There is always a lot of talk going on around the web about how companies and individuals can make money through social media, I’m telling you they can’t. You don’t make money with social media, it’s that simple. If you sign up on twitter nobody is going to hand you a check for $50, if you create a facebook account you won’t receive a $100 gift certificate to the store of your choice, and if you sign up for linkedin you won’t automatically get a wire transfer (or an automatic job for that matter) to your bank account. What you do make through social media are valuable connections and relationships that you can then use to create revenue or business for yourself.
It’s not the platforms that you use that matters, it’s how you leverage the relationships you make while interacting on those various platforms that matters. The value you derive from social media depends on you. It depends on how you reach out to your contacts and connections. It depends on whether or not you work on establishing yourself as an authority in your respective field. It also depends on how clearly you communicate to your contacts and connections what you are looking for. Remember, social media is the most effective communication and relationship building tool, not REVENUE tool. If you start to focus on how you can monetize social media then you are going to miss great opportunities.
If you have 10 followers on twitter you potentially have access to a network of thousands of people. Tell your 10 twitter followers that you are an expert in your field and prove it to them, ask those 10 followers to reach out to their contacts to see if someone is looking for a position that may fit you. If you have 100 connections on linkedin introduce yourself to them and think of ways you can help each other. Sitting on connections is useless (both physically and metaphorically), you have to act! A few weeks ago I sent the CMO of Best Buy a message asking if they were looking for SEO help, now we are in the discussion phase. A few days ago I received a possible opportunity to speak in Norway via a facebook friend. The designer who is re-designing my blog is a reader of mine who offered to help me with my new site design.
The relationships and connections you build through social media are priceless. You will be very surprised by the size of your network and the quality of the people you are connected with once you start to reach out to them. The value isn’t in advertising on your twitter page or on your blog, the value comes from the people you know and the relationships you build. Most of my business comes from word of mouth; through people that refer me to other people or through people that read my blog or have come across one of my posts.
If you could choose between $10,000 or 10,000 relationships/connections which would you choose? I would pick the relationships hands down because that is where the real value is.
You will never make a single penny with social media but you can do quite well for yourself with the relationships and connections you create and grow.
Thanks for reading
People do business with those they know, like, and trust. Social media is one of a number of tools that can help cultivate relationships, but you're right. social media doesn't make money. People working with people create money.
John P. Kreiss
MorganSullivan, Inc.
Business Solutions in Real Estate and Construction
Jacob,
For the most part I definitely agree, and it's one of the primary reasons I get tired of hearing people gripe about measurable ROI as a result of social media efforts. If you want to measure something, measure the relationships you cultivated that led to future partnerships, consulting opportunities, new accounts, word of mouth, etc.
My most recent blog post is about the benefits of starting a blog, and I mentioned many of the things opportunities I have received as a result of having a blog and participating in the social media world.
Enjoyed getting acquainted with your blog.
Best wishes.
So glad I stumbled upon your blog! I echo your sentiments with clients daily. Social Media is a tool, not a revenue generator. All good marketing starts with opening a dialogue and building a relationship, Social Media gives us this opportunity on an infinite level. Great post!
Amen to this. I wrote an article on this subject which is a perfect complement. I’ll post the link with permission.
One thing I would say, though, Jacob, is there ARE some people making money from social media: they’re the ones making money from social media by selling programmes, courses, and products telling you how to make money from social media.
Cynical? Maybe.
But the truth is, there is nothing new in marketing, and there isn’t likely to be until we’ve evolved to be different creatures from the ones we are now. Any differences are of style, not of substance.
Some of the best marketing and copywriting tips I ever got were from Robert Collier’s 1937 classic “letter book”.
What I find ever more depressing is people latching onto the latest fads and fashions looking for instant solutions and “effortless” answers that simply aren’t there.
The (fairly) recent hype about social media marketing reminds me of the stereotypical MLM meeting where everyone’s hyped to the gills… but no one’s actually making any money.
Jon
Check out Jon McCulloch’s last blog post..Dec 2, Priceless Copywriting Information the Pros Do NOT Want YOU To Know!
I couldn't agree more with what you're saying. Many evanglize social media as this profit center, when in reality, it's just another tool to use in marketing your business 🙂
An old classic quote but still true…”People don't care how much you know until they know how much you care” Human relationships are still and always will be the key to doing business. People prefer to do business with the people they like to work with. Social media has its place but boy does it take a while!
What a useful post here. Very informative for me..TQ friends…
Cheers,
Buat Duit Dengan Blog
What a useful post here. Very informative for me..TQ friends…
Cheers,
Buat Duit Dengan Blog
great article!