If you've landed here expecting a bullet list on how to make a fortune in social media, go ahead and click the back button on your browser now. If anything, this post is written to reinforce a very traditional idea that worked for generations before the first billboard ever blocked out a tree, let alone in social media.
Question: If you want a girl to like you (or a boy, for you sticklers), what is the best course of action
A) Lie your ass off and hope they don't care when they find out?
B) Be yourself?
We watch a lot of movies, so I'm going with B. And you can replace 'girl' with any number of other things. You want that new watch? Steal it? You want to fly to Europe? Stow away? You want to be successful in social media? Lie and be whatever you think your audience wants you to be in order for you to reach some unrealistic goal? Or be yourself?
One of the best bits of advice I have ever received is: 'Always tell the truth – there's less to remember.' As someone who didn't always follow this rule in life, I've found it to be as helpful today as when I first heard it 20 years ago. It's a helluva lot easier to be authentic than false. It just is.
As an advertising copywriter, I've been asked to write a lot of stuff. And despite a general view that advertising is manipulative and evil, I've never once lied in an appeal – ever. Sure, I get people to think about TRUE ideas differently, but I've never lied (though I've been asked to.) Also, I've sold a lot of stuff. Truth always wins.
Which brings us social media. Today I had a meeting with a client to talk about their social media strategy and was having a parallel discussion with a partner on how best to use Twitter (specifically.) After thinking about these things for a bit, I posted this tweet:
This may be the truest thing I've written in this space. After all, influence is the number one factor as to why people do *anything* (next to getting paid for it, of course.) After I posted this tweet, a bunch of people agreed with the idea (Thanks for the RT,) and, of course, some people questioned it. There's *no way* that something as simple as authenticity can be a core foundation for brands to move around in this space.
Don't get me wrong, I completely understand that there are people who think that authenticity is not a very good idea for brands – period. After all, there's a whole school of thought in traditional marketing that the point of any advertising is to be in front of as many 'eyeballs' as possible. Why? So that one day, subconsciously I guess, the minions act favorably. Brilliant!
Wow. Ok, assuming this isn't so brilliant, what's left for brands to do? How about making the best product possible and letting that stand on its own merit for people to decide for themselves? You know, like giving this 'word-of-mouth' advertising thing a shot. Especially since every single person in business recognizes 'word-of-mouth' as the best advertising available.
Ok, but how do you get people to notice? Obviously, as we all know, social media is a great place to develop an audience who may or may not help you spread the word about your stuff – but not because you ask them to, rather because you sell good stuff. So the trick is to sell good stuff, have people in place who don't lie (and who treat people with respect), and always tell the truth about – everything. No, we don't need to know that the COO is sleeping with the receptionist at the Boulder satellite. At some point common sense must prevail. Rather, just be authentic.
Perhaps the best advice about brand development (whether in social or not) comes courtesy of a dead English poet: "To thy own self be true." When you can do this, everything works out for the best. Always. Especially with the girl.
***
Ivana Sendecka
Feb 15, 2010
Super cool post!
Be unique, be authentic, walk your talk, when you screw up apologize publicly, interact and live with heart.Forget about how world worked before. It is changed…
Connect, care and be an example of how passionate you are about your work.Give yourself away and FLOW 😉
All of the above is such a great FUN and more over it WORKS;-)
cheers from Slovakia
i.
Melissa
Feb 15, 2010
As someone who RTed your tweet, I definitely agree.
I like the whole notion of being “unapologetically me” — i.e., authentic, transparent. I’ve been blogging about my personal issues on my blog since June 2008 and some people voiced concern that I was laying too much out there. But I know how many people my honesty has helped — I read their comments, respond to their emails … being honest about my struggles has helped me gain credibility in that sphere, and now I’m finding success to extend it outside of that realm, too.
People won’t always like you or agree, but at least you’re being true to you, and what you stand for.
I think all too often brands are afraid of fessing up to a mistake (look at how long it took Toyota to respond in the wake of the recall debacle!) whereas by being forthright and honest, you might upset people — but they will respect you more for it.
I agree — to thy own self be true.
Cheryl Smithem
Feb 15, 2010
Jim, as always, you are so correct. If more people understood the key to a solid brand is this simple, then there would be more success by more companies. I think people think that it has to be “harder than that.” Products that fill a need, are made well, to those who can use them usually succeed. Think of the iPod. Integrity is the most important element of any product.
Peter McRae
Feb 16, 2010
Seems like the equation is “Authenticity x Relevancy = Influence”.
Peter McRae
Feb 16, 2010
I meant to say “Authenticity x Relevance = Influence”. Spell check only goes so far…
Jim Mitchem
Feb 16, 2010
It’s almost too simple, isn’t it?
Jim Mitchem
Feb 16, 2010
Thanks Cheryl. We tend to make things more complicated than they need to be, I’ve learned.
Jim Mitchem
Feb 16, 2010
Well, if you look at the formula there’s this thing called Credibility in there. Credibility *is* relevance to a specific audience. So relevance is understood, in this particular case. The point is that if you’re trying to be everything to everyone – that’s a formula for disaster. It doesn’t work. If you are true to yourself (your brand, etc.) this naturally draws relevant (qualified) people to your appeal.
Gretchenramsey
Feb 16, 2010
Oh, Mr. Mitchem, here you go again with a perfect post. Authenticity is where I always start when explaining social to newcomers and the fearful. It is so simple, indeed. Authenticity is imperative, but it’s the content makes them care. The question is…can good content make you more authentic? 😉
Jim Mitchem
Feb 16, 2010
You know what Gretchen, I am pretty sure that if you’re authentic content starts with sincerity. Therefore, if you can create sincere content, that’s what creates relevance/credibility anyway. After all, if you are writing to a specific audience about something they care about, it’s relevant from the first word. No, you’re not going to sell everyone on every idea you put out there – but if you believe in what you say (going back to the thing about being true to yourself/brand) then whatever you put out there will at the very least be sincere. So, good content = sincere content, which is an extension of authenticity.
And thanks for the comment.
tom martin
Mar 1, 2010
Love this post Jim… given the transparency of the internet and social media, really there is no choice but to be yourself and allow those that want to be with folks like you — follow/friend you here.
Great stuff man. Good reminder.
@TomMartin
http://www.tommartin.typepad.com
Jim Mitchem
Mar 1, 2010
Thanks Tom. Yep, I always say that Twitter is its own filter. Someone might have 50K followers because they bought into a program, but when they start becoming genuine here (and yes, this works for brands as well) then the people who are not necessarily their audience falls away while more people who *are* their audience, are attracted and follow. It’s a nearly perfect system.
Tom Albrighton
May 15, 2010
I have blogged along similar lines here, albeit less incisively:
http://www.abccopywriting.com/blog/2010/04/26/companies-should-be-themselves-in-social-media/
One point I’d throw into the mix is that perhaps only people can truly be authenic. A brand is always a construct that’s shared by many people. It can’t really have values in the same way as a person; its personality is a fiction.
In my post I welcome the social media ‘fails’ (so called) that reveal the real people behind the corporate Twitter accounts. Such incidents are off-message but totally authentic on a human level. I think we should celebrate them, or at least not criticise them quite so harshly.
However, my thinking is starting to move on from the ‘authenticity’ position. Consider the personal level again. Sure, I’ll get a certain credibility by saying exactly what I think all the time. But it might still alienate a lot of people I’d like to know better. Personally, the older I get the more carefully I choose my words, and the more often I choose to remain silent. Authenticity is independence, but maybe interdependence is a higher goal – and it means being true to others as well as to yourself.
Just my thoughts.
Jim Mitchem
May 17, 2010
I was watching The In-Laws (the original) last night. There’s a scene where Sheldon’s wife is at the bank. She walks up to the teller. The teller knows her. They start talking about life stuff they know about each other for a couple of minutes before getting to the reason why Sheldon’s wife is even at the bank. I haven’t been inside a bank in months. The last time a teller knew me was – never. But it did used to happen. I remember it happening with my mother and grandmother.
And that personal banter between the bank teller (an ambassador for the bank/brand) and the customer is what *could* happen every day in social media. It’s not a new concept. But it’s so different from shooting ads out into a stream (or on TV, radio, billboards, print, direct mail, etc. etc. etc.) that businesses fear this kind of discourse rather than embrace it. Let the people who work for the company interact and engage with people directly. The problem is that unlike the bank where the customer is in something like a controlled environment surrounded by the brand, in digital networking – it’s wide open. Which is why Quality Control and Education are probably as important to brands as the listening and engaging tools they invest in.
My novel – Minor King
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