A good strategy is one that finishes with clear tasks that are capable of implementation.
So many strategies fail to deliver because despite amazing contents, the company isn’t capable of actually implement any of it. Walk – Run – Fly is a cute name for a process that William Bakker devised as the core of our strategy workshops. Walk refers to steps that should be taken today. Run is a road map for what to do next. The Fly phase usually hasn’t been thought of yet (because social media is evolving so quickly) but will become apparent during the Run phase.
In my last post I noted that formulating a strategy requires hard work. Here’s an insight into our strategy process that should help you to formulate your strategy, or revisit it if you already have one.
When we’re creating a social media strategy for clients, we start by examining everything a business could be doing online (the maximum set of opportunities available to your business). Then we analyze activities that you are doing already. Most companies fall somewhere in the Walk phase; either standing still and about to take their first step or they’re walking all over the place.
Next we look at your target market. We figure out who your audience is and break them down using geographic and demographic segmentation. Then we look at what your audience is doing online, i.e. how they actually use social media. There are many different ways people choose to engage themselves and that doesn’t just mean the tools they choose, it’s how they use them. There are tools that help you to analyze these things. You can do a free technographics breakdown on Groundswell’s blog and you can pay for others like Hitwise.
The next thing we need to ascertain is where to focus in the sales funnel to get maximum results right now. Where a prospect or client is in their decision process dictates how you should communicate with them, the content of your message and also the tone of your message. The mistake that most people I’ve seen make is to assume that one message fits all. To be effective, you need to know which part of the funnel to target in order to help prospects move closer to making a purchase decision.
Next, we take a look at your objectives (either outlined in a marketing plan or we extract them from managements craniums) and create a strategy to Walk, Run and then Fly. This is the secret sauce that combines everything outlined above. Implementation is key and yet so often it is overlooked. Allocate small, important and measurable tasks to key people. You must take available resources into account when devising a strategy. Time and money are essential to ability to execute and should constrain the strategy.
How does your social media strategy support your marketing plan?