Tweeting Your Way to New Prospects: Tackling New Business Development in a Social Media World (AdAge)

http://adage.com/smallagency/post?article_id=137730

I think this is an interesting article and a "sign of the times." New business development is at the forefront of a lot of minds lately, even if only as a survival tactic rather than as a dedicated strategy. In talking to friends, family and colleagues, we've noticed a lot of smaller business having a particularly hard time because (1) until now they've never really needed to devote time, money and manpower (collectively resources) to it, (2) they (especially now) don't have the resources and (3) they're gun-shy as to how to best utilize what resources they may be able to scrape up.

The especially troubling part for many of these businesses is that they know that without devoting resources to growing their business they may not have a business for much longer. In that context, this article takes on a slightly different significance, but the concept of imploring social media is still the same - and we are all for it. And - oh yeah - it doesn't hurt that it's virtually free (save for the resource of time...).

There are other reasons we're all for it though. While many may look at social media as the fall of personal communications (as in "email is so impersonal"), we feel that used correctly, it's just the opposite. Fellow Facebook loyalists surely know what I'm talking about, as we've found ourselves reconnected with dozens, if not hundreds, of old friends, classmates, colleagues - most of whom we're excited about reconnecting with if only to know where they're working and if they're married/single/have kids. But when one of those Facebook friends needs a new doctor, or a new lawn service, or a new (fill in the blank), they, like even non-Facebookers, would still prefer a recommendation from a "friend" then a random Google search. And that's when social media becomes powerful.

Twitter is certainly in the same boat, but due to the brevity of the messaging and other basic functionality differences, we feel it's place and purpose are slightly different and should be treated as such (which I suppose makes it a different boat in the same ocean...). I feel like whereas Facebook might be in the curriculum for Social Media Marketing 101, Twitter would fall into its optional post-requisite course. Because Facebook provides a forum and "gathering place" for its "fans," the messaging can be more casual and approachable and serve as supplementary branding even. I think Twitter however, requires a more specific messaging strategy - such as letting followers in on secret sales and promotions.

We also believe that in order to maintain the integrity of both the message and the messenger, the communications from either Facebook or Twitter have to stay authentic and therefore have to be in the voice of messenger. Element can assist in developing the platform, identifying what the general content of the messages should be, and facilitating the message, but fans and followers alike deserve the voice of the product or service itself - especially as they are an opted-in audience of loyal consumers, asking to be advertised to.