Social Media: On Brand? On Spirit!
If done correctly, advertisements (print/TV/whatever) are carefully crafted and placed to be ON BRAND. At least the smart ones are. But when it comes to social media, it’s not about ads – it’s about people. People can’t be controlled to always be on brand. So what’s a social media conscious organization to do?
When it comes to people, don’t think brand – think SPIRT. Human beings simply can’t walk thru life constantly acting and speaking “on message” to reinforce some associated brand. Even if they try, others will see through their being so one-dimensional. It’s boring. Don’t be that guy.
Instead, think about being ON SPIRIT — a much more organic and meaningful expression way to breathe continuous life into a brand.
So when you (or your employees) are interacting with other people online, don’t suffer from “paralysis of analysis” on whether or not you’re precisely ON BRAND. Rather, think about what you’re saying/doing to gauge if it’s in spirit of your organization’s brand.
Google realized this early and adopted their mantra for employees: Don’t be evil. To be even safer, I’d recommend the Golden Rule: Treats others as you’d want to be treated yourself.
So if stay ON SPIRIT while interacting in social media while your advertising delivers your message ON BRAND, you’ll stand out as an organization that can both talk the talk AND walk the walk.
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Comments
This is certainly an interesting way to think about what sort of ideas are expressed through social media. But I personally feel that rather than saying “let’s be on spirit so we don’t feel confined to being on brand” it’s more important to expand our thinking of what “on brand” can be.
When I read your post, I couldn’t help but think that your definition of “on spirit” is probably what “on brand” is meant to be anyway. So perhaps the real point is, you can’t control people’s reactions to the messaging that you put out there, but if you fully understand what it means to be on brand, you shouldn’t have any fear.
That’s just my take on the matter.
Tim: You’re correct. My hope is that through interactions in social media, normal conversations can occur reinforce and EXTEND the brand to touch people in a more human way. My fear is that many people in communications are afraid of social media; they’re afraid to say something that’s not a message point.
Jim Canterucci on November 23, 2008 @ 10:16 pm
Gary,
This is such a great way to think about it. It provides a guideline with great flexibility and allows the individual to be innovative in applying the brand in the interaction.
Jim