One big misconception about using social media in business is the idea that it's only about the technology. It's not. There is much more than that. Social media, particularly from a marketer's standpoint, is about getting an entirely new perspective on marketing. Some people will tell you this new perspective is only about engaging people in conversations, embracing transparency, or building community. Frankly, it's all of these, but at the heart of each of them is one thing: the social media mindset assumes that people are smart.
Have you ever been around someone who was trying to speak English to a person who doesn't understand English? You've seen it. They slow down, get louder, and pronounce things more elaborately as if it will help convey the words they are saying. It's like they think the person is deaf or dumb because they can't understand what they're saying. We know neither are true. The person simply speaks a different language. No amount of increased volume or slower speech will teach someone a language they never learned.
To me, traditional marketing is like the rude English speaking person. It assumes a lot of things about people that aren't true. What if the best thing marketers could do was to quit trying to be louder, more elaborate, or more easy to understand, but change their marketing language altogether to the language of smart?
Learning the language of smart is a massive shift for traditional marketers. If you believe people are smart you treat them differently from people who are dumb. You explain yourself to a smart customer but not a dumb customer. You listen to the criticism from a smart customer but not a dumb customer. You value the lifetime relationship with a smart customer but not a dumb customer. You know the customer has more options than what you do if you think they're smart, but you think your business/product/service is their only option if you think the customer is dumb.
Your customers already speak the language of smart, so are you yelling at them in a different language? If you don't assume your customer is smart, you're not speaking the language of smart. Your customer already assumes she's smart. Shouldn't you?