Are you adding value to your social network? You need to be, otherwise you will be seen as another bump on a log. Extending the Golden Rule of “do to others what you would like to be done to you” is imperative to being a citizen of any neighborhood or community.
Etiquette aside, living the Golden Rule is not only enriching, but a key driver for, or against an individuals’ or business’ success.
Customer service is not to be considered paltry, or something that is done with feedback forms only. Gary Vanyerchuk renown author and entrepreneur implies that everybody has a voice, everyone listens, everyone will be in customer service.
WIFM – What’s in it for me?
What’s in it for your customer, client, prospect? What’s in it for the stranger that has never had any contact with your organization that would drive them to want to do business with you?
Word of mouth spreads fast and far, and can be the best advocate or worst advocate for you. Recommendations from personal acquaintances or opinions posted by consumers online are the most trusted forms of advertising, according to a Nielsen Global Online Consumer Survey.
A few tips to extending the Golden Rule in social media marketing
- Listen – Get as complex or stay as simple as you’d like. Simple – Set up Google Alerts and get email alerts or subscribe to an RSS feed of your alerts. Complex – Subscribe to a service such as Marketing software by Salesforce (formerly Radian6) or RightNow Cloud Monitor
- Participate in the discussion – Tell an interesting story to your customers. If its worthy of repeat, they will gladly do so.
- Create a campaign around your market’s needs – If you have listened and discussed with your market, you will be able to create a campaign based off their needs, not what you perceive to be theirs. Perception isn’t always reality in this case. Run surveys, polls, and actually read the comments.
By remembering and acting on the Golden Rule in social networking, you will effectively add value to your social network and not be seen as a bump on the log. This will prove to be a measurable driver for your success.