It's one thing to convince the 'powers that be' that social networks are worth a gander for brands, but it's another to reason for social media time while you're working. A recent conversation with a PR friend led me to consider how our own agency is embracing social media and if we're actually being paid for the hours we put into it.My short but rather long answer: everyone is open to social media, but has yet to rationalize long hours spent on Twitter and writing blog posts. I don't blame anyone for being turned off by what could be considered a very unconventional approach to reaching reporters and building relationships. I, too, oftentimes find Twitter as nothing more than a coffee shop where people are shouting "Smell my coffee!" and the aromatic tweets draw one or two or a couple-thousand to the community table. Unfortunately, not everyone will get the same welcome reception-- especially if you're not popular enough. To become popular, it means hours and hours and hours of @-kissing and finding unique and original content all the day long.
Luckily, you can rest assured that social media is not about popularity. It's not about who says something bigger or better. What it boils down to is relationships, so if you're frustrated that Joe Schmo with 7,000 followers isn't responding to your @ reply referring to his recent social media blog post, don't worry. Focus on building the relationships that matter to you and your agency/organization/corporation, and I bet you soon enough your skeptical colleagues will take a second long, hard look in considering what they're missing out on-- while on the clock.
What's your organization saying about your time dedicated to social media?