Comments on: Why You Need a Social Media Marketing Department

By: Social Media in 2009. Here come the top 10 lists. Part 1 of more? « ThreePoint Networks

Fri, 12 Dec 2008 02:52:44 +0000

[...] for social media. Who pays for it and why? Should social media be its own department that generates it’s own departmental [...]

By: jacobmorgan

jacobmorgan — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 22:34:37 +0000

hi dawn,

absolutely, social media is more than a marketing tool it's a way of life. therefore to succeed you need people that really use and understand the technologies out there.

thanks for reading and commenting!

By: jacobmorgan

jacobmorgan — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 22:33:46 +0000

hi ron, i agree with you which is why i think that social media and social media strategy are two different things. you use a great analogy in there that makes perfect sense. next time you speak with an industry fellow that says he/she knows social media, as how their strategy is aligning with overall company goals and objectives. how does their tweeting fit into the big picture? how does their facebook fan page meet an objective?

not many people will be able to answer that, just because they don't know.

thanks for reading and commenting!

By: jacobmorgan

jacobmorgan — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 22:29:16 +0000

excellent thanks for sharing, gonna tweet this out

By: The Lovable Rogue

The Lovable Rogue — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 19:05:28 +0000

Hey again, Jacob,
I agree to a point, but I still think that overall responsibility for the social media should remain with the marketing department. Let me explain. I think that the confusion we have here concerns whether the social media is primarily considered a marketing tool or a conversational one. Remember that the social media was originally developed as a means of connecting consumers, not as a marketing tool. As such, the benefits should reflect value for the consumer first and foremost; any additional marketing value should be considered icing on the cake. Whilst you mention that this dedicated department would run the social media in collaboration with broader business goals, this to me seems a far cry from a transparent conversation. It is my belief that the sole goal of the social media should be to converse with the customer, addressing needs and concerns as and when they arise. Whilst you may be able to sign up a thousand people to an organisational Facebook group, can goals such as these really be classed as recognition of an organisation objective? I'm dubious... Clearly, many organisations offer an organisational presence; as long as this is transparent, then that's fine, however I think that a 'human' contribution always offers more value to the consumer. This should be actively encouraged within the workforce.

Although I suggest that the social media should not be considered primarily as a marketing tool, due to the nature of the engagement with the customer, I believe that there is only one department in which the role would naturally fit; the marketing department. Whilst this may sound somewhat hypocritical in regards to my previous recommendations, I see the marketers as responsible for engaging directly with the consumer. As such, responsibilities for the social media seems a natural extension of their current job roles.

I guess what it comes down to at the end of the day is whether you regard the social media as a marketing tool designed to help broadcast a message, or as a conversation tool designed to delight the customer.

Thanks for the post, Jacob. Seems to have stimulated a lot of debate!

TLR