I was recently reacquainted with an article that came out almost a year ago on Forbes called No You Can’t Pick My Brain. It Costs too Much. I posted the article on Facebook and received a bunch of comments, but most interestingly, Michelle Spelman offered a lot of advice.  I wanted to distill the conversation into a blog post and share the best ideas with you and get your comments and ideas.

The problem is that I can’t pay my bills on free coffee/lunch/dinner PLUS it devalues my business.  I actually once had another marketing consultant ask to meet for coffee saying he had some social media business that he might send me.  At the meeting he basically asked me for my advice so that he could implement it with his clients.  He wasn’t even a friend.  I was SO SHOCKED.

I love my job. I love what I do. I love helping people. But if I answer every email question or meet with people for them to “pick my brain” I wouldn’t get any work done.

The article on Forbes suggests that you shouldn’t give away your advice for free.  Even to your family and friends. To me that is a little extreme since I really do enjoy the opportunity to help my friends and family and give back.

Here are the key challenges that I see:

1. Determining who is a good investment to meet with. My business is largely built on networking. If I don’t meet people I won’t have a business, so I can’t turn down everyone.  A few years ago I adopted a policy not to meet with anyone (even on the phone) where there isn’t a clear purpose and benefit for me.  I don’t want to review your product or get a tour or give you my feedback.  Even with this policy, people still get through.  I’ve had people ask to meet to talk about partnering, when really they want referrals from me (with no incentive for me). On the other hand I’ve met with people about partnering and seen tremendous returns.
2. How do you nicely say no. Seriously, I HATE saying no to people.  I find it hard.  How do you tell them no?  I sometimes deflect by saying that we could discuss some of these things if we had an engagement, but it is still hard.  Especially for people I like who have already signed up for some of my classes.

In our Facebook discussion on the issue, Michelle said:

“It takes a certain amount of discernment and judgement to figure out when a meeting would be a worthwhile investment in other ways besides money (open doors down the road, support a good cause etc). For me – if I had the time, I would say yes as often as possible just for sheer karma because, heck, I picked a few brains when I was getting started. But honestly, I was getting to the point where I was drinking so much free coffee and my work schedule was going haywire. Something (or someone) has to give…. back! I think what it boils down to is not necessarily just saying “no,” but finding a way to be helpful in a way that is equitable. Equitable is not the same as equal, but it is healthy and fair. No one can argue with the need to function in a way that is healthy and fair. And, in fact, when you are able to show where the boundary is (like they say in the article) and what your needs are, and do it diplomatically, you earn respect of those who truly are worthwhile connects. But still, there are those cases where you just have to follow your gut and take a leap of faith.”

Some Creative Solutions to Turn “Pick Your Brain” into $$

1. Membership program with a Q&A - If you really do respect my advice, then you should be willing to invest in one of my programs to get it.  If it isn’t worth $27 for a social media marketing membership program (that also gives you webinars and countless videos) then it probably isn’t worth my time to give you my advice.  This is actually one of my solutions that just launched. The membership program for only $27 gives you the opportunity to get access to my content plus call in to a monthly Q&A call and ask whatever you want.  If my advice isn’t worth it to you than don’t waste my time.
2. Tell them you have an upcoming webinar on that topic - Many years ago when I was starting out Cliff Ravenscraft gave me this idea. He suggested that if someone asks you a question, tell them that you have a webinar coming up on that topic, and that it will give them a much better ROI than your consulting rate.  Next, create the webinar, charge $25 or $50 for it and market it to your existing contacts as well.  If you get 10 people signed up it is a better ROI, and you answered the question.
3. Don’t be accessible - I know people who do this.  They don’t give you the opportunity to talk to them directly until you have invested in a training or coaching program.  They give you the info and don’t share any personal contact information. This way you are paying for access.  I don’t think that this fits well with my brand or in working with corporate training programs, but it can probably work for a lot of businesses.
4. Have Your Fee Schedule Handy - This technique is suggested in the article.  Always have a fee schedule handy and pass it out when the subject arises.  It can be tactful and hopefully turn questions into clients.
5. Include Follow-Up Questions in Proposals – I do this with many of my corporate projects.  If I have been hired for training or consulting, I want to make sure that my clients have everything they need to be successful, and I am happy to answer a few questions after the engagement has ended.  That being said, I’ve had some clients send VERY in depth questions, well after the engagement has ended.  So, in my proposal as a VALUE ADD I include follow up calls as a line item.  This way they have a set amount of time to ask questions without feeling guilty, and if the follow-up exceeds my time allocation I can ask them how they want to handle it.
6. Create a Group for them to Poll - Michelle Spelman said in our Facebook conversation “Saying no to brainpickers isnt fun, but it feels better than being taken advantage of. Most people don’t realize they crossed a line. The linkedin group I started was a direct result of too many brainpickers…. now I give them my consulting rate and invite them to join the group and pick the group’s brains. If they are seriously wanting my expertise, they hire me. If they can only afford coffee/lunch, they just join the group. It’s a win/win for all involved.”

Here are My questions to YOU:

(Feel free to answer one, all or talk about something else)

1. How do you decide which meetings to take?
2. How do you say no?
3. How do you get people to say yes?

Successful social media strategies often require that it isn’t all about you.  The best way to leverage social media for your brand is to look at what is already going on and how you can get involved, be a resource or otherwise leverage what the community is already doing.

Play their game.  Don’t try to make your own game (at least not all the time).

Big brands are especially bad at this.  They want to own everything.  They are used to it being their event and their idea.  Participating in the events that the community has already created to can win trust and goodwill of the members – you can be perceived as a supporter vs. a company trying to get people to join their event.  The other good news is that it is usually cheaper.  Most community events are organized voluntarily, and donating something free or covering food or drinks can go a long way.

Start With: How Can I Add Value?

Start by asking yourself how you can add value to the community?  What can you provide them with that they will actually derive value from?  It doesn’t have to be financial or free products – you can add value by facilitating social events or providing useful information.

Last year Verizon hosted a “Blogger Party” in Cincinnati where they showcased their new phones (around the time of the Droid launch).  In addition to hosting a great social event where bloggers were able to connect with their friends, they allowed bloggers to borrow the phones for a few weeks with a full service plan – no strings attached.  This generated conversations and discussions around the new phones while providing bloggers with a fun new gadget to test drive for a few weeks.  Think about how your business can creatively add value while connecting with influencers.

Start With: How Can I Support the Community?

Whatever product or service line you are in there are probably already a number of community organizations and events taking place.  Rather than trying to create your own community or event, look at how you can support the community that already exists.

For example, there is a twitter hashtag called “woofwednesdays” where people tweet about their dogs.  If you want to connect with dog enthusiasts participate in the pre-existing hashtag conversation and add value.

Another example is participating in or sponsoring MeetUp groups.  There are meetup groups for many different topics – from hiking to biking to photography.  I participate in a hiking Meetup group that has hundreds of members.  If you are a hiking supply company you could offer to donate lunch or water bottles for the hikes (which would probably cost < $100).  By surprising people with a friendly offer (and not asking for anything back) you can earn the goodwill of the community.

Rather than trying to own the community (ie. start your own hiking club or hashtag) look for ways to join the existing community.  In addition to being cheaper you can earn the goodwill of the organization and the members.

Success: GM and BlogHer

A year ago Jory DesJardin was in Cincinnati for PRSA Day (we were on a panel together).   Jory shared how when GM first wanted to get involved with BlogHer their initial idea was to have car experts help answer questions about their cars.  Instead, GM brought a bunch of cool cars to the conference and let BlogHer attendees drive the cars around for a few hours for free.  Rather than making it about them (ie. we want to tell you about our product) they made it about the blogger by providing a valuable and fun service.  Get involved in the community and help facilitate what they are doing (or want to do).  GM equity scores among BlogHer attendees have actually increased due to their participation.  The results speak for themselves.

Anyone else have ideas or examples?

Seriously. They are everywhere. They are annoying (because they are overused and misused). They serve no purpose most of the time. Most people don’t know how to use them.

Stop vomiting them on everything.

Just because you CAN doesn’t mean you SHOULD.

QR codes can be seen everywhere, from freeway billboards, to TVs to T-shirts to business cards to soda cans.  They are now beginning to appear on packaging and in magazines. The chart below shows where consumers report seeing QR codes.

They are quickly everywhere.  The question is……

Do People Know How to Use QR Codes?

The short answer is “not really”.  Only about 50% of the population has heard of a QR code (although based on the recent surge of them you would have to live in a cave not to have seen one).

Only 28% of the population has ever scanned a QR code.

Those who have scanned QR codes report very infrequent scanning, with 80% scanning something once a month. So, even if people are scanning QR codes, it may be more out of curiosity vs. a consistent consumer behavior.

Just Because You CAN Doesn’t Mean You SHOULD. Ask Yourself WHY.

Here is the thing.  A QR code is just a simple way to access information. Rather than posting a web address, a QR code allows someone to scan a bar code with their phone as a way to call up information.

If you are using QR Codes, here are some tips not to suck at it

• Provide a clear value proposition of WHY someone should scan your code
• Provide an alternative for the majority of people who don’t scan
• Make sure that it is scanable (for example on TV they don’t scan, and some billboards are too big to scan)
• Use them in times/places where people have their phone
• Be sure that you are bringing them to relevant content that they would want on the go or at that moment
• Don’t use it instead of providing actual websites/information

Here are some Examples I’ve seen of Useful and Helpful QR Codes

• To provide more information at an open house
• On a for sale sign to get more information
• At a music festival to get a schedule
• At the zoo to get more info on the animals
• On a menu to see the dish being prepared
• Bestbuy included a QR code reader into their mobile app
• QR codes to create augmented reality opportunities

Here are some videos with cool QR code usage.

PubCon is one of my favorite conferences to speak at every year, and I normally do a few different presentations at the event.  Today I wanted to share with you my favorite presentation: Online Brand and Reputation Management.

Online reputation management is more important now than it ever was in the past.

While many brands focus on creating a beautiful website, they fail to remember that many people will see search results first.  Search results will often impact what someone thinks of a brand before they ever make it to your perfectly crafted website.

The basic problem is that brand spending is out of synch with what is actually influencing purchases.

Online brand management can make or break your business online.  Many brands do not effectively monitor ratings and review sites to understand how consumers perceive their brand.

We trust 2 things: People we know and people we don’t know.  We don’t trust advertising.

This is why online reputation management is important.  Consumers are forming their opinions based on what other people say about their brand.  This means that it is vital to understand what people say and why, and respond accordingly.

See my presentation for some of the key points as to why online brand management is so important, and what you can do about it.

I was reading about the Chapstick social media fiasco on AdWeek today, and it struck me that there are a number of lessons that we can learn from this kind of mistake.

In case you missed it, the short story is:

1. Chapstick posted an add on their Facebook page of a woman with her a$$ in the air
2. A blogger wrote a post about how offensive she found it and also left a comment on the Chapstick Facebook page
3. Chapstick deleted the comment
4. Others comment on the Facebook page and their comments are deleted
5. Chapstick’s ads with the line “Be Heard at Facebook.com/chapstick” become comical
6. Chapstick continues to try to delete posts, but the posts are getting through (they can’t keep up with it)
7. Eventually Chapstick deletes the offensive image
8. Chapstick “apologizes” sort of.
9. The head of global media relations for Chapstick says “We’re committed to listening. We’re committed to the dialogue. This is a perfect example of listening to your followers, your fans. We’re trying to live by those words.” (haha)

Where they Went Wrong and What You Can Learn

1. Don’t Delete Comments

If people have a problem, acknowledge it and address it.  I don’t personally think the ad was all that offensive, and in reality, many ads offend someone.  People share with you that they are offended because they want to be heard – they don’t expect you to immediately pull the ad.

My assumption would be that the person managing the Facebook page didn’t know how to respond, so they deleted the post while they figured it out.

This was the biggest initial mistake.  Don’t delete comments, respond.

Let them know:

- You are sorry they are offended

- You care that they are offended

- You will share their feedback

2. If you Apologize, then ACTUALLY Apologize

Chapstick doesn’t really apologize or take ownership.  The “apology note” says “We apologize that our fans felt like their posts are being deleted”.  They didn’t feel like their posts were being deleted, they were actually being deleted.  It was a fact.

Next, they basically tell you that it is your fault that the comment was deleted.  In most cases I suspect that the comments wouldn’t have actually fallen in to those categories.  Sharing dislike with a brand is not offensive.

When you apologize, actually apologize. Admit your mistake

3. Do What You Say or Become a Laughing Stock

Part of the problem is that brands are used to having mission statements like “we care” or “committed to improving lives”, but they don’t really do it.  It is really just a bunch of nice words put on a page.  They don’t mean it or live it.

In social media, if you don’t do what you say you can quickly become a joke.

The response from the VP is kinda hysterical  A commitment to listening doesn’t mean that you eventually take down an ad because someone doesn’t like it.  It means that you respect and acknowledge their comments and feedback.

Do what you say you will, or people will laugh.

Yes, that was a line from the Spice Girls. You are Welcome.

One of the biggest challenges for businesses on Facebook (or on any social media channel) is to understand the actual content that will drive fans to engage (step 1) and take action (step 2).  The key to success in developing your social media marketing plan is to really understand what it is that your customers want.

A study in September of 2011 asked fans what they want from brands in Facebook.

Your Challenge: Compare your content on Facebook with the content that fans generally want.

Knowing what users expect form you after liking you is the key to posting great content.  One of the challenges to keep in mind is that Fans make the choice to pay you the honor of publicly being your fan. Ask yourself, how can I reward or recognize these fans?

Action for Marketers to Take:

When asking people to fan your page, tell them what they will get by fanning you.  Rather than blindly posting “like us on Facebook” buttons all over your site and in your store, tell them WHAT THEY WILL GET by connecting with you, and make sure that you have a compelling proposition for them.

Dispel Their Fears

Another chart in the Emarketer article asked what has prevented people from fanning a brand.  The results of this are also telling.  The things that prevent people from fanning a brand, are probably also the same things that prevent them from signing up for your email, following you on Twitter or engaging in the rest of your opt-in marketing.

Action for Marketers to Take:

The Implication for marketers is to proactively communicate to avoid not getting liked because of these fears.  Tell them “Don’t worry, we’ll only message you once a month” or “we post once a day” or “we don’t sell your information”. Be sure to do what you can to dispel these fears upfront so that people will still connect with you.

Often times social media consultants say “Trust me. This stuff works.  I know it works.”  And some of the time they are right.  The problem is that they don’t know how to articulate why and how social media marketing works.

The Problem with Justifying Social Media

The problem with trying to measure social media marketing is that unless you invest a lot of time in an assessment, you will never be able to fully quantify the impact.  I worked at P&G for many years.  To measure the effectiveness of traditional marketing we invested in focus groups and quantitative testing that would allow us to predict the impact of an ad, and we invested in expensive studies that showed how the various elements of our marketing contributed to sales.

The reality was that quantifying these things was difficult.  Many aspects of marketing have a lasting impact over time (I will talk about this more later).

The reality is that most people don’t see or hear an ad and immediate take action. I don’t run to a store to buy Tide after watching a TV commercial, or drive to my nearest car dealership after hearing a radio ad.

Yet, when it comes to social media we are holding the measurement bar to the immediate action that we are able to generate. The reality is that social media isn’t always the best direct response tool, and it actually drives value in a variety of different ways that generate results over time.

We are holding digital to a different standard, and as a result, we are not getting a clear picture of the actual value of social media.

The Answers Lie in Human Psychology

Seriously.  The answers to why social media marketing is effective lie within psychology and can eventually be translated into business results.

I read a lot of books on psychology, because understanding people is at the core to effective marketing.

As we look at how people work, and what drives them, there are some key insights that explain why social media works.

The reality is that people like and trust things more the more often they see them.  This is actually scientifically proven.  If you meet two people, and you have the same impression, over time, if you start to see one of those people more, even if the interactions are not positive, you will start to like that person more.

We like people and things more the more that we are exposed to them.

Think about it.  When you go to a store you don’t want to buy the random brand that you have never heard of (it might suck). Even if you haven’t tried another brand before, if you have heard about it multiple times you are more likely to buy it.

The Rule of 7 Brings Psychology to Marketing

Marketers often say that you have to have 7 interactions with someone before they will choose to purchase from you.

Social media can help increase the # of impressions or interactions that people have with your brand, and as a result, they are more likely to choose to do business with you, when the time arises.

The key is to trust the underlying science and know that over time, the more people who are exposed to you or your business, the more they will like you and the more likely they are to do business with you.

This isn’t just my opinion.

It is a scientific fact.

The Next Time You Have to Justify Social Media……

Many people who have experience in social media marketing know that it works, but can’t exactly explain why. Hopefully this post helps add clarity to WHY social media marketing works (or at least one of the reasons).

Even if they are no immediate clicks, we know that the more people see us, the more they will like us.  We also know that people do business with people they like.

This is why I invest time on sites like LinkedIn, Slideshare and Facebook.  Even if I don’t get immediate business, I know that the more that people see my brand and my name the more likely they are to do business with me (as long as the interaction isn’t negative).

In gearing up for SXSW, and with a panel proposal about creating WOW and standing out with STUNTS at SXSW, I was thinking about how companies can market at an event like SXSW.  At SXSW, every night countless companies host parties – some are open to everyone, some have VIP sections and some are VIP only.

What struck me when looking at the parties and the “VIP” lists was that none of the companies seemed to focus on rewarding their customers.  Instead, they rewarded a list of “influencers” that their PR agency put together, or their friends, or the fancy people of the moment, or whoever…..

The Blackberry Party

Blackberry hosted a party at SXSW and you had to be on some list to get in.  A friend of mine told me that he tried to get in to the party by showing them his blackberry (he, apparently, wasn’t on the list).  He was rejected.

At a conference like SXSW, most tech-geeks consider Blackberry to be outdated.  I wonder how many of the people on the list would ever even consider buying a Blackberry?  Probably not very many.

Wouldn’t it have been cool if they rewarded their customers (who are most likely to spread word of mouth) vs. inviting random people?

It could have driven higher loyalty (everyone likes to be rewarded) and maybe even made some non-Blackberry folks wish they had one.

Non-Customers Don’t Drive Word of Mouth

The thing with rewarding non-customers, or inviting fancy people to your party but ignoring your customers is that non-customers can’t really provide you with a ton of marketing value (unless you think that you can turn them in to customers).

I usually don’t trust recommendations from people who don’t actually use the product.  If you tell me I should use Gmail, but you are on Hotmail, I probably won’t trust your recommendation unless you have a darn good reason.

It is difficult for non-customers to organically drive word of mouth since they don’t actually use your product themselves.

Ad:Tech and Skateboards Generates Buzz and Rewards Customers

A few years ago I was at Ad:tech and I saw a number of people walking around with Skateboards with a really cool design on them.  The design was custom artwork of San Francisco (where the conference was).  I asked the guy where he got it, and he said that a company was handing them out in the exhibit hall, but that I couldn’t get one – they only gave them to their customers.

I later stopped by their booth, and it was the busiest booth at the show.  People stopped by to talk to their sales staff in the hopes of getting a skateboard.  Every time I walked by their booth, it was packed with their sales staff talking to potential customers.  Everyone wanted to be a customer because of how well they rewarded customers.

The skateboards worked because they were large, they couldn’t be concealed in a bag so everyone saw them and they had a high perceived value.

The customers who got them were proud, and seemed to enjoy telling other people that they couldn’t have one if they weren’t customers.

BMW Gets it

Many years ago I was at the Toronto Auto Show and BMW was exhibiting there.  In addition to showing off their cars they had a lounge.  In order to get access to the lounge all you had to do was show them your BMW keys.

The owners felt special for being BMW customers and really enjoyed the extra touch.  Non-owners were jealous and wanted to get in to the special section.

How Brands can Reward Customers at Conferences

In social media (and perhaps the offline world too) your existing customers recommending you is probably one of the best ways to get new ones.  Conferences can be a great opportunity to reward your customers and make them feel appreciated, and valued, and even brag to their friends about how awesome you are.

Here are some things that I’d love to see brands do at conferences:

• Create High Value customer only shwag to hand out at their booth
• Customer only parties
• Show your product to get in to a VIP event
• VIP customer only section at the party

I speak at 20+ conferences a year, and very few of these show good examples of companies rewarding their customers.

Anyone else have ideas?

I just got off of a VERY frustrating phone call with the company that handles insurance for my cell phone company.  I had a number of problems with them, but what really put me over the edge was when I requested to escalate and was told that my call would be returned within 2 business days.  The turn-around service on the insurance is supposed to be 48 hours, so they double the time frame with this.

At any rate, the point of this post isn’t too complain, but to discuss customer service.  The problem with customer service is that most businesses treat it as a cost center.  In reality, it is probably one of the most effective marketing opportunities for businesses.

The people calling customer service are either A) existing customers or B) potential future customers.

Marketing to Existing Customers

Customer service has a huge opportunity to market your business to existing customers and actually increase sales.

If your customer service staff is well trained they can probably up-sell existing customers.  I watch the TV show outsourced where they attempt to train an Indian call center on how to up-sell American Shwag.  It is difficult for people who don’t have experience with your product to up-sell, which is demonstrated in the show.

Next, if you treat your customers well, they will probably recommend you to their friends. For many products customer service is one of the few person-to-person interactions that we have with a company.  This is the opportunity to shine, delight and be remarkable.  Instead, we end up having to navigate automated messages and wait on hold.  If customer service was treated as a referral engine it would probably be handled better.

I would LOVE to know if there are any examples of companies that have specific ROI on how an investment in customer service can increase sales.
I bet that we all have examples of how it has cost companies sales.

Marketing to Potential Future Customers

The other time that customer service has the opportunity to delight is when potential customers call with questions.  If they have to wait on hold and navigate menus only to speak with a representative who is poorly informed and not very nice, they probably won’t choose to do business with you.

I know that in my own personal experience I actually paid more money to go with a competitor after a terrible customer service experience when I called to ask a question.
The Problem = Scripts, Metrics and Time

The problem is that many customer service departments are built to scale.  This means that people have little to no discretionary powers and they are held to certain metrics.

Scripts

Most customer service departments run off of scripts.  If X happens do Y.  If people ask questions tell them it is “policy”.
The problem with the scripts is that while they work for maybe over half of the situations, they don’t work well for the other half.  They also leave customers even more frustrated because customers don’t feel that they have been given an adequate response.

Metrics

Many customer service metrics are based on how long it takes to resolve issues.  If you view customer service as a marketing opportunity you would realize that a longer call can actually deepen the relationship.
Zappos is great at this, and it is probably partly why they are so successful.  The customer service reps have discretionary authority and they chat with you a bit so that you are really delighted with your experience.

Time

Telephone customer service is actually really inefficient.  It wastes a ton of time.  I have to call, then navigate through menus and give my info.  They eventually I figure out how to talk to someone and have to give the info all over again, plus verify a variety of things.

Next I have to wait on hold to be connected.

Then wait while my issue is researched and resolved.

Even though my interaction (explaining my problem and listening to the answer) may be limited to 2 minutes, the totally call time is 20 while I wait for them to call up my account, think about it and get me a solution.

How Social Media Helps Customer Service

I was recently training an insurance agency social media team in social media for business, and customer service was one of the most interesting applications of social media marketing.

In discussing the benefits of using Twitter for customer service, I showed them how Tweeting to customer service doesn’t necessarily take more of their time/energy, but can save the customer plenty.
Consider you have a  problem and need customer service.  You first research the correct number.  Then you call.  Then you work your way through their automated message.  Next you type in your account number.  Then you finally request to talk to a real person.  You listen to an automated message about how your call can be recorded.  Then you wait on hold.  Then you find someone.  You verify your account again. Then you explain your problem.  Then they research it (while you wait on hold).  Then they (ideally) fix your problem.

The actually required interaction was really only 2 of the steps.  You tell them your problem, they tell you the solution.

Imagine if you tweeted the problem.  You tweet the problem “How come my account was charged $5 extra?”  They request more info “DM us your account number”.  They research it and tweet you “It has been corrected” or “It is for blah, blah, blah.  Call me and I’ll explain”.

The time to research and provide a response on the customer service side was the same in both cases, but the consumer time was largely reduced.

This is why Social Media is so popular for customer service.  Maybe not because it results in cost savings for the company (although often it does), but because it provides better overall service.

Customer Service can Make or Break your Company

Many of the most frustrating interactions that we have with companies come from their customer service.  It costs them business.  Because we hate them and tell everyone that we hate them.

They say that the #1 differentiator in Doctors getting sued is how much people like them.  Are they kind, friendly and understanding.  This is true of your employees.  Starting with “Hello Ms Neher, how are you today?” and after I’m frustrated ending with “It was a pleasure serving you.  Thanks for doing business with us.”  does NOT create a friendly relationship.

We do business with people we know, like and trust.  Customer service is a key part of building this.

What do you think?

I’ve recently done a lot of presentations on social media ROI and the question that everyone has is “How do I track ROI from Social Media?”.
This is a legitimate question, and one that you should strive to answer.  The problem is that the answer to this simple question isn’t simple at all.

Why?

For two reasons.

Not Everything that Counts can be Counted

First, not everything that counts can be counted.  What this means is that many of the things that add business value in social media can not be easily counted (unless you have a 6 figure budget to invest in measurement).
For example the value of brand awareness.  We know that there is value in brand awareness – that is what most TV and Billboard advertising aims at – yet we can’t directly tie that back to sales.  Many studies show that the more we are exposed to a brand, business, product or person the more we like them (assuming that the experience isn’t negative) and the more likely we are to choose them when making a purchase.  Even though we can’t measure the sales from brand awareness activities, we know that they lead to purchases.
The reason is that most people don’t make an immediate decision upon hearing about something or seeing it.  Purchasing is a process and the things that build awareness, trust and ultimately equity can be difficult to measure, although they are factors that lead to an eventual purchase.

Consider another example.  A customer tweets about a positive experience “I love company X – they are amazing and have top notch customer service.”  Did anyone immediately click on the link and buy the product?  Probably not.  Over time however, it may lead to purchases.

This is the problem with measuring social media, and all marketing for that matter.  Purchasing is a complex process, and many of the things that ultimately lead to a purchase are difficult to measure.  Just because you can’t tie it back to immediate sales doesn’t mean it doesn’t matter.

It is important to use common sense and consider the complete buying cycle to successfully measure or attribute value to social media.

Not Everything That Can be Counted Counts

This is the other truth to measuring social media.  Just because you can, doesn’t mean you should.

Just because you can measure fans, friends, followers, RTs, @ replies, etc, doesn’t mean that these metrics counts.

Take # of fans.  I can’t tell you how many businesses measure the success of their Facebook efforts by the # of fans that they have.  The problem is that this has nothing to do with the ultimate success of their social media marketing efforts.  Number of fans/followers doesn’t necessarily tie back to business results.

Just because you can count something and tie a number to it doesn’t necessarily mean that it counts, and it doesn’t mean that it is ALL that counts.

Even things like engagement don’t necessarily count.  For example, a business owner I spoke with said his social media was very effective in driving his business.  He pointed to @replies and RTs.  The problem was that most of the replies and RTs were related to posts that had nothing to do with his business, so it is difficult to judge whether or not they are ultimately driving his business.

Tips for Success

The key to success in measuring social media is to inject some common sense and back of the envelope math to assess whether or not your social media is really working.  Don’t forget to look at qualitative metrics as well as quantitative, and consider your efforts comprehensively.  The keys to success are:

• Use common sense
• Do basic “back of the envelope math” like – how many new customers do we need to acquire for this to be worth it?
• Include qualitative samples
• Look at the IMPACT of social media mentions/impressions vs. counting them
• Ask the people on the front line
• Don’t rely too heavily on charts and graphs

What do you think?  Do you count the things that count?