Fun! Easy! Popular! – Social Media Marketing Tips

I had the pleasure of getting to attend the latest AMA meeting ( American Marketing Association ) and pick up a few pointers from one of the best in the business.  Chris Forbes, co-author of Guerilla Marketing for Non Profits, shared his vast knowledge of all things Social Media in regards to successful marketing campaigns to a group of about 55 members of the AMA.   While Chris normally promotes things of the non profit sector and political nature; there was a point he made that sticks out in my mind.

Fun!  Easy!  Popular! – It’s such a simple concept, that I almost feel like it could go without saying.  However, there’s a reason marketing people like me have the jobs we do.  Because concepts such as, Fun!  Easy!  Popular! are tough for a lot of companies to grasp.  So, how does this apply to you?  Well, I think that the majority of today’s successful campaigns in any facet- whether it be tv commercials, print ads, online marketing to name a few; are capturing the very essence of this ‘simple’ concept.

How can you apply this to your company’s marketing efforts?  Ask yourself what the best commercial is that you have seen lately.  Why does it stand out?  Did it make you laugh?  What was the product?  Sometimes in marketing of the Social Media sort, companies get too wrapped up in an overload of ‘helpful’ information.  While the intentions are good, your target audience may feel overwhelmed.  So, lighten it up a bit!  Make your tweets fun, if not downright hilarious.  Talk about things that are mainstream today to build up your following.  And don’t make people think too hard or read too much.  If you’re trying to build up a Facebook Fan Page following, consider a fun contest of some sort.  Give a good prize that is desirable to your target demographic to the winner.  Overall, people respond better to things they are interested in or that humor them.  Everyone has that one person they follow on Twitter who is a steady stream of boring statistics and information.  Don’t be them!  Engage your audience with humorous blog posts.  Share a little bit of the human side of yourself.

Remember, when it comes to marketing on search engines like Google; it really is a popularity contest.  Google is the high school and you’re running for class president!  Be charming, funny, informative and give back to people.  It will get you everywhere!