The Pitfall of the Overestimation of Participation

For a long time when it came to consulting in digital marketing, I’d provide the usual no-brainer advice of giving the voice to the people, providing value, getting retweets. I can’t begin to tell you how many times I’ve failed by having little focus, and committing the cardinal mistake of overestimation of participation. The result? Ghost towns. Disappointed clients.

Just The Right Level Of Participation

Thinking that everyone will now post on your business’s Facebook Page is flawed thinking. They won’t, because there is no reason to. It’s overestimation of participation.

Consider the worn-out ‘Social Media is a conversation’ mantra. Yes, conversation is a part of Social Media, but not everyone wants to talk non-stop with you. Consistent conversation is a rare thing when compared to how much conversation is going on.

The three-step process that works:

1. Profile the audience. Who are they, when do they, why do they, what do they.
2. Identify their level of participation. Not everyone will comment, share, or create.
3. Lift restrictions. Enable them, through the programme, to do what they couldn’t do before.

This enables you to stop thinking that Social Media lies only in tweeting and blogging, and that participation lies only in retweets and comments.

Get real. Stop overestimating participation.