How to Use A ChainsawWithout Cutting Off Your Leg

(and other social media marketing help)

Bill SeaverMicroExplosion Media

Thomas nelson pays for comments but ends up spamming in the end

3M post in notes issue

Bad office depot twitter account

The tide has come in...

January 2004 less than 2 million blogs

January 2005 6 million

January 2006 24 million

July 2006 50 million

March 2007 70 million

February 2008 112 million

September 2008 133 million

Source: Technorati

People are watching a lot of video...

March, 2007: 4.1 billion views

March, 2008: 11.5 billion views

November, 2008: 12.7 billion

March, 2009: 14.5 billion

(and the average viewer is watching almost six hours of online video per month now)

Source: comScore

Who's using social media?

76% of Americans are using social media90% - 18-24 years old

84% - 25-34 years old

76% - 35-44 years old

72% - 45-54 years old

62% - 55+

Source: Forrester Research

What about social media for business?

34% of Americans believe a company should have a presence in social media.

31% of Americans believe companies should not only be present in social media, but should interact with them as well.

20% of Americans feel a stronger connection and better served by companies when they can interact with them in a social media environment.

Source: Cone Business in Social Media Study, 2008

So how do you keep from cutting off your leg?

Online Shift

Old Internet was:Controlled

Distant

Corporate

One directional

New Internet is:Transparent

Informal

Collaborative

Conversational

Marketing Shift

Today you will be hit with 4,000 ads/promotions (almost 1.5 million per year)

Ads are about the advertiser. Content is about the consumer.

"Who" verses "How Many"

Speaking the language of smart

Get prosonal

Attitude Shift

Arrogant Marketers... assume consumers are interested.

assume consumers care.

dont mind interrupting peoples lives.

promote their product or service as the best even when they know it isnt.

Humble Marketers

Wont create things consumers dont pay attention to anyway.

Speak the language of smart.

Seek to add value to the people they want to reach.

Know that interruptions become annoyances and annoying companies dont succeed.

Are interested in protecting the interests of the people they want to reach and the interests of their company or client.

Mindset and the Technology

Bill SeaverMicroExplosion.comTwitter: billseaver