By B.L. Ochman
Major corporations are in a quite a frenzy to get in on the social media revolution now that they’re beginning to realize it’s a sea change and not a fad.
But how can CMOs know whether to hire a big PR firm, an ad agency, an upstart digital shop, a consultant, or a combination of all these?
There are scores of blog posts suggesting that you need to ask six to 20 questions. I maintain these two will give you the real skinny.
Here are the two essential questions to ask your potential social media agency:
1- Do they walk the walk?
“If your key agency people are not participating as thought leaders in the space, should they be advising you?
They need street cred themselves.”
Ed Nicholson, Director Tyson Corporate PR
Does the prospective agency, have a credible social media presence of its own?
How long have they been using social media? If they have only recently established a presence in social media, ask why it took them so long.
Do they have a following? Many agencies have no more social media presence than what they pass off as blogs. Many of those are thinly disguised press releases, or are updated every month or so, if at all.
Even if they don’t have clients who are involved in social media, they need to be there themselves to demonstrate that they understand how new media actually works, and how community is built in real life, not in theory.
2- Do they have case studies to share with you to demonstrate their success incorporating social media into clients’ overall marketing strategy?
If they don’t, they’ll be learning on your dime.
Theory is great. It works for philosophy very well. But it doesn’t work as a demonstration of an agency’s ability to handle your social media marketing.
Social media has been part of the online landscape for a more than a decade, beginning with chat rooms and forums, and evolving into its current form. If an agency or individual consultant has no case studies integrating social media into a client campaign, keep looking.
There are a handful of credible social media agencies and consultants on the planet. These two essential questions will help you identify them. Ignore them at your peril.
Thoughts?
Bonus Links
– Straight Talk About Social Media
– Social Media Marketing: Who’s Full of Hot Air? Who’s the real deal?
– 10 Things Social Media Can’t Do
– Debunking Six Social Media Myths
Totally agree with you here. If an agency cannot demonstrate that they can do it for themselves then you should keep looking, because you can be sure that they will charge a similar amount as a company that can do it for themselves.
Amen… Amen… Amen…
I can’t say that i quite agree with the first statement. Paid search firms need to show results for their clients, not that they can bid on keywords in top position for their own agency on Google. And the best SEO firm is not the one with the first page Google ranking for the term “SEO”.
Why should social media firms be different?
Just because a social agency has an ‘industry pundit’ on their roster who has 10,000 twitter followers does not give any indication that they can tweet on behalf of their clients (folding into your second question which i agree with 100%) I have to say that i do get a little tired of the social media egoists who spend their days cramming the hash tags of all their friends blogs and speaking engagements into a tweet so that they will get cross promoted during their turn on the soapbox. This to me speaks more to narcissistic self promotion than social media competence of an agency. But that is just my take…
I’m fairly sure there are probably a few more questions that are relevant, such as “do they understand my business objectives” and “do they provide value for money” and others. But, I certainly agree the answers to the two above are pretty important…
Agreed, all. Also, to your point on case studies….it’s a good idea to ask for a comparative example, in line with your immediate challenges. i.e. ‘We’re looking at A, but wary of B, with some organisational issues with C…. How does that translate in your experience…?’
Many brand challenges and goals are similar… So a sensible agency ought to be able to present some common learning on this score. At the very least, you need to ensure that the agency shares a sound understanding of your company’s constraints.
Thanks for the insightful post B.L. I think you are right, those are two of the critical questions you need to ask an agency, whatever type it may be, before engaging in a social media program. Far too many companies are getting bogged down with “where” to look (i.e. digital, ad firms, PR firms etc…) that they are forgetting to think about “how” they look. As you said, marketing managers should spend more time thinking about what it is they are buying and less time worrying about the type of agency that offers that service.
I’m evenhandedly careful there are probably a few writer questions that are pertinent, much as “do they realise my enterprise objectives” and “do they offer view for money” and others. But, I certainly concur the answers to the two above are pretty alpha..
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Lawyer Marketing
Yes I also believe that Social media has been part of the online landscape for a more than a decade.
You definitely want to have confidence in the agency you choose that they have the first-hand knowledge and expertise to help your organization.
Both the questions are very meaningful.Should have clear those before.