Is it just me, or has the addition of Google+ created a plethora of pressure and additional noise in our social media networking lives that is louder than ever before? It seems that so often, when the ‘Next Big Thing’ is introduced, we rush around trying to get an invite, test the beta and then master it’s online capabilities while adding pressure to our everyday lives.
Is this all to keep up with the Jones’ and be relevant within our Social Media Circles, or do we test and try because we have all kinds of free time lying dormant in our day just to plunk around and try new things?
What has happened to just sticking with what works and optimizing each of our Social Media Platforms to their fullest extent and measuring the true ROI of that individual platform without throwing another networks traffic into the mix? Sometimes when we do this it’s like throwing darts with our eyes closed and hope that we hit the Bullseye!
Don’t get me wrong, I’m all about change! Change is the only thing that remains constant in Life! However, we seem to be caught in between a double-edged sword of damned if we do and damned if we don’t!
Most of us were perfectly happy with the Big 3- Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. For those of us who are Social Media Community Managers or brand represenatives, we could pretty well decipher which Social Media Networks to leverage and propose to our clients so that their online presence could become an engaging part in their already existing marketing strategies.
So what’s a person to do? What is your role in filtering through the noise?
1. If it Ain’t Broke..Don’t Fix it! – Stick with what is currently working and always have a back-up plan! For ex: if Hootsuite is working..awesome, but do familarize yourself with TweetDeck or Seesmic.
2. Don’t Get Overwhelmed- When the next “Big Thing” is introduced, take the time to learn the capabilities that it offers and assess if it will be of benefit to you or your clients and proceed accordingly.
3. Stay the Course- Realize that everything within Social Media is very fluid. There will always be updates, changes, and new tools to add to your kit that will increase efficiency and productivity. React accordingly and allow yourself the freedom to not have to jump on every bandwagon that comes into town.
The knowledge that you gain by surrounding yourself with friends in Facebook Groups, Twitter Lists, LinkedIn connections and your Google+ Circles can be an immeasurable tool that will allow you to grow, ask questions of your peers and thrive. Choose how you spend your time online wisely and learn how to filter through the noise within Social Media to make it FUN for you and for the clients you represent!
Here are some tried and true daily Social Media Networking tools that are knocking it out of the park for me!
Hootsuite-This free or premium Super Social Media Dashboard offers you the ability to schedule status updates on Twitter, Facebook, Facebook Pages, & LinkedIn and add additional accounts for a nominal monthly fee. Hootsuite also offers valuable performance analytics.
Social Buzz Club- A collaborative network is based on reciprocity, each person shares content and gets points for doing so. Then he/she can share their own content, or buzz that others can choose to share!
Buffer App – A sweet new way to instantly Tweet from the page that your on, or from your Twitter interface. Check out my previous blog on Buffer’s functionality!
What are some ways that you decipher what is noise and what is of value? I would love to hear how you navigate Web 2.0 with success!
Let’s Go Be Awesome- Keri
