Earlier on in the year, I commented on Jason Baer’s blog about the harsh reality of too many marketers and PR practitioners flocking to one social network or blogging space in order to claim it a results-driven specialty for new business. While fail whales are now even more common on Twitter with its overall visitors’ base reaching 100+ million, Friendfeed remains “unbeached” with its stellar ‘rooms’ platform. But let’s not talk about the many marketers online who arrive in droves at the next best thing; rather, let’s talk about what so many aren’t doing and should be—in order to provide a social media point of differentiation.Conceiving your own social media tool, much like Fallon has recently done with Skimmer—with the help of Adobe Air (hat tip to @bbellx for showing me this). This application is “designed to streamline, beautify, and enhance the experience of participating in your most frequently used social networking activities. It improves upon your day-to-day interaction with multiple social networks, removing distractions and providing a rich experience that is particularly suited to multimedia content.” Sounds nice, huh? That’s because it is. And what’s really great is Fallon can go into a new business pitch with this trusty, owned and operated tool.
Fallon hasn’t been the only agency of record who has jumped on board with being the "firsts.” Waggener Edstrom announced earlier in the year its twendz application. This budding technology allows for the exploration of Twitter conversations and sentiment. "As the conversation changes, so does twendz by evaluating up to 70 tweets at a time. When new tweets are posted, they are dynamically updated, minute-by-minute." You can choose to make the API work even faster by simply moving the bar over on the tracking meter. That way, you see updates every second. What a great thing for businesses worldwide!
Monetizing your agency’s custom groups or social network sites. With the amount of FREE tools used to build your own social network, aggregate video content, blog comments, discussion threads, and posts—it’s easier than you think to cash in on what you’ve created. If I told you what Axiom has up its sleeve for several of its LinkedIn trade groups, I’d probably have to tar and feather you. But if you’re curious on self-monetization, here are some ideas:
- Using Ustream.TV or Justin.TV to host a chat room with industry specialists or analysts talking about your client’s product. Leverage your existing fan base that you’ve already created via conversations on microblogs or discussion boards as your first “Sign me up!” numbers. You might also think of getting your chat backed by some corporate sponsors that nicely supplement what your client is doing and how they’re positioning themselves. That way, everyone gets Web exposure.
- Invite fans of your Facebook Page to be part of your street team where they’ll go out and promote products and services for the clients you work for. Invite new business prospects into the venture with a small fee. Yes, this may be a reality sooner or later, if not already… Olson + Company does something similar in-house with its street teams.
- Or, you could create a massive e-mail distribution service akin to HARO, charge buckets for pay-for-say advertisement, and reap generous rewards from those you’re helping out AND those who are fans of your media service. Have you seen lately how Shankman has been cashing in on HARO?! “What’s Hot on Haro”, multi-faceted sponsorship, and a whole slew of partnerships. (Yes, you too can be Peter Shankman. Well, maybe not.)
Go BIG or go home
While it may be strange to start thinking this way, start thinking BIG. Why? Hasn’t it occurred to you that the innovators of these social networks are nothing but BIG thinkers and dreamers? Who ever thought there’d be a way for online users to connect so quickly with their personal and professional interests in real-time, what’s really on your mind? “Get to the point!” fashion? Twitter has made what we’ve always wanted to say to long-winded friends and acquaintances a reality. Who ever thought that I, Tim Otis, would get to hear your comment on the Daily Axioms blog the minute you said it? Disqus (pronounced "discuss") did.
If you’re not into BIG social media ideas and monetization principles, you'll be hard-pressed to land a client interested in social media exploration—and that’s a reality for the future – if you don’t move away from conventional and traditional approaches now. Go ahead and jump on every social network, but where are the results in that—if not for a couple of solid, will-stand-by-you-to-the-end relationships? Turn your focus to thinking BIG in terms of monetization rather than a propensity to accrue 10,000 followers on Twitter or 500+ connections on LinkedIn.
Remember, your clients are looking for new ways to drive visitor traffic on their site that will result in consumer trial or purchase, or sales leads in general. How are you differentiating yourself here? Not there.