Social Media Success is a Field of Dreams
Monday, November 9, 2009 | 31 Comments
Tags: change management, getting started in social media, social media strategy
Posted in: Social Media
There is a huge amount of energy in the social media space being focused on tools to implement social media objectives and strategies. Let’s not forget the human element involved…the enterprise needing to be educated and the teams who will carry out these lofty new objectives and strategies. The path to social media integration will not always be smooth and definitely, not immediate. The key is setting reasonable, realistic expectations. Now is the time for you to explore, ask questions and put the social media boogieman to rest so you can achieve the dream of social media success.
Focus is on the negative versus positive
Too often, we hear about the less than positive social media challenges and issues more often than we do the success stories. Perhaps that is because each of us defines success differently. To avoid a negative mindset, consider the cultural characteristics within your organization you perceive will be an obstacle in using social media. What are they? Recognize and address these obstacles at the start of your social media planning. Social media tools are new for all, but the underlying cultural values supporting this new space for relationships is not. Be proactive in educating your organization about the good and bad sides of social media, just like any other business practice.
Change is the only Constant
So said the famous Greek philosopher, Heraclitus. Isn’t it amazing what was true two thousand years ago remains so relevant today?
Leading change management thinker, John Kotter, outlines an 8-step change model to achieve success in challenging situations:
- Increase Urgency
- Build the Guiding Team
- Get the Vision Right
- Communicate for Buy-In
- Empower Action
- Create Short-Term Wins
- Don’t Let Up
- Make Change Stick
Socializing the enterprise internally and externally is certainly one of those challenging situations. Change does not happen overnight. All of us know this, but do not necessarily act as if we know this to be a reality. Is your organization ready to enter the social media space? Do your homework and find out what you are up against in making social media a reality in its own time in your organization. As you embark on this journey, integrate your findings into Kotter’s change model for a smoother transition. We will help you by addressing on this blog what actionable items you can achieve at every step.
Keep an open mind
“It is the privilege of wisdom to listen.” – O. W. Holmes
If your mind is tightly closed and always ready to criticize you may miss ideas and solutions you were not even aware you were seeking. A lot of chatter surrounds the why of social media but not the specifics of how and the effects, positive and negative, those organizations experienced existing and participating in social media. We need more people willing to listen and share. Last month, we dove into the topic of listening/monitoring, but in this instance, what we are suggesting is cultivating the knack of organizational listening…uncritically. There are a lot of gold nuggets to be found if we can learn from each other and then have the fortitude to act upon those ideas.
…
Social media success is a field of dreams; have courage to chase these successes. As you forge this path, you will encounter obstacles, but may have many other ideas and occurrences blossom that you never intended. Persevere and success will not only be realized for you, but for others. Dreams are contagious. Start inspiring positive success and social media practices today.
31 Responses to “Social Media Success is a Field of Dreams”
lauren on November 9th, 2009 at 9:51 am
Jonathan,
Great point. I am definitely not advocating the building of community silos for greater control versus going out to where your community already resides. The Field of Dreams analogy is much more than the catchy Hollywood phrase from the movie, but encompasses a larger exploratory role and not allowing negativity to dictate your success or failure in the social media space.
Jonathan Moody on November 9th, 2009 at 9:45 am
It’s interesting that you use the Field of Dreams analogy as I have found many cases of companies trying to get the dialog going on their own websites, under their terms and under too much control. And most the times these effort fail because there are already myriad places where people can already go to discuss, debate and inform purchases decisions (as you are only too aware, I’m sure). The mentality is “If you build it, they will come.” However, this often turns out no to be the case, unlike Kevin Costner’s effort in the movie.
lauren on November 9th, 2009 at 9:51 am
Jonathan,
Great point. I am definitely not advocating the building of community silos for greater control versus going out to where your community already resides. The Field of Dreams analogy is much more than the catchy Hollywood phrase from the movie, but encompasses a larger exploratory role and not allowing negativity to dictate your success or failure in the social media space.
Jonathan Moody on November 9th, 2009 at 9:45 am
It’s interesting that you use the Field of Dreams analogy as I have found many cases of companies trying to get the dialog going on their own websites, under their terms and under too much control. And most the times these effort fail because there are already myriad places where people can already go to discuss, debate and inform purchases decisions (as you are only too aware, I’m sure). The mentality is “If you build it, they will come.” However, this often turns out no to be the case, unlike Kevin Costner’s effort in the movie.
lauren on November 9th, 2009 at 9:51 am
Jonathan,
Great point. I am definitely not advocating the building of community silos for greater control versus going out to where your community already resides. The Field of Dreams analogy is much more than the catchy Hollywood phrase from the movie, but encompasses a larger exploratory role and not allowing negativity to dictate your success or failure in the social media space.
Jonathan Moody on November 9th, 2009 at 9:45 am
It’s interesting that you use the Field of Dreams analogy as I have found many cases of companies trying to get the dialog going on their own websites, under their terms and under too much control. And most the times these effort fail because there are already myriad places where people can already go to discuss, debate and inform purchases decisions (as you are only too aware, I’m sure). The mentality is “If you build it, they will come.” However, this often turns out no to be the case, unlike Kevin Costner’s effort in the movie.
lauren on November 9th, 2009 at 9:51 am
Jonathan,
Great point. I am definitely not advocating the building of community silos for greater control versus going out to where your community already resides. The Field of Dreams analogy is much more than the catchy Hollywood phrase from the movie, but encompasses a larger exploratory role and not allowing negativity to dictate your success or failure in the social media space.
Claire Chapman on November 9th, 2009 at 10:37 am
Hi there
I agree – technology is almost the last requirement to understand as technologies are changing so fast these days. Knowing and understanding how to apply change, in the field of social media and in the specific context of your company, is key to real success, along with listening and engaging with the right people.
Claire Chapman on November 9th, 2009 at 10:37 am
Hi there
I agree – technology is almost the last requirement to understand as technologies are changing so fast these days. Knowing and understanding how to apply change, in the field of social media and in the specific context of your company, is key to real success, along with listening and engaging with the right people.
Claire Chapman on November 9th, 2009 at 10:37 am
Hi there
I agree – technology is almost the last requirement to understand as technologies are changing so fast these days. Knowing and understanding how to apply change, in the field of social media and in the specific context of your company, is key to real success, along with listening and engaging with the right people.
Claire Chapman on November 9th, 2009 at 10:37 am
Hi there
I agree – technology is almost the last requirement to understand as technologies are changing so fast these days. Knowing and understanding how to apply change, in the field of social media and in the specific context of your company, is key to real success, along with listening and engaging with the right people.
Stephen Woodall on November 9th, 2009 at 10:59 am
I love the advice surround this quote: “Do your homework and find out what you are up against in making social media a reality in its own time in your organization.” In student services, we have a lot of professors, administrators, and faculty advisors to student organizations clamoring to post up a social media tool. They hope to get students following and actively interacting.
My boss did a presentation with the fact that before you go online and start using these tools, research and prepare to enter the social media space. He mentions how having a Facebook page or Twitter account might be great for their department, but remember to keep it updated regularly, otherwise you lose followers and retention is lost. Then, you only end up with another static webpage.
To add on the metaphor, there is the Field of Dreams, but then you have to till the field and cut away any dead. You also have to maintain and fix the farm machinery that keeps the field accessible and healthy.
lauren on November 9th, 2009 at 11:07 am
Stephen,
What a great addition to the metaphor! We will be discussing more about expectations and maintenance.
Stephen Woodall on November 9th, 2009 at 10:59 am
I love the advice surround this quote: “Do your homework and find out what you are up against in making social media a reality in its own time in your organization.” In student services, we have a lot of professors, administrators, and faculty advisors to student organizations clamoring to post up a social media tool. They hope to get students following and actively interacting.
My boss did a presentation with the fact that before you go online and start using these tools, research and prepare to enter the social media space. He mentions how having a Facebook page or Twitter account might be great for their department, but remember to keep it updated regularly, otherwise you lose followers and retention is lost. Then, you only end up with another static webpage.
To add on the metaphor, there is the Field of Dreams, but then you have to till the field and cut away any dead. You also have to maintain and fix the farm machinery that keeps the field accessible and healthy.
lauren on November 9th, 2009 at 11:07 am
Stephen,
What a great addition to the metaphor! We will be discussing more about expectations and maintenance.
Stephen Woodall on November 9th, 2009 at 10:59 am
I love the advice surround this quote: “Do your homework and find out what you are up against in making social media a reality in its own time in your organization.” In student services, we have a lot of professors, administrators, and faculty advisors to student organizations clamoring to post up a social media tool. They hope to get students following and actively interacting.
My boss did a presentation with the fact that before you go online and start using these tools, research and prepare to enter the social media space. He mentions how having a Facebook page or Twitter account might be great for their department, but remember to keep it updated regularly, otherwise you lose followers and retention is lost. Then, you only end up with another static webpage.
To add on the metaphor, there is the Field of Dreams, but then you have to till the field and cut away any dead. You also have to maintain and fix the farm machinery that keeps the field accessible and healthy.
lauren on November 9th, 2009 at 11:07 am
Stephen,
What a great addition to the metaphor! We will be discussing more about expectations and maintenance.
Stephen Woodall on November 9th, 2009 at 10:59 am
I love the advice surround this quote: “Do your homework and find out what you are up against in making social media a reality in its own time in your organization.” In student services, we have a lot of professors, administrators, and faculty advisors to student organizations clamoring to post up a social media tool. They hope to get students following and actively interacting.
My boss did a presentation with the fact that before you go online and start using these tools, research and prepare to enter the social media space. He mentions how having a Facebook page or Twitter account might be great for their department, but remember to keep it updated regularly, otherwise you lose followers and retention is lost. Then, you only end up with another static webpage.
To add on the metaphor, there is the Field of Dreams, but then you have to till the field and cut away any dead. You also have to maintain and fix the farm machinery that keeps the field accessible and healthy.
lauren on November 9th, 2009 at 11:07 am
Stephen,
What a great addition to the metaphor! We will be discussing more about expectations and maintenance.
Pete Callaghan on November 10th, 2009 at 5:38 am
Dreams are great motivators, but to reach them you need to change what you do, so I think that this is a helpful metaphor for organisations getting to grips with Social Media.
Once you get past the “why”, you need to consider the “what” and then the “how”. Having the dream and deciding to act on Social Media is the easy part. The cultural change that is necessary for many organisations is harder, but success in this is essential to allow Social Media to deliver the dream.
Pete Callaghan on November 10th, 2009 at 5:38 am
Dreams are great motivators, but to reach them you need to change what you do, so I think that this is a helpful metaphor for organisations getting to grips with Social Media.
Once you get past the “why”, you need to consider the “what” and then the “how”. Having the dream and deciding to act on Social Media is the easy part. The cultural change that is necessary for many organisations is harder, but success in this is essential to allow Social Media to deliver the dream.
Pete Callaghan on November 10th, 2009 at 5:38 am
Dreams are great motivators, but to reach them you need to change what you do, so I think that this is a helpful metaphor for organisations getting to grips with Social Media.
Once you get past the “why”, you need to consider the “what” and then the “how”. Having the dream and deciding to act on Social Media is the easy part. The cultural change that is necessary for many organisations is harder, but success in this is essential to allow Social Media to deliver the dream.
Pete Callaghan on November 10th, 2009 at 5:38 am
Dreams are great motivators, but to reach them you need to change what you do, so I think that this is a helpful metaphor for organisations getting to grips with Social Media.
Once you get past the “why”, you need to consider the “what” and then the “how”. Having the dream and deciding to act on Social Media is the easy part. The cultural change that is necessary for many organisations is harder, but success in this is essential to allow Social Media to deliver the dream.
workforce management software on March 22nd, 2010 at 6:41 pm
Hey I’m trying to set up a feed via rss from your website to my blog. How should I go about this ??
workforce management software on March 22nd, 2010 at 6:41 pm
Hey I’m trying to set up a feed via rss from your website to my blog. How should I go about this ??
workforce management software on March 22nd, 2010 at 6:41 pm
Hey I’m trying to set up a feed via rss from your website to my blog. How should I go about this ??
Jonathan Moody on November 9th, 2009 at 9:45 am
It’s interesting that you use the Field of Dreams analogy as I have found many cases of companies trying to get the dialog going on their own websites, under their terms and under too much control. And most the times these effort fail because there are already myriad places where people can already go to discuss, debate and inform purchases decisions (as you are only too aware, I’m sure). The mentality is “If you build it, they will come.” However, this often turns out no to be the case, unlike Kevin Costner’s effort in the movie.