Long story short:  we use it, we know it, we’ve gotten business from it, and established friendships and stronger personal relationships because of it. The benefits far outweigh the negatives.  But, like anything, it takes time.

We cringe at the self-proclaimed social gurus and ninjas, we’d rather be referred to as “socially awkward social media savants”. We’ve found there are really only about 3 use cases:

1. Diary — just your standard diary-style usage where you record your thoughts and connect with a few people now and then. This represents the broadest segment of the social population.
2. Over Retweeter – these are where the gurus and ninjas live, clogging up others timelines with retweets of every conversation they have. The reply button is foreign to them.  On Facebook, it’s constant status updates and pictures you’d never show your mother.  If you think you’re running a marketing campaign and actually reaching hundreds or thousands of NEW eyeballs with this method, well, we’ve got news for you…
3. Campaign — similar to Old Spice or the recent camera campaign that garnered 56,000 retweets in a very short amount of time. This is a strategic use of social media.  This represents the smallest, but most impactful segment of usage across social.  This is where data is tracked, measured, and monetary return is calculated.  If it positively impacts sales above the cost, then you continue to invest.  If not, quit and iterate.

Evolyte operates in category #3 for clients and category #1 for ourselves (personal and professional).  Social media is just one aspect of a broader marketing campaign.

The chicken scratch picture above shows the new, Wagon Wheel model (client names have been changed to protect the innocent).  We operate mostly in the top half, digital/social side because the ROI is measurable and leverage-able.  The old, Funnel model can still be relevant in certain campaigns where everything is driven down one path.  However, the reality is that the Wagon Wheel model can create a self-feeding loop of content and virality.  The goal is to get 150 super fans talking about your campaign, and it will start to drive itself.

But the question remains:  concepts are great, but how do I take this and turn it into something people will care about enough to buy what it is I’m selling?  Well, that’s taken us a lifetime to figure out, and we’re still learning every day.  The short answer is:  there is no short answer.

This is why business is so difficult, every business has details and intracacies. That’s where the money is made.  Apple and Google both make mobile operating systems. If you’ve used both, which one do you think is winning?  You already know our answer.  And guess what. They’re no where to be found on social media.  Interesting…