The other day I received an email from a higher up on the
radio food chain about social media.
To be honest with you I hate the phrase social media. To me
it is just a buzz word, as someone who talks for a living, I hate buzz words.
To make it worse, this person has no idea about social
media. He does not use it personally or as a representative of our
company/station.
The gist of the article was something I have been screaming
for months. The number is not important, the service is. Now, since I have
joined my team the number has increase by let’s just say a lot. Though we have
steady increases in following we have less than stellar interaction rates. This
is getting better, but it is still not where I want it to be.
I think all execs and big wigs that run around pushing
agendas and performance rates on social media should be forced to watch this
video.
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Know what you’re talking about. Blanketing the use of the
term social media is wrong and so is expecting social media to do your job as a
radio service. It brings a new use for the phrase, “crap in, crap out”. Think
of how hard it is to fix crappily recorded audio, not everyone can do it and it
takes time. It is the same with your social media strategy. If you have a
crappy brand no amount of social media interaction will fix that.
This video is right, social media is a communication line.
It is a bonus, if you have to use it as a crutch for ending your breaks or as a
primary means to communicate with your listeners you are in the wrong industry.
With all of that being said, I am all for connecting with
listeners on every platform possible, but know that radio comes first and then
social media. Hone your skills, craft your brand at then put the rest of the
pieces together.
I have said social media too many times in this post and I
hate myself a little bit now. I am a total hypocrite here for using it exactly
the way I hate it being used but I really did not want to continuously beat you
over the head with specific website names.
To be clear, I actually have no problem using social media
as a blanket term in the right places. Like a Social Media policy for example.
I have a problem with execs saying things like, “… add this to social media”.
What
works on Facebook will not necessarily work on Twitter. With the increased use
of social media feeds on station websites this message is important. I have
never been a fan of linking (for example) your Facebook feed to Twitter (and
vice-versa). With sites generating your content from social media this looks
stupid and boring. Take the time, be original.
I imagine it to be like ripping the audio from a TV ad for a radio commercial and expecting for nothing to get lost in between. Sure it works sometimes, but is it as effective as it could be?
Anyways, I hope you have enjoyed this video and find it useful
to help plan how you want to interact with your listeners across platforms.
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