Social Media Ain’t No Disco.

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Social Media is a great tactic for marketers. But how great is yet to be determined. There’s a famous quote from John Wannamaker who once said, and I paraphrase, “I know half of my advertising is working, problem is, I’m not sure which half.”  If retailer extraordinaire Wannamaker says only half his advertising is working, what might a modern retailer say about social media? Twenty percent? Thirty percent?

The reason social is such a force in marketing today is it’s cheap. Advertising is expensive. PR is expensive. Anyone with and internet connect and fingers can blog, Tweet, post a picture and spit out marketing rhymes on the web.

I knew social and online advertising were in trouble 10 years ago when agency people started saying “Online is also good for branding, not just clicks and transactions.”

When I’m writing a marketing plan for a small company, I go heavy-in with social and search. Done well, done with good consumer intelligence and smart creative, social can build traffic. But traffic blips are not always sustainable. Build on your blips with some traditional advertising, promotion, PR and CRM you have a better chance to build a brand.

Peace.