06 Jun Learning from BAD Social Network Engagement
On Wednesday I shared an example of really, really bad social network engagement. For the most part, I posted it mainly for laughs, but Denisse Lemos gave me the following challenge:
“how would you have rewrote this to make it “a good example”
Since it is written so poorly that I can barely read it (and would literally have to re-write it completely to prove a point), I thought I’d instead give a little insight into the questions that marketer’s should keep in mind when developing a method of internal social network engagement: 
1. Who are you? Marketer’s must realize that even in social networks, “inbox’s” are still viewed as a more personal level of communication. And, just like in personal email, if an email does not establish identity and credibility upfront – it will likely get flagged immediately as spam. To prevent this (and to develop some level of trust and transparency) marketer’s should clearly state who they are and who they are representing.
2. Why are you contacting me? This is the part where marketer’s frequently mess up. Why? Because the reason of contact is either 1) related to driving the recipient to a certain end goal or 2) because the recipient is in the target audience. Instead of this cookie cutter approach, the email should show some understanding of the recipient. For instance, this letter could have said, “I am contacting you because you clearly have an entrepreneural spirit through your work with Ignite….”. This would have perked my attention, and made me feel particularly important.
3. What do you want? Immediately, the recipient of the email will wonder the reason for the letter. While it isn’t always bad to ask recipients to take an action, marketer’s should be clear and upfront, rather than throwing a multitude of action points into the email. Before asking a recipient to do anything, marketer’s must primarily determine the end benefit the recipient will receive for taking the action, and then determine how this action could help the company’s end goals.
Unfortunately, many companies view spamming as a mass communication tool, rather than a valuable way to connect to their customers. Companies like this truly miss an opportunity.
Any thoughts to add?
