| design58 | social media consultancy | huddersfield, west yorkshire, uk

Are You comfortable?

Comfort zones are fantastic but they make people less creative and innovative in what they do whether at work or at home. More and more I am meeting people who seem unsure of The Internet [social media] and that has brought me to consider my thoughts and passions and experiences of the past 29 years.

As a performance artist I worked specifically as a ‘living sculpture’ [1986 - 2001]standing practically motionless up to 8 hours a day on a plinth, on the street, in corporate circles, galleries, shop windows, hotels, nightclubs wherever. What relevance has this to social media? Everything, as the whole performance is about engaging, creating interaction, reaction and participation but above all audience analysis. I didn’t just stand there I had to work out what to do with who and when and where to make the whole crowd work with and for me. Just like anything on the internet where people are involved they won’t just come to you through Google, better to specifically find those you want to talk to and save time and money. But as you know people don’t [some people] seem to like this and so become aggressive.

Back to performing I literally put myself on a pedestal to be knocked down the idea wasn’t for support and applause but to see what people did when confronted with something outside of their everyday life no make up no cistume just a 3 piece suit and skiing goggles. Most applaud and support those unsure turn gradually violent verbally and physically. Not all got to me as the self censorship of my audience overruled the minority who were negative again this can relate to online activity.

Recently I have seen and noticed more people worried about what to do online; usually it falls back to being out of their comfort zones and having to consider relearning skills. That is something I have constantly done since 1981 as everything changes and we should with it, the internet will never sit still. Linked In won’t sit still neither will Twitter or Facebook that’s why we need to be flexible and share information not be competitive hiding the crown jewels becasue someone else will be sharing them. Instead learn to collaborate and move forward.

So yes beware some people will be out to trip you up, simply because they are uncomfortable. Trust those that are around you and connected to you. The engaging relationships will last and won’t go away, what I have learned over the past 29 years does work simply because I have focused on people and understanding their needs not mine.

Offline social media……..

With social media being so popular are their logos and posters in bars, stores, club and other public places where you spend time?  I was in a Starbucks recently and absolutely no sign that they had any presence on Facebook yet we are all aware when we are online of how connected they are to their customers.

Why aren’t brands connecting offline and online, its an easy thing to do knowing virtually all the customers have some contact with Facebook, Linked In, Twitter and You Tube through any given 24 hour period.  All it needs is a logo or banner to signify and stimulate the connection in the customers mind.

Most people can connect, follow or like there and then on one of many hand held devices or via laptop. I find it intriguing why on and off line seem so far apart in many businesses plans.  Unlike Nordstrom in USA who have actively encouraged staff to casually make people aware of their Twitter profiles.  This post on Web Ink Now shows how logical, simple and personal it can be, as well as truly effective:

http://www.webinknow.com/2011/03/nordstrom-does-twitter-right.html

Another  reason for this post is to request your help too, if you’re out and about and do see a logo, icon, banner however creative or not.  Could you think of us and post it on our facebook wall? We want to get an idea and flavour of what people are doing around the world, or not doing.

http://www.facebook.com/design58

Thanks.

Just using facebook for personal contact?

I hear business people saying they use Linked In and Twitter for business, then Facebook for personal contact with friends and family. Is this really what they are doing or have they bypassed why Facebook is being used effectively to connect, network and share information by approximately 600 million people.

So you’re on Facebook just for personal contact with friends and family [no problem]you have all your privacy settings adjusted so only they can see what you do. What happens then when a friend posts a video by their favorite band, do you click ‘Like’ or add a ‘Comment’? I would say the answer to that is yes, but not all the time. Why not all the time, the same reason you don’t join in every conversation you hear from leaving the house, entering the office, buying a coffee and so on. The conversations you join depend on whether you have anything to say or on who is talking.

As we build up friends that we know and trust every now and then they will suggest to a ‘Facebook Page’ that they think you may ‘Like’. When you click through often there is more interesting insights into a celebrity, band, artist, organisation, charity, brand, business, service provider, friend who you are aware of and can now talk to. It would be a surprise if you click ‘Ignore’ rather than ‘Confirm’ all the time, why because there is content you like on these pages as someone has thought specifically about you when sharing their ‘Likes’. This personal approach is no mre than someone suggesting you buy and try a soap powder they use; once upon a time this could have been a conversation over a garden wall. All that’s changes is where the conversation happens.

Whether you talk about B2B or B2C I will suggest thinking about ‘People 2 People’, we buy from people not businesses and we buy from people who believe in what they are doing. As we go forward the online personal networks people have are becoming more valuable every day, through sharing information on platforms like Facebook businesses are able to connect with their customers, clients and communities.

By using Facebook personally it would be hard not to share information with your friends and family who also have friends and family and all of us like to share what we enjoy.  So are you really just using Facebook as a glorified email/message provider or to connect, share and learn more from the people you are connected with?

Social Media and Sex Pistols

Social media is influential in adding value to human communication aided by technology, 1970′s band the Sex Pistols were influencers of global cultural shifts that are still being seen today. Is this the right time to stop talking about social media and to start using it?

Throughout 2010 we have seen a massive shift in people jumping onto the fast moving social media train. Trying to understand it, trying to use it and trying as hard as possible to make it into something unbelievably complicated.  That done they are then in a position to re-brand and become an expert charging excessive fees to confuse people even more.  Some going  as far as having a Facebook page with an RSS feed of international social media sites like www.mashable.com , not engaging or inspiring.

Is it all a con; is there a risk for businesses using social media?

Of course there are genuine people ready to share their experiences and knowledge to help businesses develop an effective presence online.  By building a strategic plan which includes a policy and schedule the risks are not eliminated but found, dealt with and overcome.  After spending time monitoring activity on social media platforms there is still a definite need to relax and take risks. The first risk is simply being true to you; those doing so are generally the people who are influential and inspiring.

Don’t judge a book just by the cover
Unless you cover just another
And blind acceptance is a sign
Of stupid fools who stand in line
Like EMI
Sex Pistols, EMI www.sexpistolsofficial.com

The Sex Pistols initially didn’t last long but did influence people to be independent and creative which is embedded into society still today.  It gets regurgitated within the fashion and music industries regularly, always throwing up  gems along the way.  In business should we really just continue with what is accepted, or should we enable people become more engaged? This has definitely being seen online over the past six years.

Social media technologies are the most basic and effective form of communication, so why would you decide not to use it?  With over 2 billion people online globally it would be surprising to find a business that has no reason to use the internet.  The risk is worth taking but that risk to some is that their customers will see a personable and approachable side to the business they are dealing with, this should be seen as a chance to change perceptions rather than run and hide.

By engaging and building a long term relationship with the customer or client budget costs can be changed. There is still a cost, but this is focused on building trust and loyalty by delivering genuine and informative content. Thoughtful positioning of information to specific communities is cost effective and should be used alongside traditional methods. Within this strategy there are vast opportunities for monitoring activity to maximise time and effort and to encourage flexibility not complacency.

Even if this is just the beginnings of social media it’s time to move on and stop believing its magic, myth or mystery, we are simply communicating as we have done before.  The risks should be taken now, creatively and technically otherwise the next generations won’t be influenced or inspired other than to be corporate and grey.  Maybe that would be a good thing as we would then get innovation and creativity through revolution.

Pecha Kucha – Huddersfield 23.09.10