Shout out to Kevin Fawley {@kevinfawley}—new media strategy consultant and chief hustle officer at SoMeGo—who gave a riveting talk at February’s Independent Public Relations Alliance luncheon at the Tysons Corner Embassy Suites.
The session, titled Social Media Strategy and Measurement for Success, wasn’t at all what anyone expected a professional, midday meeting of the professional minds to be. There was hooting, there was hollering, and there were “come to Jesus” moments for some concerning their ongoing struggles with the wiles of social media. I was reminded of my days in pig tails, lace ruffle socks and patent leather shoes sitting in a pew at a country church house filled with elderly people waving funeral home hand fans.
After wiping the reverend’s brow with a cloth table napkin—Kevin really worked up a sweat—I drove back to my office and reviewed my tweets from the session. Here are a few jewels Kevin dropped during his talk that impacted me the most:
- Dude, shut up and be yourself.
At the beginning of 2012, I resolved to try things I’d never tried before to grow aiellejai. And this nugget really helped me get in gear and get over the fear of putting more of myself out there while using social media. My brain censor has a habit of overheating with negativity and doubt, which would prevent me from saying things on Twitter or starting my blog. (And there have been many false starts.) But no more. - Take your personality and put it online. You’ll kill it because no one else wants to do it.
I realized during Kevin’s talk that I may not be a self-proclaimed guru, but I have a better understanding of social media than a lot of other professionals in my field. Everyone’s not going to be a guru. And everyone’s not going to relate to the gurus who operate in a totally different realm. I can use my knowledge of communications strategy and social media to grow my business and to help others. - A million followers don’t mean shit.
It doesn’t. It really doesn’t. I used to be concerned about how many Twitter followers I had or how many Facebook friends I had. But it’s not about my numbers. Sure, I had to increase the number of people I follow for engagement purposes, but I can’t worry about the number of those who follow me. All I can control is my engagement, my knowledge of social media platforms, and the quality of content I produce. - Find the value of your company, give people value, and show them who you are.
A potential client once told me that not only did he enjoy talking to me because I’m knowledgeable, but he enjoyed the demeanor that went along with the delivery. That’s what we have to offer our clients and the rest of the world, and that’s what I should project through social media. - Put messages out there pertaining to what you believe, and not what you do.
A lot of the things I talk about on Twitter and Facebook have nothing to do with copywriting and I’m okay with that. I’ve made the best contacts at networking events not by talking business, but by talking about who we are.