What will you say?
by PatrickMason
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I have been struggling to find a way to express an idea my own intuition is insisting is important. As organizations get further into social media, they will have to find their point of view, or voice if they are to thrive in the long term.
Most firms we speak with are tactically focused and want to dive into projects head first using our OASIS methodology to fast track projects, get the technology up and get going. However, this approach sometimes ignores the bigger question. After this project is over, what will you say to everyone you have now connected with?
While we do discuss this issue in OASIS under Sustainment, many firms leave the issue unresolved preferring instead to focus on the project at hand. If you are an organization focused on helping others, this is probably not such a big problem because your audience is naturally incented to listen. But what about private sector organizations? Those with self-serving interests that are not focused on helping others, but mainly on themselves and or their shareholders? How will they hold attention, and more importantly, what voice or point of view will they adopt to keep people engaged?
Because of the proximity effect that social media creates, how long will people be willing to engage with a company if all they do is talk about themselves, their products and so on? After all is said and done, I think one of the major challenges that most organizations will face in managing their social media programs is in finding and maintaining their identity, their voice and their point of view.
I have no Panacea, except to commit to drawing attention to this issue and making sure it sees the light of day in all of our projects.
Great subject, I found this right in the perfect time. I’m going to keep this blog bookmarked for future reference.