Twice in the past week I heard a business owner say that “down the road” they want to get involved in social.  Little do they know they are already involved.  They’re just sitting on the sidelines.  Social media is not controlled by the advertiser, it is controlled by the consumer.  They have decided what is good, bad, relevant, stupid, a rip-off, or a real deal.  They are telling their friends and online followers about those experiences millions of times per day…every day!

Getting in the game requires you to listen to those conversations, deciding how your voice and message belongs and then participating.  Too many advertisers are shouting their talking points at the potential audience and not engaging in a conversation about what is important to them.  Strategically it makes more sense to steer the conversation that is always taking place to what you want to talk about versus just blabbing on about what you want to talk about.

I am sure you have all met that guy at a cocktail party who just walks into your conversation, interrupts and totally changes the subject to what is on his mind…did you like it?  Don’t be “that guy”.  Get off the sidelines…but remember the rules.