Twitter Debate Roars On

I get asked no less than 5x per week by politicos, “I mean come on who really has time for Twitter?” Usually that’s followed by, “I just have daughter do it for me.” Yes you do…yes…you do.

Twitter is an engagement and awareness tool. Sure you’ll have a percentage of tweets that are informative (links and event announcements) but this is usually where it stops for most.

Take it a step further. Ask questions. Provide answers. Find supporters and build a hyper local twitter following so you have a concentrated and high-power audience that markets your message for you.

Drive Campaign Sales!

Today I joined Doug for the Red Alert Hour and we discussed a few things I really want to extrapolate on.  It really is amazing how few people get it.  Not just in politics but even in business.  People assume that because it’s called social media it is meant to be only ’social.’  They think that these online communication venues are only meant for interaction.  Why is it that communication within the world of social media is constrained to be defined strictly as ‘friendly interaction?’ Are television ads not communication?  Are radio ads not communication?  Heck, are newspaper ads not communication?

I bring this up for a very good reason.  You see….political AND many social media consultants aren’t saying that selling (fund-raising) through social media is pointless.  Rather, they are saying DON’T DO IT!  They say it’s against all that social media stands for.  They say it’s not authentic.  This REALLY erks me.  Let me share why.

Social media STILL follows all the basic marketing principles.  How does my tweeting back and forth with you about the weather going to make you give me your hard earned cash?  IT DOESN’T! It does make you think I’m a nice guy to chat with, but that’s it.  I’m not just saying this – I’ve experienced this with past clients.  You need a call to action. You need to tell them why you are online.  If you are on Facebook and Twitter just to chat…more power to you.  But don’t complain when your sales aren’t going up or you haven’t hit the level of funds you need for your campaign.

Social media IS selling. It’s selling yourself.  It’s selling products.  It’s selling services.  It’s selling oppportunities.  It’s selling and selling and selling and selling.  Get the point?  The argument they always give me is that you need to brand.  Yeah.  So what?  You tell me what good branding is if you aren’t going to sell what you have to offer.  Wait.  You don’t have to because I already know it’s useless.

So get ready, here’s what it takes.  Branding and selling need to be simultaneous acts through social media. You have mere seconds to position yourself, peak interest, coerce a click and motivate your viewer with a call to action. That’s right.  In a matter of seconds.  It’s shorter than TV and radio.  This is done through content generation.  Provide your viewers with valuable content and ALWAYS remind them to donate funds to your campaign.  There are some strategies we use at OperationRedState and of course you’ll have to sign up to find out what .  But it really does come down to the fact that if you are ONLY conversing with your following don’t expect anything to happen.

People don’t vote for friends.  They vote for leaders.  They vote for people they know will stand up for what their constituents believe in.  They vote for people that communicate with them and ask for their help, both monetary and through actions.

You aren’t online to be their friend and frankly, I don’t want to be your friend.  If you are then that’s all you’ll ever be – the friend that keeps running for office but seldom wins.  You are online to lead.  Show me your a leader.  I dare you!

Tweeter’s Boasts Lack Real Communication

As reported by the Baltimoresun.com and other news outlets, there is a study that came out reporting on the quality of tweets from Congressional tweeters.  The report found that only 7% of all (they mean 100%) congressional updates were actually communicating with the outside world.  They also report that 80% of these tweets were pure self-promotion -

“[L]inks to news articles and news releases, and status updates that chronicle the politician’s latest trip to the sawmill or the supermarket.”

This is a truly interesting issue. “Twitter by its nature is a very self-absorbed service,” said Jennifer Golbeck, lead researcher and assistant professor in the university’s College of Information Studies. “Politicians are very self-important people.”  What is the purpose of Twitter in the realm of politics?

It’s hard to say really.  From our past courses on Twitter (only available to charter members of ORS) we create a strategy and plan for building a quality following, tweeting quality tweets, and quick, easy communication.  I recall discussing the issue of bailouts with a fellow tweeter months ago.  After this discussion I actually lost followers and had someone comment that they would have followed me but they don’t want to follow long conversation.  The purpose of Twitter is for quick, short messages.  Conversation is in fact, not wanted in many cases.

What do people want on Twitter?  Many news outlets report on Twitter having never actually been on Twitter and assume it should work as well as television or YouTube.  Twitter will never have that degree of clear communication.  That’s not it’s purpose.  Tweets on Twitter are graded high if they involve shared links, pictures, videos, are “re-tweets” or replies.  Based on this criteria for evaluation the one most politicians lack are re-tweets and replies.  This is exactly where I think the study is pointing.

Fortunately, there is one simple solution.  Politicians need to tweet what the people want.  I don’t mean just say things you don’t believe because it’s what you think your audience wants to hear.  I mean to give them tweets they can retweet and forward on.  Give them a reply or two.  You don’t need to have conversations on Twitter.  Much like Senator McCaskill’s Twitter account.

“Her page is a compendium of personal replies to constituents and snippets of life that sound authentic. Here’s one from earlier this month: ‘Yes @tigeranniemac that was me at Target in the soap aisle. You shoulda said hi. Was with my daughter Lily. We’re very friendly.’”

There is no long dialogue here.  It is a quick and simple reply to one of her followers.  It has no political agenda.  It has no innuendo.  It is the type of conversation Twitter craves.

Let’s be honest, everyone on Twitter is boastful.  When I land a new client I’ve tweeted about it within minutes.  Then pile on the congrats from my followers.  There is nothing wrong with politicians promoting themselves; they just need to realize that to be in the Twitter elite, it requires just a little bit more.

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Technology and Politics Links from ORS

• Northwest Herald | Social networking craze doesn’t spare area’s legislators

  I bet there are 500 articles like this each month from local newspapers across the nation. “Lawmakers using more social media tools to communicate”. That’s a VERY good thing. When we take the communication medium back…and open a direct link between those elected to serve and those who elect them, we have more representation.

  Tags: ors, facebook, politics, social, media

• Is Social Networking Revolutionizing Our Tribal Behavior? – FP Posted

  We talk about people wanting to belong to tribes frequently in our work. Social media/New Media tools have a way of allowing people to create many small tribes…while still connecting them via a common online thread. Very powerful and something you need to grasp as a candidate.

  Tags: ors, tribes, social, media, politics

Posted from Diigo. The rest of operationredstate group favorite links are here.

Cory Booker Taking Mayoral Race On Twitter | 18,000 Followers

How fast do you think you can increase your number of followers on Twitter as a politician? Cory Booker, the mayor of Newark, New Jersey has proven that it can be fast. Thousands overnight. One of Cory Booker’s followers on Twitter mentioned:

“Wow! @CoryBooker your follower count tripled over the weekend! Nice work — it’s very exciting to see our mayor engage in social media!”

Here is a mayor who “gets it.” He is utilizing Twitter the right way. He isn’t the type of politician that just has someone else throw up some news releases. Instead of having one of his employees manage his tweets, he tweets personally by using his BlackBerry. He tells you what he is doing and thinking, and also informs the public about events they ought to attend. If you visit his Twitter account you will find several examples of this:

“RT @MayorHealy @CoryBooker will be campaigning with me 2day at 5pm! U can meet us and some of the Healy Team at the Grove St. PATH station.”

“Now I’m late, racing back to Newark. Don’t worry New Jersey – I’m wearing my seat belt.”

“JusGav my 1stGradSpeechOfSeason:NYU Schoolof Cont n ProfesStudies.Spoke of practical need 4us2 courageously live r truth n love without fear”

As a result of utilizing Twitter properly, he currently has over 18,000 followers. According to the tweet by one of his followers, that number is the result of it tripling over the weekend. That is impressive. Just another excellent example of local politicians using social media to communicate with their constituents. This is a lot better than the mayor that he campaigned with according to his tweet mentioned earlier. Jerramiah Healy, the mayor of Jersey City, is only being followed by 20 people and is only following 8. That is absolutely pathetic! Give me a break! Is that really the best he can do! This is complete negligence on his part. This man doesn’t even have anyone do it for him. To top that all off, he only has 3 updates. Again, that is ridiculous. I don’t care if he was new to Twitter. Any politician can do better than that.

Hopefully we all can be more like Cory Booker and less like Jerramiah Healy. Use social networking the right way!

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WeAreYourCommunity.com

What is social media?  Is it Facebook?  Is it Facebook & Twitter?  Is it Facebook, Twitter, & MySpace?  Well, those are all social networking sites, but they are not “social media” in the comprehensive way we talk about it.  Social media (for the millionth time) is the conversation.

I wanted to take a quick short moment to check something out that I think is pretty cool.  It’s a use of social media I haven’t really seen yet, that it, by a large organization.  Sears rolled out a couple of social networks to build their own community.  They rolled out a second one for Kmart, a sister company.  This really has nothing to do with politics except that this really is the what you should want to do.  Check out MySears.com & MyKmart.com.

Let’s see what they’ve done:

• Links to visit them at: LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, & YouTube.
• List of their products (you would have a list of your issues).
• Featured video.
• Reviews (you should have content from your users).
• Message Boards
• User Profiles – the faces of their company, because their customers are their company just as your constituency is your organization.  Never think it’s yours.
• Popular searches – people like to know what others are viewing on a website.
• Many more opportunities to contribute content: polls, blog, ideas, etc.

This stuff really is great and I have yet to see a large company like Sears employ such tactics in such a quick and open way.  Check it out and replicate for your organizational model and strategy.

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10 Tips to Build Trust with Social Media | Kyle Lacy, Social Media – Indianapolis

We often forget what the true purpose of a social media following is.  It’s not to sell goods.  It’s not to get elected.  It’s not to make money.  It’s about being part of a community.  Going beyond the superficial into the real.  Here are ten social media tips courtesy of Kyle Lacy at KyleLacy.com.  Read them first here before moving on.

It’s important to realize that while some of these tips (which are really “do it or lose” recommendations) are specific to Twitter, they apply across the web.  Rules in one are generally rules in another.  There are a few more things I would recommend.

1. Look to Help & Look for Help: He alluded to this somewhat in his post but you need to always be looking for ways of helping others.  I give out tons of free advice.  I ask for tons of free advice.  Building your community is about serving your community AND letting your community serve you.  It’s all about the group!
2. Realize it’s not YOUR Community: I always say “build your community.”  I sure hope you don’t think I actually imply that you are to build a community that you own.  Your brand doesn’t belong to you.  If you think it does than your brand sucks.  You can build a community AROUND you but it never becomes yours.  If you find yourself thinking it is yours, well, you’ll realize again soon enough that it’s not because your community will start to die.
3. Reach Out to Newcomers: There are thousands of new people joining your social networking sites on a daily basis.  These people are scared.  These people don’t know what they are doing.  These people are lost.  They need your help and the best way of doing that is by showing them how to do it right.  If there are new Tweeple on Twitter that are following you, follow them back.  Help them stay involved.  I’m not saying you have to “auto-follow” every Tom, Dick, and Jane (I can never remember if those are the names or not, oh well) but I am saying you need to help them stay involved.  There is a reason 60% of all Twitter users quit after their first month.  They feel they can’t penetrate the twittersphere and give up.  You can’t build a community around yourself if you aren’t reaching out to bring more people in.
   

http://kylelacy.com/10-tips-to-build-trust-with-social-media

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Social Media Mistake: Up Close and (Not Very) Personal | Blogs | ITBusinessEdge.com

Don’t ever think that self-promotion and personal branding can occur if all you do is tweet announcements and press releases.  We’ve been over this a lot but unfortunately there is no end to the need for this echo.

Superficial networks mean nothing.  This article discusses how businesses are notorious for setting up RSS feeds to Twitter to update news, blog posts, sales, and other marketable ideas.  What do they typically lack?  Hear it from Bob Pearson, President of the Blog Council.

“Lot of companies do RSS feeds to Twitter accounts and then don’t have a personality. We all like the human touch about Twitter. People want to know who is talking to them. They probably won’t pay as much attention to companies that just pump in all their content. Same thing with Facebook, where companies simply take their Web site content and put it into a Facebook page and try to attract fans. Why would people care?”

The author of this article even mentions how his company pumps out tons of content that is 100% relevant to their audience but they lack a personal face.  Content will NEVER replace personality.  How many of you are just dieing to hang out with your co-worker that has no social skills and yet has the highest IQ level you’ve ever seen?  Probably not many of you.  If you can balance the content with the personality you have created synergistic power that will push your online voice and brand to the next level.  It will drive your message and ensure your constituents will listen and believe.

http://www.itbusinessedge.com/cm/blogs/all/social-media-mistake-up-close-and-not-very-personal/?cs=32247

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The Dems Push Back with Social Media

To mark President Obama’s first 100 days as President he visited a small town in Missouri.  This just happens to also be where the Dems are making a second push with social media to win over the minds of the people.  Organize for America.  Sounds great, right?  No, this is just another Democrat grass roots movement that is being employed because of recent opposition.

USA Today put out on article today stating that Organize for America is using social media as a way to expand Obama support  nationwide through grass roots efforts.

So far they have held 11 community meetings and Patricia Justice, Ph.D student from St. Louis says “I have not seen something of this magnitude.”  The article’s author calls the movement  a “first-of-its-kind effort.”

Seriously?!  First of it’s kind?  You’ve seen nothing like it?  All because of 11 meetings and 600,000 supporters (they didn’t report how many of them were actual tax payers .  There largest meeting thus far had an entire 200 people attend.  Impressive. Especially compared to the 20,000 tea party protesters in St. Louis back on April 15th.

In all seriousness though, this movement is supposed to be grassroots.  There is no link to a Facebook page.  There is no link to a Twitter handle.  There is no link to a website.  There is nothing that shows a serious 21st century grassroots movement of any kind or the development of an online presence.

Grassroots movements in the 21st century encompass a powerhouse combination of social media and IRL (in real life) interaction.  It’s about creating a two-way conversation that can be held online or face to face.  The Tax Day tea parties are a perfect example even though the drive-by media is still somewhat unwilling to recognize its impact .  First, we know we made an impact otherwise the left wouldn’t be scrambling like they are.  Second, we haphazardly created this two-way conversation.  There were websites, Twitter pages, Facebook groups, and more, that were entirely devoted to this single event.  This naturally was picked up on the donkey blogs and drive-by media.  Through this we were able to reach out to even more support.  That is a grassroots movement at its best.  It may have started out as some haphazard movement online but it’s becoming increasingly popular for conservatives to participate online.  Now, it’s a strategy and one that will work.

Read more about the article here.

A Politician’s Pitfall on Twitter

I don’t do this very often but felt it necessary.  Starting now I’m going to be writing some posts on small things that a politician should not do unless they like self afflicted espionage on their campaigns.

Today’s social media political pitfall is regarding Twitter.  Those of you that are new to Twitter may have noticed or even followed the notorious @Secrettweet, @Secrettweet2, @Secrettweet3, and @Secrettweet4.  These accounts (I think all of them) are associated with SecretTweet.com.  This website is actually a pretty forward thinking concept that allows individuals to vent or share their most personal, deepest, darkets secrets.  A lot of people use it and you don’t even have to have a Twitter account.  Anyone can go onto their website and send a “secret tweet.”

I am in no way questioning the integrity of this website or it’s creators, but this is a website that NO politician should be using.  Go ahead and follow them, after all, some of the tweets are actually kind of funny.  While this website and its tweets are private you never know what could happen and considering we’re all human I’m sure there is a politician or two out there that has used it or considered posting something on it.  DON’T!  I know this seems like a pretty common sense thing but just wait until the first news story breaks out about a politician or public figure that decided to share he/she was smokin’ dope in the school yard and got caught through a secret tweet.

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