There are many different social media channels and many different
people using those channels. Not all people have exactly the same needs.
There are different users who need to get different results from their
efforts.
Although there are many social media channels from which to choose,
not any one channel generally fulfills all of an individual’s needs. On
the reverse side, it is also difficult for marketers to understand all
of their customers needs and wants from a single channel. From the
perspective of the search engines, they can only tell what people are
interested in. The search engines don’t have any sense of what has gone
before the search for information. Analytics are critical to your
success as a business owner. If you are not able to get your hands on
the metrics, it will be difficult to grow your business.
There are
several different types of social media users, which will be discussed
here:
• Fill it in and forget it: These are the users who
filled in a profile on the sites that they have chosen and that was the
end of it. The users in this category are most likely not particularly
comfortable with social media and may not truly understand the power
that it holds for them. Additionally, those individuals don’t want to
communicate online with others about what they are doing.
• Newbies: Newbies are just as passive as the Fill
it in and forget its, however, they are also not comfortable with the
concept of having a strong presence. How they differ with people in the
first category is that they recognize the importance and impact that
social media may have on their business. They also recognize that social
media will help them to develop relationships online and strengthen
their already-existing online relationships from the past.
• Watching from the outside: These are social media
users who don’t actually get involved with other people too much. They
will post articles once in a while but their presence is not felt a lot.
Their main reason for being connected to social media is to find out
what other people are doing (without a great deal of sharing about what
they are doing). They are often paranoid about sharing too much
information about themselves and their business.
• The “in” group: These users are active on
whichever channels they have chosen. Often, they are only active on one
particular social media channel (Facebook, for example). A large portion
of their communications involve graphics (photos) and they are very
comfortable with letting their online connections know what is going on
(personally and professionally). They are often thought of as
influencers within their limited social media community.
• Mix with the crowd: These social media users are
extremely comfortable with a high level of activity on multiple social
media channels. They are consistent with their activities and
interactions and they love to follow other people’s brands and
offerings. They want to be “the first to know.” They totally understand
the power of social media and they also respect and appreciate the
importance of the individual’s privacy. Many of the relationships they
enjoy were formed online and they are very comfortable with online
interactions.
• Shining stars: These social media users are the
most involved of all of the different types. They express themselves
frequently and easily through social media. They do have a strong sense
and respect for privacy; however, they are also comfortable with online
interactions. They are the users who engage with the most social media
channels and they often want to be the ones to lead discussions. They
are very comfortable speaking about brands and are very likely to share
information from various businesses with people they know. They are the
people who are the most likely to turn a post viral.
• Conclusion: With the different types of social
media and all of the various social media users, it isn’t enough to use a
one-size-fits all concept. You will find that some users are more
enthusiastic and positive than others. You should also expect there may
be some users who fit into more than one category. Customization is
important and it will be much easier to meet the needs of individuals
with that approach. It is also critical for business owners to
understand clearly who the various users are and what they expect to get
out of the various channels.
Michael Cohn, Post from: SiteProNews