Posts Tagged ‘tweets’
What is a social media expert?
Wednesday, December 23rd, 2009
When most people think about social media experts a fair dosing of snake oil salesmanship comes to mind. Heck, a lot of people would consider me a social media expert and I regard the title with skepticism at best. Regardless of these hesitations, there are actual social media experts out there but the question is: what makes someone a social media expert?
In my mind there is only one definable trait to a social media expert: positive return on investment. I don’t care if the person tells you to send out one tweet a year or to shut down your Facebook account, if what they do provides a positive return on investment for your company, then I would consider them an expert! Whether the investment was a book, seminar or all-out social media campaign, if what they provided you made more money than it cost, they are experts.
So often people like to talk about the “right” way to use social media. They’ll talk about the newest social network that you just need to use, the exact number of followers you need to be important or the five rules you must follow if you want to be successful. And the majority of what is out there is very helpful but if the return doesn’t outweigh the time and investment, it was a pointless transfer of knowledge.
Actual experts will seldom tell you there is only one way to accomplish an objective. What an expert should do is craft a plan that connects, enthralls and turns consumer into customers. An expert should be able to realize that what works for one person might not work for everyone. An expert is someone like Wayne Breitbarth, who teaches about a formula to success and how you are the cornerstone of that formula.
With the dozens of clients that I have worked with I have had one that has not seen a positive return on investment. To him I am not a social media expert, thus why I seldom accept the title. For whatever reason though that client has stuck with me and I am dedicated to showing him a positive return. We will continue to shape and create a social media campaign that drives in qualified leads that turn into customers. If we were to continue with rigid adherence to what worked for my other clients, we would never be able to find him the business he needs.
Perhaps when I show that last client a positive return on investment I will be happy to call myself a social media expert, but until then, I am content with the title of my choice: social media artist. For I truly hope to meld and mold great social media works of art. I realize that the canvas and brushes may change but the output should not. For in this art form the output is a positive return on investment and that is a work of art.
Tags: Facebook, return on investment, ROI, social media, social media expert, social networking, tweets, Twitter
Posted in Opinion, social media | 1 Comment »