The Future of Social Media in Business: Purely Marketing or Something More?

In a very special guest blog, Jillian Ney, a Doctoral Researcher in Marketing at the University of Strathclyde, shares her thoughts on The Future of Social Media. You can find out more about Jillian on her website.

Social media marketing services are said to be the fastest growing marketing services in the world.  In business circles there is growing recognition of the benefits of social media integration.  In the rush to become a social brand many are looking for the next big social wave.  The future of social media for business is always a hot topic but should we be thinking of the future when we don’t know enough about the now?

We all want to be the next globally recognised social brand and cash in on the supposed social media cash cow.  But why are we looking to the future when we can’t make success of the now?  In a recent study by Glasgow Caledonian University and IT firm NSDesign it was reported that 40 per cent of small businesses who use Facebook do not find it useful but continue to use the media.  Similarly it was reported that ‘a quarter of the first that use Twitter don’t find the website useful and 35 per cent of those with blogs say they don’t give them returns’.

It all seems a bit crazy.  I think the question should be how can we make the most of what we are doing now and be reflexive enough to integrate new technology and practices as they arise?

The problem I see is that in operationalising social media, more often than not, the marketing department is responsible.  The term social media marketing is a bit misleading.  Social media for business is more than marketing and I think the future of social media will reflect this.

I don’t like to think of social media as ‘social media marketing’ but as a ‘social business culture’.  The issue with many failed attempts at social media is that the internal business culture does not support the demand and use of social media spaces by their consumers.

Zappos is one of the most overused case studies but the company really portrays what I am trying to say.  The internal culture of the company is built on openness, ownership and responsibility which are a great starting point for social.  The brand emulates cooperation and a willingness to help consumers through the purchase process.

The issue with other businesses moving into social is that they cannot effectively handle, I purposely did not say manage, their consumers use of social media.  The use of the term ‘social media marketing’ suggests that we can use traditional marketing practices to successfully leverage social media.  This is not the case.  Social media has changed our behaviours and expectations.

Accepting and developing a ‘social business culture’ is different.  Integrating social media champions across all business silos can begin to shift the culture to a social one.  Internal cooperation and ownership across the whole business can provide reflexivity in a brand’s approach to social media.  The idea is to empower every employee in operationalising and running of social and wider digital media.  Not to the neglect of other practices but to enhance the running and reach of the business.

Remember the power of social media is not in broadcasting, it’s about relationship building.  The conversation is largely controlled by your consumers and you can become an active participant.  There is a great chance that the marketing department cannot do this alone.  What about customer service, human resources or sales?  And how does the information flow between all business silos?

While new social technology and integration possibilities are growing and continually evolving, brands cannot successfully use them for business gain unless the correct infrastructure is in place.  This requires internal cooperation.

The question of what the future holds for social media in business should not be one of the next technology wave but of developing the culture and infrastructure to adopt and accept social media as a way of business not simply another marketing medium.  Social media is more than marketing and requires the whole organisation to come together and work together to make success of a social business culture.

If we get the social business culture right we can then think about the future, and successfully implement future tools because we have the infrastructure in place to handle them.

My advice is to start thinking of the now, make it work, then think about the future.  You probably won’t be successful otherwise.