Social media has fast become the big boy in Internet marketing. From what started as personal journals (blogs), to friend networks (friendster), and other social platforms is now deemed as; social media marketing – leveraging close relationships to communicate your brand and product benefits to others. In simpler words, word-of-mouth marketing – the electronic way.
Social media monitoring
Or, as a friend called it; spying, is when you want to track select words or phrases from the Web. Social media monitoring solutions are a Google way so I’m not going to mention names here. And agencies use these solutions to compile reports to brief you.
Now, for this task I can understand the need to outsource. Because not only will you have to compile reports but you’ve to understand what’s happening and how should you act upon it. Therefore, a social media consultant is preferred.
Social media management
This is the part which I’m concerned about. Can an organization outsource the management of their social media interactions?
Working closely with David in Level5, he brought up a point which stuck to me ever since. It was how we preferred to train the marketing team to manage their own social media than to outsource it to us at Level5. And I believed it with good reason because:
- How d’you expect us to answer your customer questions?
- And if we couldn’t, how long will you take to give us an answer to give them?
Worst part I believe is when you outsource your social media, if the agency isn’t an existing user of your brand, the tone and passion communicating with your customers would be different.
Good copywriting can only maintain it’s invisibility to a certain degree. Like a person, you can only hide behind a mask for so long before your mistress realizes you’ve not left your wife for her.
So, why are organizations still looking to outsource their social media management? You tell me.