The bottom line for a business of any size today is that unless we focus on Strategically Harnessing Information Technology (S.H.I.T.) available to us, we will lose our competitive edge. What’s more in today’s information age, we all have to stand out for effective Social Selling of our brand, products and services.
In order to do so, we have to be Creative, Reactive, Active and Proactive (C.R.A.P.) at Intelligently Targeting (I.T.) our market place.
The pace of change in technology can be overwhelming even for people like me who practices social selling every day. So I can imagine what it is like for novice users engaging on Social and Mobile software platforms using a variety of hardware platforms like PCs, Tablets and Smartphones to promote their business for the best possible results!
So in this article, let me try and make it easy for novice users of ICT (Information Communication and Technology) users to understand, how to embrace S.H.I.T. and be C.R.A.P. at I.T.
I’ll ensure that you understand my acronyms before you read the rest of this article .
Focusing on S.H.I.T. for our business:
Before delving further we need to understand what we want to get out of these Social & Mobile technology platforms – Be clear on the ROI!
Now let’s get into the meat of the content.
Strategy
Ensure there’s a strategy to measure Brand Awareness i.e. increasing our website traffic by X% which should be measured before and after! For instance the number of leads can be equated to the volume of enquiries generated from your online presence. This can be measured by having efficient online and offline marketing and measurement processes in place.
Harnessing the internet for the right outcome
Ask yourself, “Do I have an effectively structured online presence in order to convert the traffic into leads?” For example on your LinkedIn presence, “Do I have the right key personnel and individual profiles and relationships set up correctly?” of course this applies to other Social Networking platforms as well.
Information Processes
“Does my company have a strong online presence so users can consume the content, while I see an increase in conversions on our company website/mobile site and Social Networking platforms?” For instance are there enough targeted keywords, appealing images and emotionally charged messages that can relate to users?
Technology to use
“Do I have company information that can be accessed by all technology platforms which are important and used by my target market?” For instance is the web content easily viewable on traditional desktops as well as mobile devices running on all popular platforms such as Apple, Windows and Google Technologies?
Rules for being C.R.A.P.
Creative
In order to stand out from the rest, we have to use a unique style or approach like I have used in writing this article. Few business professionals would have the nerve to even say S.H.I.T. and C.R.A.P. in front of the work colleagues let alone write about it!
Re-active
Unfortunately Social networking platforms are dynamic in nature and in order to succeed online, we have to react to situations either by replying to a question, handling complaints and managing expectations of our customers. To be ahead of the competition, we need have our internal processes in place so we can react quicker than we ever did in the past.
Active
With dynamic messages coming at you from all directions and rising expectations from your prospect to find you at their finger tips and ever diminishing loyal customer base, we have to be a lot more active than before. I.e. at a minimum keeping on par or ahead of our competitors.
Pro-Active
Gone are the days when we could prepare for 3-5 years business plans due to the fast changing nature of technology and its use. This means, not only do we need to have a business plan and digital marketing strategy with an implementation plan in place but also the flexibility to be able to review these at least yearly. This is an absolute must!
Focusing on I.T.
Today’s Social Network platforms and the smart hardware platforms used, we have access to a global market and therefore, we have to Intelligently Target our referral base to be in-line with our business plan and planned strategy. This means, every aspect of our digital marketing outlook must be geo-targeted to attract our LEADS!
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