Tonight I was part of a panel at the Minnesota Interactive Marketing Association.  The presentation is embedded below.

One thing that struck me is how reactionary the conversation was- how do you “use” social technology to manage your brand- it felt very defensive.

I tried to hit the following points- not sure if I did the way I wanted.  So here they are…

  1. Before you touch social technology- you need to ask yourself what kind of relationship you want to have with the people you’ll be talking to.  Then you need to live up to that agreement- with all the good and bad that comes with it.
  2. The network is more influential and valuable than an institutional voice.  People trust people more than they trust the company line.   That being the case, the traditional model of pushing messages doesn’t have the impact it used to.  In fact, you’re at the mercy of the people you’re trying to influence and as a Brand, you probably don’t have a credible seat at the table (meaning I don’t trust you).
  3. If you chose to have a relationship in the social space, you’ll be judged, accepted, or rejected based on how you act.  Don’t be stupid.  Don’t act creepy.  Have some integrity.  And if you screw up, admit it and ask for forgiveness.  If you’re sincere, chances are you’ll get it.
  4. Building on point 3, if you choose to be social as a company, encourage your employees to be open- to blog, to tweet, to talk about what they’re passionate about.  Your employees are a reflection of your culture and can bring the Brand to life better than any marketing tactic.  And, if you’re not creepy, you just might start to create some relationships.
  5. Once you have some relationships, you just might have some people that will start to trust you.  Then when the shit hits the fan because you screw up (which it will at some point), you have a credible seat at the table (becuase I trust you).  And you’re not reacting- you’re being a human in a real relationship.

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