to learn more. I’m hoping I’ll get to a place (soon!) where my strategy really gels and I go into more of a maintenance mode (while still being open to continuous learning and improvement).