(Atlanta) It’s becoming a cliché that “you never know what will happen at The Social Shake-Up Show.” Yet the cliché fit last week’s convocation of social media communicators here. Had Socrates been among the 700 Shakers he might have uttered a form of the aphorism attributed to him: “I know that I know nothing.” Translated in a more popular form: The wise person is the one who knows there is much to learn about social media.
Not that the 90 speakers failed to impart many trenchant lessons during the 3 days; they did, as you’ll see in this story. Yet many of the most compelling takeaways emphasized mixing social with basic tenets of PR and communication, including avoiding the urge to answer a question when you lack a solid answer. A more authentic response to such a query is to admit, “I don’t know.”
Influencers Get Perplexed, Too
For example, during a closing general session panel about influencers, the influencer Shaun McBride, better known as Shonduras, told the audience even successful influencers are flummoxed at times. The biggest misconception about influencer relations, he said, is every creator and influencer knows what she or he is doing.
“The majority [of influencers] are just really lucky to be where they’re at; they make exciting content and...focus on click bait, numbers and views,” he said.
Even more important for brand communicators who are employing influencers, Shonduras said, “[Influencers] will check all the boxes that you give them without actually promoting your brand. That’s why influencer marketing is the Wild West. It’s getting better and better, but you can still get burned.”
Influencer
Another tip:hashtags, Shonduras added, will not sell your product. “It’s going to make you look branded and mechanical.”
Influencer Brian Fanzo, CEO of iSocialFanz, agreed. “Getting a hashtag trending is the biggest crock that there is,” he said. “I use hashtags as the glue to the conversation that brings people in. Using hashtags as the metrics for valuing an influencer is a crock.”
So how can brands win with influencers? Shonduras argued a symbiotic relationship between an influencer and a brand’s story is critical. “By accepting the brand, getting together and building a campaign that makes the brand look like the hero, everyone wins,” he said.
Perfection vs. Authenticity
Another important takeaway: Nobody, including brands and CEOs, is perfect. It’s best to concede this, more than a few speakers said.
For example, Shonduras credited Snapchat for taking “us from this world of perfectly curated content and show[ing] us that raw and real are just as powerful, and often more important.”
The idea of admitting imperfection also was a central theme of Fanzo’s opening general session keynote. Referring to questions he says he repeats nearly every time he speaks, Fanzo asked, “Is there any brand that’s perfect?” The room was silent. “Is there any CEO who’s perfect and knows all the answers?” Silence again. Yet marketers, he said, are in the business “of building trust” and while it’s scary to admit your brand isn’t perfect, this is the image most often portrayed. Clearly, though, “people don’t trust brands or logos…so [be authentic and] stop trying to convey perfection,” he counseled.
Social video, where 81% of Internet traffic will be by 2020, can help, he says. Video “will bring us back to the authenticity of social media…and the coolest thing you can do on live video,” he says, “is to say ‘I don’t know’ to a question…it adds validity to what you do know” and makes you and your brand appear “more human...Perfection,” he says, “is a fairy tale.”
While Fanzo is a product of the digital economy, much of his philosophy seems close to traditional PR wisdom. Be yourself on social, whether you are a brand or a person, is central to his business strategy. “When my clients ask me how to answer a question [on social], I tell them to do it honestly. When you don’t know the answer to a question, say so.”
The Hidden Power of Social
CEO,
iSocialFanz
Another Fanzo thrust: Be social on social media. While it may sound obvious, a quick look at social platforms makes it clear some brands have missed the point or forgotten about it. Instead social media has become a marketing and sales portal exclusively. Fanzo emphasized to Shakers this is the wrong approach.
In fact Fanzo is so dedicated to the importance of brands as people connecting with customers on social media, he argues “the power” of social media “is in being social.”
He urges brands to use social “to shrink the distance between us and our customers.” A key, he says, is providing experiences. “People are craving access,” to unusual experiences. Offer them those experiences “where they live,” Fanzo says.
For example, he’s excited about Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg’s push for “meaningful interactions,” even if it means people will spend less time on the platform.
Fanzo tells Shakers he loves Instagram “because it’s tough for marketers to mess it up...it actually pushes you to be social on social media.”
He also praises Twitter because it lets us “connect with people who don’t know us, like us or need us.”
The concept of being social on social media and interacting with large numbers of people on a more intimate level than previous forms of communication allowed is central to Fanzo’s view of change. Digital media, has changed communications so radically that many brand executives need to be eased into it, since change scares many people, he says.
Executives who are comfortable with older forms of communication need to be educated about social’s ability to conduct a dialogue with customers. Such education, he says, can be “as simple as [having] a conversation” with a senior executive or a customer.
Many executives, he says, “are a lot like” the lawmakers whose questions of Zuckerberg last month on Capitol Hill seemed so ill-informed. Fanzo’s message: Shakers and those in social need to inculcate social’s resistors and the ignorant, but do so gently.
...But Personal Relations Top Social
On the other hand, he argues in favor of the importance of personal relations over platforms: “Social media was not built to replace a handshake,” he says.
The principles of authenticity and honesty on social media also ran through the closing keynote of influencer Nathan Pirtle, CEO of Work With The Coach. “I don’t know everything,” he told Shakers. “I want to know what other [companies] are doing, how they are growing…get rid of the idea that you know everything…and listen to what people are saying...you get all your information from people…even people who don’t look like you…talk to all of them,” he says.
To Pirtle, compiling peoples’ thoughts is what’s commonly called data. And while he discounts “the brilliance of analytics and data,” as opposed to interacting with people, he advises, “Use the [free] analytics you have” that’s available.
Part of Pirtle’s message also is in concert with Fanzo’s idea of connecting with people on social. Pirtle emphasizes, “I like to know people before I throw content into their face.”
The key to Pirtle’s business also goes back to the concept Fanzo discussed of making human connections on social. “I think,” Pirtle said, “about what value I can give people…love, inspiration, motivation.”
‘Field of Dreams’ Marketing is Broken
Owner,
WorkWithTheCoach
Another tip: brands should allow influencers to use the social channel that works best for them. While some Shake-Up speakers insisted Instagram was the platform for influencers, it’s clear influencers have their favorites and know where their audiences are.
Fanzo says people “will not come because you build it...you have to go to where the conversations and audiences are.”
And lest you think all his advice is soft in nature, he notes “If your posts are lacking engagement, it’s probably because they are not engagement-worthy.”
Pirtle likes Twitter because it allows him to better control the conversation. “It’s all about how you follow, whom you target and the conversations,” he said. “I try to stay away from all the political stuff and just reach the people who want to grow. Instagram hasn’t been great for me—I’m not that cute, I’m not a model and my messages are long. I can’t drop a one-minute video and get my point across.”
Fanzo, meanwhile, uses Twitter lists to stay organized, but relies on podcasting to grow his brands. “My podcasting community is the most intimate community I have,” he said. “People come up to me and cry, give me a hug. I love podcasting because it allows the consumer to paint their own picture of the creator.”
CONTACT: @Shonduras @iSocialFanz @workwthecoach