Web 2.0 is Getting Out of Hand - Let’s Get Back to Marketing Basics

Why you need to lay the foundations of Web 1.0 before Web 2.0 will be effective:

Let’s run through a scenario of what is happening in the office of a typical professional services firm CMO today: The CMO reads yet another article about how social media can benefit their firm, so they go to the powers-that-be with the idea to launch a full-blown social media strategy to encourage open conversations with their clients and prospects. The partners or executives have also heard a lot about this “social media”, they like the sound of “open conversations” and sign off on the idea.

A Twitter account is launched, a LinkedIn profile goes live, executives spend valuable work time blogging wildly. But, much to the CMO’s distress, the campaign doesn’t meet any business goals or generate inbound leads; no new business opportunities emerge and there is no increase in traffic to their website. The CMO is left scratching their head and wondering, ‘why did this happen’?

What went wrong here? In most cases, the reason a Web 2.0 strategy is ineffective is because the web 1.0 foundations are not in place. Before you launch a social media campaign you need to get the basics right first – the old adage, ‘Keep it Simple’, applies here too!

Once the basics are in place it’s likely the Web 2.0 strategy will be complemented and enhanced by a solid Web 1.0 platform. The two working in unison can yield the kind of results a CMO might hope to see. Here are some simple steps to getting the basics right:

If you need to get the basics right, you need to know what the basics are.

Terry Lew, in his 3rd Edition of New Media, described what he believed to characterize the differences between Web 1.0 and Web 2.0 as the "move from personal websites to blogs and blog site aggregation, from publishing to participation, from web content as the outcome of large up-front investment to an ongoing and interactive process, and from content management systems to links based on tagging”.

For argument’s sake, let’s say that Web 1.0 is anything outbound such as your website, RSS feed, or search engine marketing. These are the foundations upon which your firm’s digital strategy rests and the main tools by which you define yourself in the digital world, which is what differentiates Web 1.0 and Web 2.0. The key to Web 1.0 is you defining yourself in your own words. The key to Web 2.0 is that your audience is defining you, talking about the information you present and interacting with your brand in multiple ways. Instead of search terms you blog the information, post it on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook or You Tube, all with the expectation that their audience will get involved in the conversation.

The power of number crunching.

The words ‘data analysis’ and ‘procrastination’ usually go hand in hand. Who wants to sit down and analyze spread sheets for hours? Unfortunately, analyzing the data from your website and email newsletters is the most critical step of launching an effective Web 1.0 strategy.

Marketing executives can get stuck in the habit of just sending the information they think people want to receive. However, if you take the time to look at the data from your website and email newsletters you can see who you are connecting with and what their preferences are.

More importantly, the data will show you who you are not connecting with. Take this opportunity to work out what type of information your target audience reacts to and the format in which they want to receive it.

Lastly, you need to present the sales and business development teams with the data. They can use this information to up-sell and cross-sell the firm’s services.

Where are all my clients?

You need to find out where the big decision makers are interacting before you get carried away on Web 2.0. Sure, there is a place for Twitter and Facebook in the corporate world, but if your biggest decision makers are not using these channels then it’s probably not the best place to focus your efforts.

In all likelihood the big decision makers still prefer face-to-face communication, so don’t overlook the power of personal relationships and a chat over lunch or coffee. Digital channels, either 1.0 or 2.0, are increasingly important slices of the marketing pie, but keep in mind that most business in the professional services world is still done face-to-face.

What has your website done for you lately?

“What is the objective of my website?” This is something every marketer needs to ask before launching their Web 1.0 strategy (let alone a Web 2.0 strategy). Will it be an information sharing tool or a sales tool? Will it be an online brochure or will your browsers be able to subscribe to an RSS feed or a newsletter?

Today, a quick look at several professional service companies’ websites will show you that the content merely boasts all the firms’ wonderful attributes. However, most potential customers want to know about solutions and how a firm can respond to their particular issue. To achieve this websites should focus on sharing information rather than just being an online brochure with pretty, corporate pictures.

Similarly, you need to ensure that the right technology is in place for good reporting on your website. You should be able to track the user’s journey, see what search terms they use, which corporation the user is from and when they leave your site. This is Web Analytics 101.

Lastly, here are a few questions to ask yourself before you get carried away on a Web 2.0 campaign: Is your website engaging? Do you know the search terms of every visitor? Are you continually updating your search terms? Do you know every touch point of the user? If you answered yes to all of these questions then you can start to think about strategic blogging, Tweeting, connecting on Facebook and building both your business and individual LinkedIn profiles.

More screen time equals less face time.

The bottom line is the more time you spend in front of your screen, the less time you spend in front of your clients and prospects. The end goal of your marketing efforts is to foster face-to-face conversations. You should have a robust Web 1.0 strategy upon which to build your digital presence and to kick-start Web 2.0 conversations, but keep the end goal in mind.

So, does all of this mean we should ignore social media altogether? Certainly not! But, as Jonathan Baskin, columnist for Advertising Age recently stated, “we’ve allowed this (social media) nonsense to get out of hand.”

The jury is in: social media isn’t enough, online conversation isn’t going to help you build high-value relationships. Let’s get the basics right first and we might just see the results that we were hoping for all along.

Mark Power, Founder and CEO, Concep