Social media software is a maze that can easily confuse the most diligent. It's almost impossible to keep up to date with the latest offerings and yet there is a burning need to, as Altimeter's Jeremiah Owyang puts it, to 'Get Control using software and services - or risk a career of continual social media sanitation.'
Although this is pitched at enterprise level it offers a sound appraisal of social media management systems and how USA brands are using them. There is no 'perfect solution' in this nascent category so this report 'A Strategy for Managing Social Media Proliferation,' is timely and I'm sure will be appreciated by the industry. And to make sure that we talking the same language this is the Altimeter definition of a Social Media Management System.
"A Social Media Management System (SMMS) is a software tool that uses business rules and approved employees and partners to manage multiple social media accounts such as Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube. This system contains features such as governance, workflow, intelligence, and integration capabilities across the enterprise. The success of these tools is dependent upon a business-led strategy, defined processes, trained staff, and ability to measure efforts."
Companies must follow these pragmatic steps:
- First prepare the company internally, and conduct audits to verify readiness.
- Determine which of the five social media management use cases, (Intense Engagement, Social Broadcasting, Platform Campaign Marketing, Distributed Brand Presence or Tailored Customisations), the company aligns to.
- Select vendors based on business needs, not marketing.
- Tap into services, support teams, and outsourced community management services.
- Roll out internally in a systematic way that starts with education, training, mock workflows, and thorough testing.