Things to remember in strategising social media in Singapore

“Just browse through some online images and find something funny to post. Hopefully people will follow us! Whatever we do, we can’t spend more than $50k on Social Media.”

Sounds familiar? …

Being a brand custodian is tough. There are many facets and KPIs to achieve. For the modern day marketer, things got a little more complicated as suddenly we have to get 10,000 Twitter followers by the end of the fiscal year.

Let’s flip the coin. You are going to build your own house. NO BLUEPRINT. What’s going to happen if you tell your contractor to simply build a house for a certain budget?

May be…‘the budget’ should not be the basis of all social media decisions?

There have been more brand disasters in digital media last year than on traditional media. In a world where consumers interact with your brand via social media, diving in without a blue print is indeed a recipe for disaster.

Whether it’s done in-house or via a social agency, The Strategic Social Framework (SSF) was developed to help all marketers figure out their brands’ journey in social media. It is an effective strategic tool to build your brand’s social repertoire on. Let’s take a quick look at this 7-step process.

 The Strategic Social Framework (SSF Model)

1.     Social Vision & Objective(s)
It is important to understand simple reasons why the brand is entering into social media. It need not be lofty sentences. Understanding the ‘why’ will give you the energy to figure out the all-important ‘How’.

2.     Understanding ‘The Brand Universe’
This is the lengthy process of penning down all areas of the business and their functions from manufacturing to distribution to unique HR practices to competitor activity etc. It is imperative to understand the complete business environment ‘inside-out’ before proceeding to the next level.

3.     Identifying ‘Hits’ and ‘Misses’ 
Once you are inside ‘The Brand Universe’, step into the shoes of your target audience. Match your target audience with the elements of your brand universe. What do you have to grab their attention? Keep asking your self questions.

“Will my consumers be interested in my unique manufacturing process?”
“Can I use my superior category knowledge to give helpful tips to my target audience?”
“Should I be weary of negative responses with regard to the low level of customer service?” etc.

4.     Prioritize the Brand Universe
With all the ‘Hits’ and ‘Misses’ identified, proceed to prioritize each element in the brand universe. This is probably the ‘make or break’ of your social blue print. It is imperative that an effective model to prioritize your brand’s universe is created for this step.

“What ‘misses’ should I proactively address? And what should I ignore?”
“What are the cool things that I can highlight?”

5.     Craft the Social Voice
The Social Voice is simply how you are going to ‘talk’ in social channels. In your journey to craft the perfect social voice, start with the following question(s).

If your brand were a person, what sort of a person would your brand be? How would he/she talk? What sort of words/slangs would that person use?

It is always helpful to clearly understand your brand universe before completing this step. Once you start living in your brand’s universe, you will be able to craft the most effective ‘Social Voice’ for your brand. Everything your brand does in Social Media should be in line with this ‘Social Voice’.

Tip: Try to ‘own’ certain words when you post on social media.

6.     Social Content Calendar & Production Plan
Once the road ahead is clear, plan your social content for the fiscal year. Take into consideration macro & micro environmental factors such as special seasonality, social changes, brand campaigns etc.

Take into consideration the social media budget; plan which elements to highlight via customized videos, graphics, apps etc. A special mention on NOT to compromise on great ‘ Social Brand Hits’. If the budget is not enough, leave it for the next year. Do not waste your ‘limited’ ‘Brand Hits’.

7.     Set social KPIs, Execute, Monitor
Depending on the available resources set social KPIs for the brand. E.g. How fast will you respond to fan inquiries? Complaints? Etc. If budget permits, invest in social analytics, as it will help to fine tune your social engine into a V8 Super Car!

Do note that this is an extremely simplified version of the model. There are many micro models associated with each step. There are many external social plugins to this model such as real time marketing, social analytics etc that you can ‘play’ with once the Blueprint is set.

It is imperative to build your social foundation before you jump into social media. Contact a specialist if you need any further input.