Presented for Montreal Girl Geeks, January 2013 http://montrealgirlgeeks.com Red Bull, McDonald’s, Starbucks. These are just a few brands that fully take advantage of social media as part of their overall business strategy. In an age where voicing opinions and connecting online are second nature, social media has now become more essential than ever as a way to research, create relationships and shape brand perception. However, what does it take to employ social media beyond a local business level, when there are dozens of markets, thousands of employees and millions of conversations to manage worldwide? What does it take to do it well? And even though all the other kids are doing it – is social media really worth investing in? Together we’ll discuss what enterprises need to consider before embarking on a social media journey, how that journey requires Social Media to become an integral part of a multinational’s business and marketing plans, what it means to create a truly global strategy, and some tools and guidelines to get there.

1. PLEASE
LEAVE YOUR
ROBOTS AT
THE DOOR

2. MAYBE YOU
SHOULD GET
A REAL JOB.
“Isn’t your job
just being on
Facebook all
day?”
2.

3. No. That’s why this presentation is also called:
Why your average social media
user is not necessarily a
social marketing expert

4. First things first…
What is an enterprise?
A large corporation
with a business
strategy based on
the results of
different parts of
the business
working together.

5. “Marketing is now
democracy on steroids.”
Marc Pritchard, Global Marketing and Brand Building Officer for P&G

6. There are hundreds of social networking sites,
which can create thousands of connections for a user.
6.

7. For an enterprise, social media will create
millions of connections.
7.

8. Manageable
Horrifying

9. So…
why should brands
be on social?
 To increase brand awareness
 To be a part of conversations that are
happening anyway
 To direct brand perception
 To maximize brand loyalty
 To demonstrate brand values
I’M GLAD
 To add value to the lives of fans YOU
ASKED!
…and hopefully that will lead to users
purchasing, or encouraging others to
purchase more products.

10. “ The mistake most
companies are
making is that
they are… using
[social media] as
an opportunity to
sell stuff. It’s
really not
designed for
that.”
Howard Schultz, Founder,
Chairman, President and CEO of
Starbucks

11. What’s the
difference
between the
way I use
social
media…
11.

12. …and the way
it’s used at an
enterprise
level?
12.

13. 1. Joining a social
network is a big deal.
13.

14. While the average user can decide to join a social
networking site sporadically…

15. A Brand Cannot:
 Join a social
channel just to
I HATE
leave it
NOT
BEING A
JOINER.  Join a social
channel, then
use it incorrectly
 Join a social
channel, then not
use it at all

16. 16.

17. 17.

18. 18.

22. An enterprise needs to
determine the following
before joining:

23.  How are we going to use that?
 What’s going to be that channel’s purpose?
 How will it work with the other channels we
currently have?
 How can the channel help us reach our
business objectives?
 Do we have the resources for another
significant commitment?

24. Why is it a significant
commitment?
Isn’t following a planned publishing schedule enough?
Because when the
[blank] hits the fan
on social, it really
hits the fan.
24.

25. Social media at the enterprise level
requires a solid foundation & structure.
25.

26. 2. Two-way dialogue is
suddenly unnatural.
26.

27. I’M SORRY TO
HAVE TO
TELL YOU
THIS…
The
Cold,
Hard
Truth
27.

28. Individuals use social media to
A) satisfy their innate curiosities about others
B) satisfy the desire to talk about themselves
C) be a part of something bigger
All fuel conversation and frankly, put the social in social media.

29. HAD SUCH A
OMG DID HE
GREAT DAY
POP THE
WITH @JOE
QUESTION?!
TODAY! WINK
#JELLY
WINK
@SUE
WINK
WINK
This comes VERY naturally to us.

30. MAKE IT SAY: “GREETINGS
CONSUMER, WE ARE
PLEASED TO PRESENT YOU
WITH A NEW PRODUCT
THAT YOU WON’T BE ABLE
TO RESIST! PRESS LIKE AND
SHARE AND RETWEET
PRETTY PLEASE!”
Then how come, in an enterprise setting,
we suddenly turn into robots?

31. The problem is,
brands are
mostly only
equipped to talk
about
themselves.
The essence
of social
media is not
natural for
brands.

38. Social media at the enterprise level requires
voice development & engagement plan.
38.

39. 3. In-the-moment is never
really in the moment.
39.

40. This is what happens when an individual wants to make
a social media post:
1) See cute puppy on the
street wearing shoes.
2) Snap picture of cute puppy
wearing shoes.
3) Share on a social
networking site with witty
comment. “OMG! Saw the cutest
puppy wearing shoes!
#LoveMeSomePuppies.”

41. This is what happens when a brand wants to make a
social media post:
1) Enterprise in general has decided on
product launches and activations.
2) Marketing develops business objectives and
strategies on the above.
3) Assets from creative or design teams are
developed for the above.
4) Community managers or copywriters come
up with content way in advance that
incorporate business objectives.
5) Already created assets are either integrated,
or new assets need to be scoped and
created.
6) Marketing reviews copy.
7) Copy comes back from marketing – “We‟re all having a cup of
revisions are required.
8) Copy finally goes out again; goes through our delicious new coffee!
legal. Press „Like‟ if you tried
9) Copy comes back from legal – revisions are
required. one of our brand new
10) After several rounds of validations, coffees today!”
community managers schedule the posts for
publishing.

42. But…
It doesn’t matter
what the internal
process is.
OH NO.
Users will still
gravitate towards
the same kind of
content:
 Engaging
 Visual
 In-the-moment
42.

43. Why is it hard for brands to do in-the-moment?
Because
this…
…is a full time job, and it gets complicated
squeezing in on-the-fly social.

44. 44.

45. 45.

48. Social media at the enterprise level requires strategic content
& response planning that provides a relevant user experience.
48.

49. 4. It’s not stalking.
It’s consumer insight.
49.

50. There’s something about social media that makes it
really fun for us to peer into others’ lives.
50.

51. Ok, fine.
Sometimes
it’s “stalking.”

52. While learning about others on social is ultimately
optional for users, for brands – it is absolutely essential.

53. What brands want to do when they’re on social
BUILD AWARENESS We reach out to
build brand
awareness
FOSTER We show what our
brand is really about
COMMUNITY by cultivating a
community
We create value for our
GENERATE fans and our brand
ACTIONS through participation &
conversions

54. Where brands can learn about their users
Measure for
consumer
ACTIONS insights
Learn
BUILD
AWARENESS
FOSTER Optimize
COMMUNITY

55. OH NO, HE
DI-DN’T.
We have to take those …and apply them on a larger
tendencies we have to find scale, while looking for data
out everything we possibly and insights that will help
can about someone… inform business decisions.

58. WE’RE NOT
JUST A
GROUP OF
21-44 YEAR
OLDS! What brands can
take from users:
“Many brands still define
their audiences by
demographics. It’s not how
you’d describe a friend.
We need to work harder
at really knowing people
as people. It’s even truer
with social media.
You’ve gained fans. Do you
know who they are?”
–Forbes

59. Social media at the enterprise level requires consumer insight
measurement for strategy optimization.
59.

60. Let’s recap.
60.

61. Social media at the enterprise level requires:
1. A solid foundation & structure
2. Voice development & an engagement plan
3. Strategic content & response planning that provides
a relevant user experience
4. Consumer insight measurement for strategy
optimization
61.

62. …But now what?
62.

63. The
structure
Social
Media
Strategic narrative action
Pillars
63.

64. The organization it
takes to ensure an
optimized social
strategy structure
narrative action
64.

65. Create a
digital
ecosystem
Answering: What’s the
purpose of each channel
and how do they work
together?

66. Determine the extent of your enterprise’s social presence
Local vs. Regional vs. Global

67. Determine
responsible
teams and
Social
Media workflow
Who owns social media?
How do teams work
together (internally and
with external partners?)

68. Consider a
SMMS
“A Social Media Management
System (SMMS) is a software
tool that uses business rules
and approved employees and
partners to manage multiple
social media accounts such
as Facebook, Twitter, and
YouTube.
This system contains features
such as governance,
workflow, intelligence, and
“The success of these tools is dependent upon a
business-led strategy, defined processes,
integration capabilities across
trained staff, and ability to measure efforts.” the enterprise.”

69. Level 1: Social Media Code of Conduct
Violation
Be ready for
a crisis
Level 2: WATCH – A Legitimate/Significant
Issue is Brought Up
What is the difference
between an issue and a
crisis?
Level 3: THREAT – Issue’s Subject has How would you identify
Viral Potential and manage a crisis?
Who are the key
contacts?
Level 4: CRISIS – Subject is Bad,
Spreading Quickly, Mentioned by
Influencers

70. structure
The digital brand
story, voice & tone, narrative action
communications
platform
70.

71. Define a
social brand
identity
It is what the entire
strategy and campaign
narratives will be built
upon, and it coherently ties
individual tactics together.

72. Red Bull MAC Cosmetics

73. AWARENESS Transform
the brand
essence into
ENGAGEMENT digital
What are the major brand
pillars & values, and how
can they be interpreted
CONVERSION digitally?

74. Craft and
CULTURE
refine your
social brand
voice
COMMUNITY
Considering brand
essence, the audience
and the type of
CONVERSATION engagement for the
brand, what does the
brand sound like?

75. Go back to
the digital
ecosystem
Answering: How does
each piece of the
ecosystem contribute to a
consistent narrative?

76. structure
The execution
required to
narrative action produce a
desired
response.
76.

77. Channel Create
Guidelines & actionable
Best Practices
items to
Measurement
& KPIs
achieve
Content
Calendars follow-
through
Campaign &
Activation …Whether it is engagement,
Execution Plans conversion, awareness, or
measurement for strategy
optimization.

78. Monitor,
Measure,
Optimize
Figure out how you’re going to
track what’s going on, the
results you’re getting, what
people are saying – and how
to turn that into making your
strategy better.

79. “It’s time brands started
acting more like people.”
Forbes

80. Some concluding
tips…
80.

81. Find ways to keep everyone on the same page.
81.

82. Make your brand easy to identify.
82.

83. If your brand can’t do “in-the-moment” right now, fake it.
83.

84. Strive to provide familiar experiences.
84.

85. At the end of the day, it’s all about the fans.
85.

86. TO GET IN TOUCH
Contact Information
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Your Speaker
williamfirmeweb
Mandy Poon
Digital Marketing Consultant williamFirmeWeb
mandy.poon@w.illi.am
w.illi.am/blog/
@mmandyp
86.