Why should my local deli Tweet? or my bike shop? or any business?

Why follow @Sara_G_N_Kerr?

How relevant is it that Tuesday I ate Cassoulet for lunch while sitting on a radiator because it was so cold here? Granted, I usually have more important things to say. But then again, how do I know my readers didn’t run down to the Meritage or Vincent and order a bowl? Days before I’d just read how Cassoulet is perfect for Minnesota winters and over the course of 3 days, baked up a pot of it.

Why use any social media for that matter?

Social Media makes the purchase relationship better, tighter, more creative, and ultimately satisfying.

See In Defense of Social Media by B.L Ochman for her full post or read her blog:  WhatsUpNextBlog. Here is an excerpt from that post:

What it takes to create evangelists and sales with social media:

1. A great product or service: because if your product sucks (a problem many observers seem to think Burger King has) nothing else matters.
2. Close integration of digital, social, mobile with offline: advertising, events, PR, direct marketing, sales promotion — Best Buy is a champion in this area.
3. Entertaining content is a good place to start: ask Blendtec. But that alone is not enough. Not to sound like a broken record: but integration with social media, digital, offline and sales promotion are key.
4. Including social media in product development: Doing that saves costs in research and testing, and increases brand loyalty — ask Dell.
5. Selling what people want, using social media, without a heavy-handed pitch: Dell claims that their Twitter presence led to $3 million in sales plus lots of earned media. They don’t hit people over the head with a sales message in Twitter. Their website, online and offline advertising, direct mail and word of mouth convey the brand’s features.
6. Using social media for customer/tech support: Twitter has led to huge savings in tech support for companies ranging from Best Buy to Verizon to Comcast.

The biggest mistake I see with my clients?

It’s the total lack of integration between real world marketing and and what organizations do interactively.