BarnRaisers

Before starting BarnRaisers, I worked at well-known advertising agencies.  I was fortunate to have worked on major brands, some at times of profound change, and with very talented people.  It was a lot fun for a lot of years.

A former client, Brian Perkins, Vice President of Corporate Affairs at J&J, said at Cannes this year, ”holding companies for ad agencies should consider taking themselves private.  Advertising is a labor-intensive, not capital-intensive, business and it’s inevitable digital agencies are going to gravitate toward brand stewardship.”

You may or may not agree, but Brian’s comments indicate a shift is taking place.  To help explain why, here are 7 reasons social media agencies are like ad agencies and 8 reasons they’re not.

7 REASONS THEY ARE

1. Both have to demonstrate a deep understanding of consumer attitudes and buying behaviors
2. Both have to find insights into unmet consumer needs
3. Both have to know how to create and build brands
4. Both have to be able to take the brand idea and translate it across all media platforms
5. Both have to be on top of media usage and trends
6. Both have to find unique tactics and executions that accelerate sales and have people talking
7. Both are accountable for results, return on investment and sustainable sales growth

8 REASONS THEY’RE NOT

1. Ad agencies communicate through a monologue.  Social media agencies through a conversation
2. Ad agencies work with product benefits.  Social media agencies with shared interests
3. Ad agencies target heavy users of brands who they encourage to buy more.  Social media agencies find advocates who they encourage to spread the word
4. Only 14% of people trust advertising.  80% of people trust the recommendations of other people
5. Ad agencies use multiple mediums and are ”media neutral.”  Social media agencies work mostly on the internet where 90% of all purchase decisions begin.
6. Ad agencies are labor intensive.  Social media agencies are even more labor intensive because, once the campaign is launched, the work has just begun (e.g. content refreshment, community management, measurements and analytics).
7. Only 18% of ad campaigns ever generate a positive ROI.  While people kick the tires on the ROI of social media, brands, like Blendtec blenders, have proven an ROI of 500-to-1 with much less investment.
8. Ad agencies tend to be secretive about their “proprietary” and “trademarked” process for creating ads.  Social media agencies tend to share their work and publish for all in places like SlideShare.

I’ve found social media promotes a culture of givers, not takers.  People like Joe Sorge, Toby Bloomberg, Tom Anderson, David Berkowitz, Kelley Connors and Mike Rogers (to name just a few) have routinely offered to help or participate in speaking engagements, workshops and presentations with no mention of “where’s my cut” or “what are you getting.”  It something that’s a little different and a whole lot more fun.

Do you have an opinion on the difference between the two?

I had the privilege of being on a radio show panel with some great people.  The topic: “How Social Media Gains Trust and Advocacy in Marketing with Women.”  Since women make 85% of buying decisions and are faster adopters of social media than men, it was a timely and interesting topic.  The radio show was “Real Women on Health” and the panel was:

• Toby Bloomberg, Founder, Bloomberg Marketing, a strategic marketing and blogging consultancy and Forbes’ Top 20 Women Bloggers
• Kelley Connors, President of Real Women on Health!, a multi-channel community with a radio show, top-rated women’s health web site and significant affiliate partnerships
• Tom H. C. Anderson, CEO of Anderson Analytics, a market research consultancy, and chairperson of LinkedIn’s most active networking group, Next Generation Market Research
• Rob Petersen, President of BarnRaisers, an online marketing solutions company using social media and proven relationship marketing principles
• Cassie Holm, National Strategic Alliance Director of Real Women on Health!, was the moderator

Everyone took the opportunity to learn from one another.  Here are 10 tips to gain trust and advocacy with women using social media.

1. Invite in: Women are 3X less likely to care about the size of their network than men.  Size may not matter but being shown personal attention does.
2. Understand who you’re talking to: 74% post pictures of family/friends and 71% talk about what they’re doing now as opposed to 60% and 58% for men.  Take advantage of the opportunity and get to know them.
3. Listen and respond: Listening is a fundamental skill but, equally important, is proof you did.
4. Set guidelines and expectations: You can’t read body language on a social network.   Security and privacy are big issues.  Create a comfortable environment.
5. Be transparent: If you’re not part of the group and “trolling” for business purposes, you are very, very likely to be found out so be open about who you are.
6. Talk rather than target: When women are online, 50% are connecting with family and friends, reading someone else’s blog or posting a comment.   They’re socializing so shouldn’t you?
7. Respect values: Dove ran a campaign on Facebook, “12 going on 20.”  It asked young teens to describe what mattered when they were 5, 10 and 15 and how it influenced them today.  It’s a great example of how social marketing showed respect for values.
8. Engage rather than sell: 60% or more are uploading picture or watching videos when online.  Work as a co-creator, not a marketer.
9. Social media = social networking + social issues: It called “social” media for a reason.  Make the most of both of them.  Your audience will appreciate you did.
10. Give back – it’s part of the culture:  You get back more when you give.  That’s what we’re trying to do.

You can also hear the podcast at http://bit.ly/avmz1d.  Or let us hear from you.