Writing, Spelling, Grammar and Publishing

Social media is the perfect place to publish your writing. Whether it is a blog, a Tweet, a status update or simply sharing an article, you have created something for the whole world to see.

In its simplest form, social media allows us to publish content that we would like our audience to see & hopefully deliver information that is helpful and valuable. Our strategy is to form engaging Tweets within 140 characters or write stories as a blog post. Whichever way we we look at it, creative writing targeted to each social network is at the core of our marketing tools to increase our digital voice.

However, as much as you can teach people to use social media networks effectively, is it possible to teach people to write online content effectively?

Poor presentation, grammatical errors and spelling mistakes

Sadly, as we travel around our social networks there are many poor samples of writing that have been attributed to well know companies. Is this down to the copy-writing team? Or is this simply a community manager who really should know better?

A website or blog is often the first place that you visit to learn a little more about a company or business, so if your online content has many spelling errors or grammatical mistakes, then why should your visitors take you seriously? Even worse, add into the mix the spelling mistakes in your promotional Tweets and status updates and suddenly the perception of your business can reflect badly on your credibility.

You may have fantastic products, amazing services or great stories and news to tell, but if it’s badly presented, muddled or ill thought out then your readers will probably go elsewhere for their information. This is especially important if you’ve gone to the time and effort to promote your articles publicly on Facebook & Twitter.

The web never forgets

Journalists and newspaper editors are often told to write so that the average fourteen year old can understand it, but this doesn’t mean that your content has to look like a fourteen year old has written it! Just take a look how many times you see ‘there’ ‘they’re’ & ‘their’ used in the incorrect context while your Facebook statuses scroll merrily along. The biggest and most popular mistake in the 2013 social media spelling charts is that all time family favourite – your & you’re.

It looks really unprofessional and sloppy if you casually throw content out to the world without checking it. The fact that you may use a spellchecker doesn’t cut it either. The spellchecker doesn’t know the difference between their, they’re or it’s and its. Everyone that comes across your Tweets and blog posts notices it though and it’s rather embarrassing if your industry is to provide professional services.

Proof Read

If you don’t have anyone else to proof read your content then read out what you are about to publish. This will show mistakes if you have muddled the point of your article or have missed using the correct spelling and punctuation. If it’s difficult to read, then re-write it.

Have publishing standards

If you are writing articles on behalf of a company or business, then please do check the content that you are putting out on the web. Anything of poor quality will just diminish your credibility in the eyes of your readers and the company that you represent. If you don’t have a skilled writer in your team, it may well be time to consider employing one to help with your social media and online copy.

Is it time for a social media spring clean?

Summer is finally around the corner which means it’s time for a long-awaited spring clean.

All those warm winter clothes have to be put away, which means tidying up your storage spaces and cupboards. Inevitably you will stumble across long lost clothes that used to fit, or were fashionable … once! It’s rather satisfying to make way for the new and clear out the rubbish from time to time and the same can be said for your social media accounts.

It’s the perfect time to find out what doesn’t fit and what really isn’t in fashion anymore. This thought works nicely when you apply the same attitude to the social media accounts that you may have been running for a few years, but there are a few things that need to be considered before you start your social spring cleaning.

Evaluate Your Business Goals

Even before you start to think about your social media channels, look at what you are hoping to achieve with your current business plan. Your goals and aspirations may have changed since you first started using social media so sit down and take a good look at your business. For instance: Has your business grown? Are there more competitors now? Have you changed your original products? Where can you make improvements?

Of course, we are all different, but only you know the goals that are applicable to your business. However, it’s quite easy to find out which of your social media channels which have been driving traffic, discussion and sales. This should you give you a good idea of where to begin when spring cleaning your social media accounts.

• About You – This is one area that many businesses forget about. Your company description may have been written years ago on your social media profiles, but it has been updated on all your websites, printed materials and promotional items. Ask yourself when was the last time you updated this? Take a look at ALL your online presence and update your current mission statement and brand identity so it’s consistent across all your channels.

• Find those unused accounts -Did you once use Xanga? Did you fancy the idea of using Tumblr every day? Perhaps you were really excited when Pinterest came along and haven’t used it since last summer? Having accounts that are not used can look as if you don’t care and nothing looks worse than orphaned social media accounts. Remember they still show up in Google, so either delete these accounts or see if they are worth using again properly.

• Review your design – Are your profile images, backgrounds, avatars & cover photos up-to-date? Make sure your images are optimised to each individual platform and your branding is consistent on all your accounts. Also, make sure you are aware of new layouts that may be available. Google+ for instance allows you to have a larger header image than before, so make use of these changes. Ask your design department to bring your logos and branding up-to-date so that your logos look fresh and work on whichever platform you are using.

• Discover new social channels – Just because you’ve had platforms that didn’t work for you in the past there are many more to choose from that may suit your business perfectly. Your social media strategy isn’t just about Facebook or Twitter these days! You could try Google+ communities, which are growing in popularity for sharing knowledge around specific industries. You could explore new social video  tools such as Vine, or make use of the popular image sharing platforms Pinterest & Instagram which have worked really well for retail brands.

•  Involve everyone – Almost everyone has some kind of social media presence these days, be it a LinkedIn profile or a Twitter account. If you are the social media or marketing department, take a look to see how many other employees are active on social media and encourage them to help out. It’s often easy to pick your marketing department to write most editorial pieces, but maybe you have other employees that might come up with some innovative and interesting personal ideas for your blog. Take the time to check that everyone in your business has the correct branded email signatures with your social media follow/like buttons. The same can be said for promoting your social channels on new business cards.
  

Find the space for something fresh

It shouldn’t take long to review your objectives to help put the stepping stones in place to aim towards success, so take the time to find out what works, but more importantly, what doesn’t.  Your social media spring clean is just the same as tidying up your cupboards at home. If it isn’t fashionable, doesn’t fit anymore or you’re never going to use it again then remove the junk and find the space for something fresh and new.

Lawyers and social media – What the Dickens?

“The one great principle of English Law is to make business for itself” – Charles Dickens 

150 years ago the future was a blank canvas and the future was with technology. The invention of the electric telegraph meant that within decades of its creation, networks permitted people to almost instantly transit news and information across continents and oceans with widespread impact and thus the foundation of modern social networking.

Fast forward to the 21^st century and the world has moved on somewhat, with the exception of some lawyers.  It’s no surprise that the term ‘Dickensian’ has survived as a concept in to today’s modern world and the law firm. The nostalgic image of lawyers sat in a wood panelled office with flickering gas-lamps may seem quite a harsh cliché, but this archaic image still holds true in the eyes of many.

But let’s just go back in time some 20 years or so … The marketing strategy for lawyers was simple. If someone wanted legal help they would ask for recommendations by word-of-mouth, search for adverts in the paper or rely on the good old yellow pages. Remember those ‘Providing Legal services since 1870’ brass signs that used to adorn stuffy premises? Deep down lawyers may not want the ‘new world’ but the fact of the matter is, those nineteenth century brass signs from foggy streets shouldn’t exist anymore. The world has changed!

“We forge the chains we wear in life” – Charles Dickens

It is now 2013 and law firms have moved into the digital world with a website. However, if you look at most of these websites, the content follows the same ‘forged in chains’ outdated format from Victorian times. Once again, this isn’t helping the overall perception of the legal profession that is still living in the past, yet should be appealing to modern society.

Reports, studies and articles are everywhere about the rise of social media and its success to your business, but legal firms are often slow adopters of new online marketing strategies. A lawyer should be a trusted advisor, listening to the needs of your clients and offering helpful advice. Nurturing this relationship through suitable online channels should go a long way to building that trust.

Social media is networking in its most basic form and introduces you to people where a relationship could be beneficial to each of the parties involved. From a professional point of view it’s an excellent way to develop relationships with other lawyers. However, limiting social media in today’s digital world gives the impression of being a ‘dinosaur’. This isn’t a reputation that you can afford to ignore if you want to attract new law graduates and technology loving clients!

If you are happy with your business revenue whilst being cocooned in velvet and silk in your candle lit office, then I wish you well, but with the digital revolution still gaining momentum, would it not be wise to adopt an online social strategy? Your clients, and your competitors are doing it, after all…

And don’t be deceived that your target market are not IT literate. The biggest growth demographic in social media uses is actually from the over 55s. These are just the type of people who are searching and finding free online self-help services for their legal guidance, so can you afford to ignore this opportunity?

“You fear the world too much”  – Charles Dickens 

The bottom line is that it comes down to education of a law firms personnel. Once the benefits of social media are understood then the fears will simply tumble away. The key is to be just like Dickens and make a name for yourself by being a social ‘media’ reformer.

Improve your customer service not your marketing

It wasn’t that long ago, before the advent of social media that if you had an issue that needed to be rectified with a store or business you either phoned their customer help department or wrote them a letter.

Whether this was to complain or thank them for their service, both of these channels were viable contact points, but the response time could be many weeks until you received acknowledgment of the issue that you initially raised. However, In today’s social driven world, businesses have lost the control over the customer as it only takes one disgruntled customer on Twitter or Facebook to damage your brand image.

The whole point of social media is to encourage interaction and communication. We all know that if used effectively, it can be a great promotional tool to increase brand awareness and showcase your business, but users have become used to getting answers and feedback within hours of posting.

The truth about your customer care department

Customers don’t have the time to search the web for your customer help address and they don’t have the time to phone your call centre and wait in a queue to be served. They simply don’t see your support phone number or email. They just see your business on social media so they will complain on your Facebook wall or @ you in a Tweet for all to see.

Make customer service work for you

• Your social media customer care team should be listening what is being said about your brand online. It may be the case that you are automating your posts and broadcasting, but you should never neglect your profiles because there is a risk that negative remarks could be made and be shared within hours. There are many online monitoring tools and simple notifications that can be set up through email so you can keep track of activity.

• Your social media team should have plan of how to deal with problems.  They may be creating your marketing content, but also need to know how to handle a crisis.

• When an issue has to be dealt with a decision has to be made, whether it should be handled privately (via traditional channels) or, whether to consider going public where you can demonstrate that you listen & care about your customers and can create a positive outcome for your brand. As to whether you ‘delete or not delete’ the comment, It is considered poor form to bury bad press as this can lead to complaints going onto other social platforms and making the problem worse. Proving you can handle these situations and adding value for the customer is even more important than just creating informative and engaging marketing content.

• Review your business and see what the common issues are. Measure your customer satisfaction ratings and if there is a problem. Fix it!

A report by NM Incite in 2012 found that: 71% of those who experienced positive social care are likely to recommend that brand to others, compared to just 19% of customers that do not receive any response.

Social media isn’t just about marketing

As social media continues to grow, it is really important for businesses to accept the fact that consumers will turn to online channels to either complain about service issues and in many cases praise you. It’s very easy for your customers to go elsewhere if you fail here, so unless you get this point of your customer journey right whatever you achieve with your social media marketing can be damaged by your lack of care.

If you aren’t listening and responding to your customers then how do you expect continued loyalty for your business?

Stop focusing on Facebook ‘likes’

It amazes me how many businesses and companies are so devoted to increasing likes and gathering followers. Many individuals, and worse still, marketers are obsessed with the goal of ‘numbers’ that they get completely distracted by the business goals that they should be striving to achieve.

The amount of social media numbers of course have value, but by making this your sole objective in your marketing efforts is completely missing the point.

Facebook is not a popularity contest!

The number of likes you have is just a figure of how many people have been persuaded to click a little ‘thumbs up’ icon. In increasing cases this is by acquiring fans by other than natural and organic means. We’ve all heard stories of shady ways to increase your likes and marketing departments that have spent large amounts of money through promoted posts and adverts to achieve an impressive number. This means that all that money you’ve spent has achieved little more than making yourself look a little more popular. If you are operating a Facebook page for a third party, then you can go to the boss and say ‘Look what I’ve done, we have X amount of followers for our social media efforts’.  Ask yourself: Where’s the value and ROI in that?

Are these the likes we wanted?

It’s one thing to get hundreds, or even thousands of likes for your Facebook page, but are these people your target audience that you would like your business to engage with? Sadly, if you’ve been adding likes through unnatural means it’s possibly the last time you will ever see them. These people are unlikely to share, promote or engage with you even though they’ve clicked the like button. The whole point of having a large following is to get them to do something.

Provide quality content.

Now, in these days of Facebook EdgeRank, those who work hard to provide quality content for their fans to appreciate are rewarded. The genuine people who have liked your page are your biggest asset and should be treated as brand ambassadors to share and drive your message. Rather than focusing on the numbers, focus on providing value by delivering engaging content to your audience.  Don’t become obsessed with the misguided goal of increasing numbers as this isn’t the important part of your overall strategy. Make sure your social media efforts are more about the quality bottom line than immaterial pointless numbers to brag about.

Are the amount of likes, fans and followers important to you?

Why your clients don’t understand social media

Have you ever wondered why so many of your clients don’t ‘get’ social media?

It’s all too easy to understand why many ‘traditional’ or, dare I say it … Old fashioned businesses don’t grasp the whole concept of social media. It’s because they fire up the only business computer they have and search for the words ‘Social Media Marketing’ and suddenly 1,290,000,000 results appear. As we are all aware the top searches and first 9000 pages of Google for this query will be full of wordy definitions and marketing companies providing news, topics, articles, services & consultancy packages. Is it any wonder that Mr Jones, owner and proprietor of the small home crafts shop doesn’t have the first clue about what social media does?

As he opens up Wikipedia to find the description:  “Social Media refers to the means of interactions among people in which they create, share, and exchange information and ideas in virtual communities and networks’ or “a group of Internet-based applications that build on the ideological and technological foundations of Web 2.0, and that allow the creation and exchange of user-generated content which individuals and communities share, co-create, discuss, and modify user-generated content”  Whoa!  I think we can safely say that this would leave many people scratching their heads in confusion!

Now here’s the thing …

Mr Jones has been in business for 40 years and has been rather successful without the need for technology for most of those years, but now sends text messages and uses email every day. However, he has just signed up to Facebook to keep in touch with family on the other side of the country and has seen that it might be useful for his business and this is where the social media confusion starts.

So, to my fellow social media managers and marketers, here’s where, at some point we are probably all guilty of the same crime.

We just talk social media jargon!

As we start explaining what social media is, and what it can do, the client starts to become totally bewildered whilst our tedious industry language set piece begins to spiral into hyperbole. Before we know it, we start describing the benefits of a ‘demographically targeted content marketing strategy’ and ‘optimising SEO and keywords in your blog’ along with words such as hashtags, pinning, re-tweeting, link building, analytics, etc, etc.

Stop!

Take a step back and put yourself into the shoes of your client. They have a business or product that needs marketing, but do you have a feel for your client’s knowledge and perspective of this digital age?  They simply want to know that social media can build their business and make money! Trying to put social media into an easy to understand box is nearly impossible and as marketers we will continue to come across clients that really don’t have a clue what it stands for. In these cases, please do keep it simple and let’s all cut back on the vague, confusing industry buzzwords, jargon & hyperbole.
Me on Google+

Do you share content without reading it?

Social sharing buttons are now commonplace on every website and blog that we visit.

It’s now very easy to share content that we find on our social networks, but it’s also very easy to just to click a share button without actually reading the content.

Many people are guilty of sharing just for the sake of sharing, but others share because it makes them look more credible and valuable to their fans & followers. It’s often a case that a well written headline and opening description is enough to guess that the blog or article is suitable for your niche or industry voice. However, the well know phrase ‘You are what you Tweet’ couldn’t be more apt when it comes to curating & consuming content that you wish to promote.

If you open a link, make sure you take the time to read and digest what the article or blog is about. If it adds value to your audience or is related to your industry, then share away.  But if you are randomly providing links on just about anything, then why would I really want to keep you in my social circles if you are filling my feed with ‘spam’?

  A vitally important reason to be checking content before you click that share tab is the simple fact that there could be information in there that you really didn’t want to be associated with. Is it a potentially embarrassing article? Does it promote your competitors or rivals? Does it actually add value to your business, product or services?

But most importantly …

A share or retweet of a libelous subject could land you in legal hot water!

There have been legal cases in the UK about defamatory allegations posted on social media networks such as Twitter. These posts have then been shared increasing the damage and subsequent headaches that have arisen because of the capacity of Tweets to go viral very quickly. In essence, what you post or ‘share’ you are responsible for! The simple fact here is that because something is out there does not make it OK to repeat.

Making sure you are diligent in what you share could save you a lot of problems and in a number of cases a trip to court with your lawyers.

Your credibility on social platforms is constantly being judged by others in your network. This includes all your contacts and potential new ‘followers’ as to whether you are worth following or not. If you provide interesting & relevant content then you should become a trustworthy source of information which will have many benefits for your social sphere.

Are you making these social media mistakes?

Social media is now a necessity for every business. However, it’s essential to have a plan about how you want to use social media rather than just a ‘because it’s there’ approach and hope for the best. What many small companies and brands don’t think about are the mistakes that they are making on a day-today basis which ultimately could be costing them business and money.

 So, are you guilty of any of the following social media mistakes?

• You don’t have a personality

Having a personal image for your Twitter profile or Facebook page is important to increase engagement with your target audience. Social media is about relationships and people are attracted to having that with other people, not just some logo or brand image.  You are not Starbucks or Ford yet and generally people don’t like to connect with companies because they aren’t human.  People need to see that there is a face and personality behind your brand or business. There are plenty of places where you can incorporate your brand logo if you optimise your profiles correctly. How to optimise your profile. 

• You don’t separate your business & personal accounts

It goes without saying that personal views should not be aired on your business social media pages and conversely if you have personal profiles, no one wants to hear about everything you do in your office during business hours. It just makes you look dull and your clients may see that you really do have no life.  If you are at home or on holiday, then don’t be ‘at work’.  And, please don’t use the words ‘expert’ or ‘guru’ in your profile bio – Gandhi was a guru & David Attenborough is an expert.

• You are inconsistent

Social media is a fantastic marketing tool if used correctly, but one of the biggest mistakes is how many small businesses ignore their social media accounts for days on end then suddenly flood their feeds with many posts. There are several tools that you can use to schedule content and monitor mentions if you are away from your accounts.

Consistency should also apply to the content that you post. None of us mind the occasional funny picture or quote, but always provide relevant content to your audience. Posting content or ‘other links of interest’ which are off subject is a great way to drive people away if you offer no value to your fans or followers.

• You post the same content to every social media platform

Many people post the same content across multiple platforms. If you have fans that engage with you on these platforms, then they may start to get overwhelmed with the same information.  It’s lazy to link accounts and looks uncreative and spammy so people notice. Facebook is different to Google+ & LinkedIn is different to Twitter. Content needs to be targeted to the specific platform.   Why you shouldn’t post from Facebook to Twitter.

• You look like a ‘newbie’

Twitter has ‘followers’ & Facebook has ‘likes’   The amount of times I see the line ‘Please follow us on Facebook’ is now getting really annoying. As is the use of hashtags on Facebook. Hashtags are valuable ways to find content and specific content and are handy for organising events, but don’t just hashtag randomly in your posts. Save it for when it’s needed. Don’t Make These Top 10 Twitter Etiquette Mistakes!

• You look desperate

Having many fans, likes and followers is a good thing, but what use are such people that you don’t have a connection with? Social media is not about the numbers and it’s not a popularity contest. Forget about trying to control the people that follow you and focus on whom you chose to follow. And, please resist the temptation to ‘like’ posts that you have made on Facebook. It just makes you look desperate.

• You have been buying ‘likes’ or ‘followers’

Quality is always better than quantity. I have seen many a small business or individual  purchase superficial fans or followers. You should be focusing on the real clients or customers you have, rather than artificially inflating the numbers of followers on Twitter or ‘likes’ for your Facebook page. It isn’t going to get you actual business. Just people who have clicked a button. The only people who are getting business out of this are Facebook or third party client offering this service on Twitter. Once again … Social media is not a popularity contest and people notice. The hidden damage of buying followers.

• You don’t proof your content for spelling and grammar errors

Poor spelling and grammatical errors in your content reflects badly on your business. Nothing looks more unprofessional than spelling mistakes.  If a client sees that you can’t spell correctly in a social media post, then why would they have the confidence to deal with you? The fix for this is to always proof-read your content before hitting the send button.  How you are ruining your social media credibility with bad spelling & grammar.

Your on-line and social media reputation is part of your overall brand image. What goes on the web stays on the web and once you have damaged this image it’s hard to correct your past mistakes.

Adrian Snood: Social Media Manager Talkabout group. 0208 931 9300 sayhello@talkaboutgroup.co.uk

Me on Google+

Conducting The Social Media Symphony

Running a company social media account is similar in some ways to conducting an orchestra.

You may be viewed as a conductor, leading the orchestra so that the symphony that you are performing doesn’t just become a noise. Your job is to bring together all the instruments and provide a solution that connects and engages with the audience.

Your mission is to create harmony that pleases your fans and to make sure that you bring the music to life. All the instruments in this orchestra that you conduct play an integral role to the overall ensemble. If you are missing an instrument or part, then the final performance will flawed and your audience will be left wondering what the piece was about. Just as many visual images play an important part in your social media strategy, leave them out and the crowd will miss much of your overall message.

You have to make sure that everyone in your orchestra is playing the same tune and no one sticks out. Your biggest requirement is to listen to find out exactly what is happening! If you have a trombone or percussion section playing too loud all the time, then your audience will hate it. This has the same effect as just promoting sales messages all the time as you risk losing your audience because they get fed up with the cacophony.

Regularly change your repertoire and experiment to appeal to your influencers as this could be a source of great viral PR. Don’t be afraid to create the new just as Stravinsky did with The Rite of Spring. This piece caused a riot when it was first performed in 1913. Or John Cage’s controversial 4.33. Both these works are now recognised as some of the most influential musical works of the 20th century.

It may be great fun to play in the Facebook Symphony Hall or the Twitter Arena, but don’t forget about the smaller venues. Depending on the piece you are performing there could be a social site especially for your niche. The smaller the venue the less noise there is and there will be more scope to focus on a select audience of followers.

All composers want their vision to be performed and to connect with everyone, but not everyone will be appreciative of the work. You may have players that occasionally make a mistake or play wrong notes. Be aware that negativity and criticism can come from anywhere so be prepared to deal with this in an effective respectful, but direct manner. If you’re a composer yourself don’t just leave work unpublished in a draw. If you don’t promote your music in the public arena then all your work will just fall on deaf ears.

If your audience like what they’re hearing then they will come back for more. They will get to trust and respect your orchestra so your conducting and reputation will grow.

Adrian Snood, Social Media Manager conducts the social media symphony

Who Cares What Social Media Is?

Have you ever stopped for one moment to think what social media is?

A digital broadcast service?  A tool to gain clients?  Sharing pictures of your cat?

Let’s just look at what social media is, or what Wikipedia kindly defined social media as…

Social media employ web- and mobile-based technologies to support interactive dialogue and “introduce substantial and pervasive changes to communication between organizations, communities, and individuals.”  Social media are social software which mediate human communication. When the technologies are in place, social media is ubiquitously accessible, and enabled by scalable communication techniques.

Is this really THE definition of social media in 2012?

No doubt there are many individuals battling and interpreting the definition of social media in the edit pages of Wikipedia, but does it really matter how we describe these two simple words that when combined together have had a dramatic impact on the world today? I have to explain what ‘social media’ is nearly every day to a broad spectrum of people and businesses and it’s always really hard work.

Trying to put social media in an easy to understand box is nearly impossible. We are all different and we all have our personal views, issues, morals, goals & desires. For me, it’s about keeping in touch with friends and family and in my line of business, marketing. After all, I wouldn’t have a job if it wasn’t for these two words, so for each and every one of us the definition of social media will be different. If you just use Facebook to share your holiday photographs from Scotland with uncle Bob, then great. If you use Twitter to tell jokes and share funny cat pictures, that’s fine. If you blog about your hobbies then it’s a fantastic platform to share information and tips for people with the same mindset as you.

However, it’s not going away soon, that’s a fact. Turn on the radio and someone has made a controversial statement on Twitter & news of a disaster travels in seconds around the world because of the immediacy of it. We all have mobile devices and can instantly say what we want, when we want to whoever we want. Social media has a reputation for enabling the concept of free speech around the world and there are thousands of debates about democracy protecting free speech, but that’s not the point of this post.

It’s the modern online age and technology has taken the world by storm. We are all plugged into this modern age and we can all have our say about anything.

How & why we use social media is up to us so does it really matter what the definition is?