Thursday, January 15, 2009

Social Media; a Means to an End or Vice Versa?

Whilst reading an article by Chris Brogan earlier this week, I noticed a rather interesting comment by Nicky Jameson. The thought behind the comment was simple yet intriguing; instead of focusing on the potential outcomes recognizable through the social media, we have instead become overtly distracted by the platforms themselves, be these blogs, microblogs, or social networks. This is bad.

All to often, we find ourselves overly concerned with the instruments used to convey the message, instead of focusing on the message itself; a fact reiterated to me by Brogan himself incidently earlier this week. As some traditional organisations struggle to find their place in a 'Web 2.0' world, it is ultimately the object of their attention that will influence the degree of their success or otherwise in 21st Century business. Is their aim to get that oft discussed corporate blog up and running by Quarter 2? Or is the aim something more meaningful; like the establishment of on ongoing dialogue with the customer in the locations which they deem necessary? Will their strategy adopt a rigid structure, requiring that decisions go through several boards and panels before a solution is obtained, or will it be more fluid? Is the focus on catching up now, or being ahead of the game in the future?

I can almost guarantee you that one of these strategies will instigate substantially greater returns; I'll leave it up you to decide which of these it is.

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1 comment:

  1. Hi Chris!

    It's often clear to me that companies are concern in not missing the buzz. Most of them just NEED to be involved with whatever gets media coverage or attention.

    It's a good start have them to notice that Social Media has an important spot and it is a great tool.

    But it's just a downhill if done wrong and with bad intentions.

    Maisa

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