Day 9 - A new challenge - is social media an "Ineffective Fad"?

It's Sunday. A day of rest - for the weary maybe, but not me.  I'm all fired up. And I haven't even had caffeine yet.

After letting my cats in and out of the garage, (coyotes live nearby, so we don't let them out, and they love going into the cold garage...) I settled onto my couch, reading Providence Business News.  On page 7, there's an article titled "Don't dither, start a marketing campaign surge now."  Don't dither? A bit old school, but I read the advice from author Bill Welsh, to see what I can glean to create a surge in my own companies' marketing campaigns.

Develop a plan. Advertising. Publicity. Web site.   I'm with Bill on most of it.  Until his last point on social media, which I quote:

"The jury is still out on how effective the social media are in developing business...research Facebook, Twitter, and youTube and other social media through any search engine.  Evaluate the social media in terms of its potential to help your business.  You don't want to waste your valuable time on an ineffective fad, but you don't want to miss worthwhile opportunities either."

Oh, Bill.  I must disagree.  But as I start this blog post, I realize I don't know who Bill is, so I look for his website in the bylines.  He only provided an AOL email address, so I go to the Web and google him.  No luck.  Well, he must be on LinkedIN, right?  No listing for 'Bill Welsh' or 'William Welsh', or 'Welsh, Inc.' in RI.  Hmm.  Where's his website?  Maybe Bill needs some help with his own online branding, and he's probably a very knowledgeable marketing professional, but all I'm saying is that he probably should not have tackled this subject matter without personal experience with it.

What fired me up about what Bill wrote is that he is typical of the "old school" advertising set. Instead of understanding "the fads" in their industry, they plant seeds of doubt about their effectiveness, in order to cling to their own domain (advertising and public relations). Maybe your jury is still out, Bill, but in my court, the verdict is that your business will not exist (nor will any of your clients' businesses) in ten years - maybe sooner - if you do not embrace the social media.

It is public relations in real time. Online presence in these sites is what websites were ten years ago, but at warp speed. I mean, read Day 7 and Day 8 of this blog.  I put an idea online one day, and it ranks #4 on Google the next day. On a weekend day, I've had over 30 people read the post, and a handful have contacted me on Twitter and Facebook to say "Great idea!" and "Good luck!" It's a marketing dream!

I don't even have a website for this new brand yet, I'm still waiting on the trademark search to move that forward.  But I may not even need one.  The social media sites allow for direct customer communication, relationship building, word of mouth and brand loyalty.  And, best of all, they are FREE.

So instead of badmouthing Bill Welsh, I invite him to give the social media world a chance.  And I intend to prove him wrong.  I am making a bold statement here that my new business will be advertised EXCLUSIVELY through the social media.

I have already used Facebook extensively during the start up phase:

- to contact my attorney.  I don't even know Kas' email address. I just went to the Facebook app on my Blackberry while I was in my kitchen one day, and shot him a message.  A week later, we met to discuss the idea and get the formation papers, trademark search, and contract needs outlined.

- to contact suppliers and advisors - I set up meetings with my Facebook friends who I knew could play a role in this new business.  Because they knew me (and a lot about me as a person) by watching my posts for the past two years, they welcomed me with open arms and are opening doors for me in ways that would have taken months in the past.  My business idea came to me on December 16th, and not even a month later, I have researched costs, set up marketing events, made production contacts, lined up services, venture partners, product photographers and videographers to create my You Tube promos.  People I trust (and who may become board members) have already met or spoken with me, both to brainstorm and refine the idea and to provide ideas, contacts and advice. I may have even found some childcare help, which I will definitely need as this business takes off.

- to clear the pathways - I have meetings this week with my Facebook friends who work at the Secretary of State's office and the RI Economic Development Corporation to get their input on what I need to do at a city/state/town level to make sure I don't run into any nasty surprises. I also plan to find out what kind of assistance they can provide, to help me take this to higher levels more quickly.  I'd rather have the state on my side than working against me! I feel lucky to be starting this business in Rhode Island, which was recently listed as a place hostile to small business.  I hope we can change that perception, and know my FB friends will help me.

- to contact the customers - In the coming weeks, I will be launching the brand, and I will go join every Facebook fan page, Twitter feed, and LinkedIN group that is relevant to my market.  I will drive targeted, relevant traffic to my website, and should see orders and leads come in, if I do it right. Then, if I make those customer happy, they'll RAVE about me to their friends, generating more sales! Yes, by building awareness of my brand in these venues, my efforts will turn into actual sales.  Cash in the bank.  I'm talking about real money here, folks.  Dollah dollah bills, y'all... The stuff a business needs to survive and thrive.

In short, succcess in business is more about who you know than what you know. And while it takes time to develop a network of trusted friends, THAT'S what the social media can do for you. I've been building my network online for over five years, and now I feel like I'm sitting at the red light in a Ferrari with the engine revving, about to hit zero to sixty in the next 30 seconds.  It's marketing at warp speed.

It's going directly to the customer in places where they already are.  Not by getting a glossy ad in front of them seven times over the next seven months, but by talking to them. By joining their conversations, because as you know (and as I suspect you fear) they ARE talking. Why not get them talking kindly about YOU?

OK, I'm stepping off my social media soapbox now.  Time to go finish my business plan.  I'm going to reallocate the budget I had for print advertising.  Now I'm on a mission.  Thanks, Bill.  You just saved me a ton of cash. ;-)