I’ve begun trimming fan pages on Facebook. I’m doing this because there are plenty of fan pages that are putting out news that I’m simply not interested in, though I do have an interest in the product, service or organization that is running the page.
My expectation on becoming a fan on one of Facebook’s fan pages is that I will be treated like, well, a fan. Also, that I will meet other fans of the brand. And I will, eventually, socialize and conversate these brands into something more. That may mean a purchase. They may mean attending an event. I could mean a behavioral change, but I’m 40, so that would be a stretch. In any case, my expectations are for me to able to approach these brands on a one-to-one basis, and feel like that they belong to me.
Star Wars, Marvel Comics and many video games tend to do these things well. They are brands that know how to handle fans (and fanboys, for that matter). They give back. They talk to their fans. So, it’s no surprise that as many companies begin this journey into social media, they just don’t know how to have a one-to-one engagement like Star Wars or Marvel does. In particular, the American military brand is having a hard go in the space. (Disclaimer: I’m a DOD employee; this is my own a opinion and not necessarily that of the DOD)
Right now, there are hundreds of military units clamoring for attention in the social space. You can find a fan page for many military units and government organizations from San Jose, California to the sands of Afghanistan. Some do well. However, the majority seem to see the fan page (and the Twitter feed and other forms of social media) as a means of pushing a news release. No conversation. No questions asked. No two-way engagement. This may be a case of rookie nerves. It may also be a case of simply not knowing the social space. There are a myriad othersreasons I suppose. However, it could also be military people following an age-old paradigm.
It goes something like this: “We have an event we want publicized. Let’s put our news release (choose one: on the fax machine/in email/on the fan page/in the Twitter feed) and send it on its way. We’ll then move onto the next release. The end.” And that’s that. No engagement to encourage publication. No socialization of the issue to create awareness and availability, or to show passion or care on the issue. Simply, here it is, like it or not. We’ll be over here moving onto whatever is next.
I don’t want to be a fan of that. I don’t need your news. I’m a fan of you. I like your unit. I like your drink. I like your book. I like the author. However, I don’t like when you don’t pay me and the other fans the least bit of attention. It makes me want to become a fan of someone else who is more like me and more willing to engage me and my interests in your brand. Now, I know. Fan is short for fanatic. But every fan of any brand has expectations. Fanatics, passers by and other levels of people who want to engage the brand matter. So, too, are the people who aren’t ‘fans’ that you want to have engaged as part of your communcation strategy.
As an author and someone trying to market his own writing, I want to engage my fans. I want them to buy my writing. I want them to buy the next bit of writing as well. And based on the current economic climate and the given information landscape, I’m betting my fellow writer friends want that, too. So, my thoughts on being good to fans might look something like this:
- Give me something on your fan page, blog or Twitter feed that I cannot get anywhere else. John Mayer, the musician, does this brilliantly on his Twitter feed. So does Neil Gaiman and others.
- When you do this, be interesting. The person running your social media stream should understand celebrity, have a personality and meld all that with the company brand and communication strategy. If he or she does that, you’ll be a rock star in all the right places. If he or she does not, bumpkins.
- Engage me. Ask questions. Offer me the opportunity to have input (other than the money out of my wallet going into yours)
- Praise me every once in a while. I’m here for a reason. I’d like a stroke every now and then for no other reason than I’m a fan.
- Tell me what you expect of me as a fan. I’ll give that back to you 10 fold.
As the writer, I must be part of that engagement team. I must understand how people consume information about the thing I am trying to make money from. I must understand how I can best create the opportunities for people to act upon and monetize the content I create. I must be more than a writer in this regard. It’s hard, but it must be done. Traditional media is transforming faster than Optimus Prime in a Michael Bay film. As an author, I (and the people who would help me with my publicity) must transform, too.
The fan pages that I am pruning this week failed in some or all these regards. They’re easy to find. Will you be trimming your fan page quotient like I did? Tell me if you do and why.
Popularity: 6% [?]
I was browsing AW blogs and saw your post. I completely agree. I think companies and even individual people need to realize that although we are using the internet as a medium, it doesn’t make the fans and followers less human. Interaction is the key to online networking. This is why I respond to blog posts, to twitter comments directed at me, and to Facebook comments. It is just rude not to. I am grateful for those who take the time out of his or her busy life to stop and read something I’ve put ‘out there’.
Do you think the ‘personal touch’ is lost with too many followers and fans?
Thanks for posting this.
JLC – TurkeyLurkey
I do. Business can and should, based on the current information landscape, have a level of intimacy with consumers and clients, regardless of the profession. Thanks for the comment!
This is why I debated creating a fan page for myself on facebook. I don’t know what the heck to do with it now.
I should trim a few pages. I tend to click the pages of my friends and products or people that I like, but I rarely visit the pages or do anything with them.