Social Networks is the answer to the teary prayers of many marketers. Oh, my:  An affordable, quick, dynamic way to build up a customers' database with plenty of channels to deliver and receive communication about products and services?  "Cut me a piece of that!", they say.  It's a fact that Social Networking sites limit targets, geographical areas, interests and professions in an effective, to-go way.  So it's just a matter of picking up a group or network, spread the word and they'll come.

To be young and full of dreams...

The main problem with trends is that some lazy marketing campaigns rely too heavily on them. Every time a niche opens, everyone wants to jump on the bandwagon and make some quick bucks in the process.  When Stephenie Meyer's novels became famous, a myriad of vampire-related books (old and new) not only appeared but tried to mimic the aesthetics of the real thing.  When IPods appeared, millions of phony products adopted the design Apple crafted.  Trends have a short life, though, so making bets on fashionable tendencies is a risk.

However, the bigger problem with some tendencies is that these are full of myths.  We idealize a bit too much all these new technologies and we expect to extract as much as we can from them, almost irresponsibly. But there is a limit that is blurred by false notions of what these technologies can do.  Virtual Reality was HUGE back in the nineties and, a few moments before it was sent to oblivion, everyone was thinking of infinite uses for blocky graphics, slow rendering and clumsy, artificial-tasting animation.

Oh, yes… and silly helmets.

Sometimes, it is better to let these trends fade.  But Social Networking has a potential that can be exploited to the max as long as we are willing to understand what these sites are and are not.  Time to debunk some myths!

1.    Social Networks are reliable platforms.
FALSE! Well… partially. Social Networking sites are as reliable as any other kind of website or social event.  There will always be a space for flaw and a chance for business.  Sometimes, both can be the same situation.  It’s been stressed to oblivion in these blogs, but we are dealing with human beings, not machines, here.  That means that these platforms are as prone to error as any human invention.  No one is perfect, get over it.

2.    Social Networks gather targets accurately.
FALSE!  If you ever have the time, get into a bar and ask out loud if there is anyone with a fake ID.  That will bring the place to a grinding halt.  People lie for too many reasons to number in here.  Kids would lie to appear older and have access to some adult benefits.  Some people would lie to appear younger for the sake of vanity.  Some people would lie about their interests, jobs, locations for whatever reasons they find reasonable.  Without further investigation, it’s impossible to gather the perfect target in a social site.  Real life rules, at least some of them, apply here too.

3.    If you build them, they will come.
FALSE, FALSE, FALSE!  Building a database around a product or service will never be as effective as creating a community.  You can gather data, make charts and present a plausible marketing research to the chairmen.  It’s only data and there is nothing human in it.  People within a community open up, trades information, participate and feel motivated to make conversions if the product (and, more than the product, the service and the information) matches their needs.  You have to reach them.

Social Networking Sites could be a trend; it’s too early to know.  But knowing the nature of the beast is what distinguishes successful campaigns from feeble, short-lived ones.

You want to start a Social Networking Campaign? Let us know.  We can show you the ropes.