The Sociology of Optimizing ROI for Social Marketing Success

social-networking
Print Friendly, PDF & Email

If you have any hope of your marketing efforts paying off and bringing you a return on your investment (ROI), you will need to understand the sociology behind it and to truly understand not only what you need to do but also why you need to do it. Taking the appropriate steps and knowing why those steps are critical is essential to your professional success.

Surrounding yourself with the right people

The first thing that you need to do in your effort to get a firm grasp on the sociology of your marketing efforts and how they relate to the knowledge and expertise of your influencers is to start to interact with those influencers. If you don’t have a relationship with those people, it is definitely time for you to establish one (and not just any relationship but a relationship that is solid and mutually beneficial). It may be quite challenging for you to successfully build relationships with your influencers for the simple reason that you are up against an environment where they are used to being surrounded by a large amount of useless information from other people. Before you can make headway with the influencers, you need to prove your credibility and trustworthiness so that they will want to have a relationship with you. It will definitely be worth your while to put in the effort to make that happen.

How do you begin to successfully form relationships?

The absolute first thing that you must do when forming a relationship with an influencer (or anyone else) is to discover exactly what you have in common. You will actually both be working together toward the same perfect end. You are not working separately. You are working as one cohesive unit and your success will not be yours alone. It will be yours and your influencer’s together. If you share common ground and you have the same desires and passions in life, you will do well together in a relationship.

How does the sociology figure into it?

Sociology is the idea that people are not in silos. They have an innate desire to belong to a group. They are attracted to other people based on their passions and desires and what they want to accomplish (in this case, professionally). In any relationship (whether it is personal or professional), people need to connect on a human level. If they can’t do that, they will not be able to connect on any level. The emotional connection needs to be established before anything else. It is not a business transaction that you are going for. It is a relationship where both sides give to each other and what each one gets out of the relationship actually means something valuable. The reason that you want to form relationships with influencers is that your ultimate goal of increasing your professional success will eventually be realized. Everything that you do in business and everything that you are will be influenced by the relationships that you form.

Getting to really know your influencers

As you go through the process of successfully connecting with your influencers and forming meaningful relationships with those people, you must understand that it will require careful planning and a great deal of effort before you actually arrive at the point where you can say that you share a mutually beneficial relationship with that particular influencer. There is a good deal of valuable information about your influencers that you can actually get your hands on and that information is in various places and is yours for the taking. You can look at the influencers’ various social media profiles from which you can glean the following information, which will help you a great deal.

  • Twitter: Where the person works, their personal web presence (including their website), areas of interest.
  • Facebook: Friends and family members.
  • LinkedIn: You will find the influencer’s educational background, work background, and other professional interests here.
  • PinterestThe person’s influencers, likes, and dislikes.

It is very wise on your part if you can tap into all of that rich information. It will greatly strengthen your chances of successfully forming a relationship with the influencer.

What you should do next

Once you have gathered all of the information that you can possibly gather, it is time to peel back that layer and dig a little deeper. Your next step might include using an analytics tool, which will enable you to understand who influences your influencer and the type of information that is being shared. If you can get your hands on the content that your influencers and their influencers are sharing, you can create content that will make them pay attention to you and your business. Another tool that will serve you well is a tool that actually measures influence. There are several that you can use, including Klout and Littlebird.

Conclusion

If you follow the steps that have been suggested here, you will be successful at becoming well acquainted with your targeted influencers. Regarding the order of the steps (logically), it probably makes the most sense to write the content, place it where it will have the most positive effect, and then introduce your influencers to that content. After that, all you need to do is to nurture your relationships and keep proving to your influencers how valuable you and your business are to them. It is critical that you understand the sociological aspect of your relationships with your influencers so that you can really help each other a great deal. Your influencers will help to bring your business to the next level and your interactions will be valuable and productive.

We are pleased to provide you with the insightful comments contained herein. For a complimentary assessment of your online presence, let’s have coffee.

Author

  • Jonathan Cohn

    Jonathan Cohn is a student of sociology at William Paterson University in Wayne, NJ. Jonathan offers a new perspective to the Blogs of CompuKol Connections because of his course of study and because of his experience and interactions with people from a sociological angle.

    Besides having a passion for people, he also has a passion for music. He is a bass player and has played with several local bands in New York and New Jersey.

8 Responses

  1. Kenneth D. Steadman says:

    Via Linkedin Groups
    Group: Small Business & Independent Consultant Network
    Discussion: How Do You Connect with Influencers?

    Be interesting enough to have them meet you. Too often, people want to meet “the man” rather than be “the man.” I’m not talking delusions of grandeur; I’m talking about being good at what you do, taking every opportunity to speak on your expertise, write content on your area, and network. Becoming a ” go to” person in your sphere of influence goes a long way to making you an influencer instead of looking for one.
    By Kenneth D. Steadman, MBA

  2. Bennet Bayer says:

    Via Linkedin Groups
    Group: Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) Network – #1 Group for CMOs
    Discussion: How Do You Connect with Influencers?

    I apologize for being smart, but this is a group of “Chiefs” – respectfully, if I want to connect with an influencer I would simply pick-up a phone. Not too many in the Global 2000 that I have not met or know someone who knows them.

    I appreciate that is not the purpose of you post, just pointing out what I hope our peers would agree, that more direct methodology (such as LI) exists beyond “social marketing” which I would content is at best a shotgun approach to approaching influencers.
    By Bennet Bayer

  3. Stan Dubin says:

    Via Linkedin Groups
    Group: Small Business & Independent Consultant Network
    Discussion: How Do You Connect with Influencers?

    The article provides some good ideas on how to engage an “influencer” and then ends off with an invite and a link to “have coffee.” Cute and likely effective.
    By Stan Dubin

  4. Ching Quek says:

    Via Linkedin Groups
    Group: IIBA (International Institute of Business Analysis)
    Discussion: How Do You Connect with Influencers?

    Once you identified your influencers, the next step is usually detailing what domain of influence they have. These people may not be senior managers, but they hold the balance in power in making your projects successful or experience abrasive implementations.
    By Ching Quek

  5. Albert Eins says:

    Via Linkedin Groups
    Group: Small Business Web
    Discussion: How Do You Connect with Influencers?

    You are right when it comes to anyone’s success level. Surround yourself with great people and you will do great things. (ROI) You are only as good as the people you surround yourself with. Choose and be selective who plays on your team. Loral Langemeier put it best in her two books I have…Step-by-step you can accomplish anything with the proper amount of sequence of doing. Find out who shares your values and when you build your team you will work hand-to-hand for the common goal. Who you are today tells others where your going. They will ask you where you going? Can I come too! How do you do it? When do you do it?
    Where you do it? As the saying goes…There is no “I” in Teamwork. Teamwork makes the dream work..Walt Disney 1955. Opening day of Disney Land. Funny, It still works in business today as it did 1600 years ago. Know yourself and get to KNOW those who will benefit from your offer. It must be beneficial to all parties on your team. People do business with people they know, trust, and LIKE! Not everyone will like you. So what? Hang with those who support you and your ideas. Just keep moving forward everyday. Make a commitment to those who are on your team. Be Fair and Reasonable. No other way. When you become what you say, your life turns towards a life elevated. Now, you know the Why question. Be true with your words, Never assume, Never take things personally because someone does not agree with your point of view or your project. And Always do your best. No one can fault you for doing your best.
    By Albert Eins

  6. Dave Temple says:

    Via Linkedin Groups
    Group: Small Business Web
    Discussion: How Do You Connect with Influencers?

    I am considered an “influencer” on Instagram. (@kewiki) – Most people will just contact my agent, Mobile Media Lab or Niche, and some will contact me directly through Instagram or Twitter. The key is to know who you want and then just see what other social platforms we are on. Most also have a Facebook page. If we are ever contacted directly, we typically refer you to our agents. That way it is a clean transaction for both parties. Hope this helps!
    By Dave Temple

  7. Don Osborne says:

    Via Linkedin Groups
    Group: Small Biz Nation
    Discussion: How Do You Connect with Influencers?

    Develop like-minded content for like-minded readers
    By Don Osborne

  8. Kirit Pankhania says:

    Via Linkedin Groups
    Group: Fans of Mashable
    Discussion: How Do You Connect with Influencers?

    As with all things there is a system, a recipe if you like. As as with all recipes your own individual flair should be demostrated perhaps through the content for example.
    A very useful post that can be followed and tweaked as needs must. Thank You
    By Kirit Pankhania