It’s the interaction, not the platform

It is a social media campaign’s content and depth of engagement that matters, not the platform. Youtube, Bebo, Myspace, Friendster, Facebook and Twitter can serve to host and spread the content, but ultimately it is the interaction the campaign facilitates and not the platform that creates value.

The capabilities of the Social Network do dictate what content can shared, how this will happen and with whom, how many and what they will be doing or seeking to do at the time. The selection of Social Network should not determine what the campaign is, or what it’s goals are. The idea of forming a ‘Facebook strategy’, or a ‘Twitter Strategy’ is limiting, and yet persistent.

Markting campaigns are planned around a strategic goal. The tools needed to implement it should be chosen to match the objectives in terms of level of engagement, content and audience desired. Pursuing a ‘Twitter Strategy’ where internal Communications policies will limit engagement, or engaging with bloggers via a ‘Blogging Strategy’ without the resources needed to produce enough content to maintain momentum is just a plan to fail.

The Social Media component of a marketing strategy, from publishing content to actively cultivating a community of activated customers, won’t rise or fall on the Social networking site chosen. The success or otherwise will rest on the resources allocated, the quality of the content and how the brand sits in the consciousness of it’s stakeholders.