Using Social Media to Watch Your Back
Some of you might know that I recently co-authored a book called Beyond Blogging, which launched on the 28th of December. The book was a success, and was plastered on blogs all over the web.
All of that sounds good so far, but there’s a sidebar to this launch that a lot of people didn’t get to see. The part that felt for a time like trench warfare, even though on the surface it might have looked like smooth sailing.
Giving People a Voice
Social media gives people a voice, which is awesome. Mike and I never expected everyone to love the book, but we had no idea we’d face as much animosity as we did.
As great as it is for everyone to have a voice, there’s a downside…which is that people can use social media as a pulpit, from which they can act in a manner that they wouldn’t were they face to face with their target.
Logic Doesn’t Work Here
These people can’t be dissuaded with common sense, or logic. They aren’t interested in common sense or rationale; they simply want to pick a fight, because they know that you have more to lose than they do.
Social Media Monitoring
Thanks to solid social media monitoring strategy, we were able to see all of these attacks coming, and defend ourselves where applicable. Using a combination of Twitter Search and Google Alerts, we actively sought out the detractors on every blog, Twitter feed, and website that we could.
I believe, that as a business owner, you are entitled and obligated to defend your products. I don’t think you should ever be on the attack, or put yourself in a position that marginalizes your authority, but you should spend time actively defending the truth.
Are you going to convince everyone that they are wrong? Of course not…people are allowed to be disappointed with your product. However, you do deserve a chance to put your best foot forward to prospective customers, which you can’t do when the haterade is running rampant on the web.
The Other Side
I don’t mean to say that everyone with a voice is a belligerent or abusive customer that must be dealt with. During our launch, Mike and I met a lot of people that made comments, both good and bad, about our book.
By being there for chat though, it gave us the opportunity to troubleshoot issues and improve on the fly, while planning for future upgrades and implementations. We’re thankful for the social media voice that the responsible customers were given, and made use of. Without that, we would have been marketing on an island.
However, knowing that there will always be a small amount of irrational response to a product or brand is part of the game that you need to get used to, and being able to use social media to watch your back is an important part of the process.
The comments will be there regardless of your action in defending them, but in that defense, you get a chance to highlight the truth, while keeping the bullies where they belong…which is far away from your business.
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