Social Strong - Developing Social Core Strength - Tom Troja - MediaBizBloggers

All of us who have worked our bodies, who have gone in and out of gyms, swimming pools, Pilates classes, so that we can play tennis, basketball, soccer, run … do what we love… we know how important it is to develop our physical core strength.

Development of core muscles stabilizes, aligns, and moves the trunk of the body and creates powerful core muscle coordination to help us live and navigate active lives. These core muscles create a solid base of support that enables us to generate powerful movements of our extremities.

DEVELOPING SOCIAL CORE STRENGTH

If we think of our brand as an extension of ourselves, we can see that our social muscles are undefined and weak. Social is about building relationships for all to see. It is about talking with people, not pushing content at them. It is about getting friends to tell friends that they like, support and will buy you. How developed are your muscles to do this?

Strengthening our social core means that we are becoming more flexible in the way we handle life's situations, pulling people in. We move gracefully through challenges visible for all to see, we base our choices around what we believe, and stay focused on helping people based on our brand's true value.

This is how brands build stronger relationships with people. As social use grows, brands need to be adept at socially interacting with people, at putting themselves in the middle of what people care about, at being more valuable in their lives, at socially moving people to do more business with them.

BUSINESS CORE STRENGTH

Your social core strength is built upon your business' core strengths. It is how you win as a business that is the foundation of your social interaction. It is your basic value that animates everything you do. The first step is to clarify your business value for your people using your social tools. Do not assume they know or have this.

Outline why people buy from you. Have a crystal clear competitive advantage. Define who is your customer. Explain your value so it cannot be misunderstood. Give examples of how you help people. Summarize this for front line social employees. Give them the business foundation they need to be Social Strong.

DON'T CLOSE THE GYM

A recent American Management Association survey indicates about 50% of U.S. companies block employee access to social media sites. TechRepublic poll of IT folks puts the number at 71%. They have closed the gym… Do not be one of them… they are falling behind. Make social core strength part of your competitive advantage.

Help your people get good at social. Embrace social as a brand. Educate based on your business core strengths. Encourage your people to be involved in their own social life, encourage them to examine what your best competitors are doing. Give them social guidelines and achievable business goals… and the skills and permission to be great.

Most recently as the founder of the Social SymphonyTom has, weaved social tactics in concert with CRM 2.0 social strategies with Colgate, Cadillac, Kraft, Gallo, Reebok and others and has spoken about these subjects at iMedia Brand Summit, IAB Social, MITX and OMMA Social. Tom can be reached at TomTroja@TheSocialSymphony.com.

Read all Tom’s MediaBizBloggers commentaries at the Social Symphony - MediaBizBloggers.

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