The True Power of Social Media Share
Social Media Marketing

The True Power of Social Media Share

22nd August 2013

An interesting conversation in the Receptional Office today got me thinking.

Do we share on our social networks because there are social networks to share on, or do we social network in order to share?

To answer this question, I took a trip back to the age of my youth – the 90s.

In the 90s, times were simpler. Our social networking stretched to landlines and the occasional email. Our mobile phones were pre-smart and still in their early stages – they didn’t even have cameras. How did we live!?

Online social networking stretched to Friends Reunited and eBay scores; but did this mean we didn’t have a forum on which to share?

Perhaps we have always been prone to it – started of course by our Grandmas bringing out the photo albums at every available opportunity or the times we sit around the dining table for hours discussing politics when all someone said initially was ‘pass the biscuits’.

90s

Inherent Communication – We Must Share

Steven Pinker’s TED Talk on Human Nature and the Blank Slate theorised that humans are born with some innate instincts; one of which is socialisation – inter-species communication.

Before the introverts stand up (quietly) and profess that human-to-human communication is NOT inherent to their survival, please know that I am referring to the entire spectrum of communication we have with each other, from a nod of the head and a grunt to a full blown argument where more words are thrown than pies in a circus.

Without this blog post becoming a back-and-forth of credible theories on human psychology, genetic make-up and sociology – because let’s face it, we have lives to live – I find this theory the most accessible I have come across that I agree with.

 

Apparently our thumbs think. Our fingers do not.
Apparently our thumbs think. Our fingers do not.

This theory – and others like it – is based on the premise of effective social networking (in the human sense of course). It is the foundation on which successful social networks (in the digital sense of course) like MySpace, Facebook, Flickr, Twitter and Tumblr built themselves. They allowed a place for quick-share communication that sent masses of personal info to masses of people.

The Power of Overshare

Digital Marketers across the globe are all singing from the same hymn sheet about content:

 

Content is Queen
Content is Queen

Make content shareable! Make great content! Content Content Content Content! Raaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaacontent.

Marketing is evolving, consumers want more information, and they want more sharing. They no longer want to feel alienated from their favourite brands; they want the dirt. Dish out the gossip and you have yourselves a following. Give some team, people, news and it gets read.

People are bored with offers, timeline spam and impersonal advertising. There is a brilliant blog from Marketing Chap for The Drum on this approach to social media marketingand it’s loss of market appeal; ultimately what’s successful are campaigns that speak to us, that share things we care about that succeed.

Sharing is something I love to use within a marketing strategy; I call it the ‘Power of the Personal Brand’ or other such things to entice Clients into hearing me out because they trust that I am a human being first, a brand advocate second.

What this Means to You

Building a personality alongside your professional presence online is not that difficult. Why? Because you have one. Yes, even you.

Let your individualism shine through via sharing, conversation and engagement. Your customers will trust you more, your business leads will increase as people want to network with you, become an Influencer – an Expert.

You can build a personal brand and make it SEO credible in a number of ways but take these 4 steps if you’re a beginner.

  1. Start a blog or contribute to a good blog
  2. Google Authorship
  3. Tweet, re tweet and read
  4. Engage, converse and listen

All of these add to your overall presence online and will offer cracking SEO benefits to your brand.

Remember that overshare isn’t always a bad thing. Letting your followers know that you have just had the world’s best bagel as well as spoken on the stage at the world’s largest digital marketing expo means that you are more approachable, and more human as well as also being a pretty awesome digital marketer. Let’s face it, who doesn’t love bagels?

However, try not to do this:

Simon-Holt-Twitter

Your kids may never forgive you.

Today I got up, got ready and went out. The end.
Today I got up, got ready and went out. The end.

Image Sources: 1, 2, 3

 

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Written By
Sarah is Social Media Account Manager for the leading digital agency, Punch Communications. She has worked on a range of Digital Marketing campaigns and is a strong advocate of the use Social Media for the progression of any business. Her clients include Sony Mobile, Electrolux and more! A Welsh rugby...
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