Are you ready for Google Wave and the impact it will have on how you do business? In the past I have written about the difference between “Social Networking” and “Social Marketing” and how many business owners and marketing executives confuse the two, leaving them frustrated and ineffective with their internet marketing efforts. Well now I am going to really mess with your day by adding a third essential social component that will impact how you do business in the future, “Social Collaboration“.
In a recent post I have written that I believe that Google Wave was going to have a significant impact on how we managed business in the future. I have also been following people like Chris Brogan (chrisbrogan.com) and others on how they like and are using Google Wave. Like Chis, I have integrated Google Wave into Bssential Soltuions collaboration and planning efforts with coaching and consulting clients and have found it to be an effective tool to organize and manage accountability and share ideas when they arise, not just when we are meeting.
The important message to understand is that social interaction on the internet is evolving into three distinct components that every business needs to understand and effectively manage in the future, if they want to remain competitive and grow.
Social Networking
Social networking is both a personal and professional vehicle (and should be kept separated) to contact and communicate with others. The three most popular networks and the niche they fill are:
- Facebook: Where we connect with family and friends.
- LinkedIn: Where we develop connections based on similar business and professional goals.
- Twitter: Where we communicate in real time to build a network of follows, identify those with similar interests and share relevant content.
Social Marketing
For most people social networking is the extent of their efforts and this is a huge mistake. They build a massive virtual list of followers, connections and friends, but do not know how to capture them or leverage their social networking efforts into real contacts and effective communication that builds “front of mind awareness” that can lead into prospects and customers for their goods and services.
Every social networking effort must be complemented by a social marketing campaign where your goal should be to:
- Establish a target market and prospect for your social marketing efforts.
- Share relevant content that is meaningful to your potential target and drive them to your primary site. This is where an effective blog plays a critical role.
- Capture the contact information of your target and receive permission to communicate with them.
- Implement a value added campaign based on the needs and pain of your target and not just advertise your products and services.
- Create trust and front of mind awareness with contacts and turn them into prospects and customers.
Social networking without an effective social marketing plan is a total waste of your valuable time. I am amazed at how many people brag about having thousands of connections and followers on Twitter and LinkedIn, but have never tried to drive them to their website or blog in order to capture and communicate with them outside the network portal.
Social Collaboration
It has become evident to me that a third social component is evolving rapidly. Every business looking to utilize the internet to establish effective communication with employees, internal teams, colleagues, and customers needs to begin to develop and implement a social collaboration strategy, that will improve not only communication, but the efficiency and effectiveness of their whole organization (whether you are a company of 2 or 20,000).
What started with email and instant messaging has evolved into web based tools like GoToMeeting, Google Docs and now Google Wave. Wave and tools like it will soon become the standard for how we share ideas, process orders, support our customers and will become a critical component of the policies and procedures that every organization needs to grow and expand.
For now, Google Wave is in its infancy and both developers and users are looking to see which features are most meaningful to them and their efforts. Wave is about sharing ideas, brainstorming and collaboration in a cloud environment. Where participants to the Wave can be all over the world, working at all different times, but effectively contributing to the conversation (Wave) and the topic or project. This is the future of how new products will be brainstormed. This will be the future of how organizations and teams will interact globally and this is the next step in development of our web social structure. Start planning!
Bill Sifflard - With over thirty years experience as an entrepreneur, an executive, an author and as a business consultant, Bill Sifflard has a long history of experience bringing innovation, efficiency and success to large and small businesses adapting to evolving markets.
As a premiere Sales and Marketing Innovator, Bill is changing how business integrates traditional marketing strategy with the power and potential of the internet utilizing his "Velocity for Success" matrix.
To learn more about Bill and Bssential Small Business Solutions you can visit http://www.bssentials.com and register for his Free eNewsletter or follow all of his blog posts by clicking on the RSS feed button above. 
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