Brent Shahim gives his views on a few social media myths in the June/July publication of the Journal.

1. BY BRENT SHAHIM, MANAGING DIRECTOR, AQUAONLINE
Social media MYTHS
S
ocial media has changed the way we communicate. can incite a highly engaged, and often opportunistic community,
The old Egyptian regime quickly learnt that it could creating damaging conversation threads.
mobilize a nation. David Kau contextualized its 3. Unexpected Campaigns, Expected Results
influence in a recent performance when he quipped: “If If I had a Twitter follower for each time I’ve heard the words, ‘Please
Facebook existed in the Fifties, Apartheid would’ve lasted create me a viral campaign. How big do you think it will go?’, I’d
three weeks!” There’s no doubt we’re in the midst of a social have more followers than Charlie Sheen.
revolution. We’ve all wanted to re-invent the high profile, global viral successes.
The marketing fraternity has a sense that social media can However, creating unexpected (unique) campaigns and anticipating
be a powerful marketing tool, but there’s still a naïveté with (expect) results is impossible.
respect to how to mobilize the medium. I’ve addressed some The risk and potential of campaigns can be assessed, but since
common misconceptions marketers are making: we’re depending on individuals, over whom we have no commercial
1. Social Media Is Free influence, to propagate the message, means it’s difficult to
Given that it costs nothing to register on social media platforms anticipate results.
and is ‘word-of-mouth’ by nature, means that social marketing Instead, innovative campaigns should be considered as part of a
should be cheap, if not free. broader portfolio theory similar to the venture capital approach.
The opposite is true. One of the most important investments Invest in several initiatives and some are bound to go big. Overall,
brands can make in the short to medium term is in social the portfolio should demonstrate a ROI, but there’s always a risk
media. The costs lie in these key areas: that an initiative might not be as high-impact as expected. That
• Effective monitoring tools and technology said, continue investing and learning.
• Repurposed and effectively curated content 4. If It’s Great, People Will Find It
• Skilled resources to own and manage the brand’s social Global, viral successes such as the ‘Old Spice’ campaign were
media activated through big investments in highly integrated campaigns.
• Legal, HR and IT policy creation for the brand This ad was launched on Superbowl weekend, which is a sizeable
Social marketing is not cheap, nor free, but if implemented media investment that was amplified through social media. It was
appropriately, can be highly effective relative to the investment, not initiated digitally.
i.e. it demonstrating a better return on investment (ROI) relative To quickly gain traction for social media properties, brands need
to other mediums. to invest in purchasing media. Integrated campaigns that activate
2. Anyone Can Do IT through-the-line, have shown real success.
“My nephew is on Facebook all day. He could manage our page.” Buying digital media, especially in social spaces such as Facebook,
Just because I’m a TV viewer doesn’t mean I can create effective coupled with organic activation in those spaces, demonstrates the
advertising. As always, new trends inspire the advent of individuals highest conversion into social communities.
and agencies that purport to be experts, but there are only a For every Rand invested in buying an ‘eyeball’ in a social space, the
handful of specialists in the SA market that have proven success brand can continue a longer-term conversation with that consumer.
within the medium. So, through purchasing, reach and frequency can be amplified.
Proper social media activation is highly effective and the opposite In conclusion, social media offers an exciting opportunity for
holds true too. Badly executed communication is damaging. innovative, modern marketing. However, it’s a new discipline that
Entrusting social media management to inexperienced teams can requires investment but, in the long term, not playing in the space
result in much harm. A misplaced remark on behalf of a brand is more damaging than not investing.
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