As marketers it is very important for us to stop and ask this question. In fact, we should be doing that all the time. Social media (and traditional advertising for that matter) should be all about the consumer. If you don’t know what makes your consumer tick, then your marketing strategy is bound to fail.

People crave social media for multiple reasons! I condensed my thoughts into points that I feel are the main drivers. Please open up for discussion!

We have an inherent desire for connection and belonging. As humans, we have a need to be in a “community” with others. We are social creatures that desire acceptance as part of a group. Social media easily allows people to seek out specific interests and like-minded individuals. For example, I am gluten free and very grateful for the online Twitter and Facebook communities for gluten free individuals to converse, share information, and support one another.

We want to keep in touch. Friends and families are spread all over the world, but now we can easily and seamlessly keep in touch and be part of their everyday lives. Keeping in touch is simple because it makes communication about the seemingly mundane aspects of our lives acceptable. I enjoy keeping on top of what my siblings in other states are doing and feel close to them although we are geographically distant.

We want to share our opinions and have a means for personal expression. Say you have a great experience at a restaurant and you can’t wait to share what happened. It is so much easier (and more fun) to post that information via social networks. People can sometimes feel like they have no voice and their opinion doesn’t matter to anyone.  Social media gives a platform for a chance to be heard.

We want information and entertainment. In addition to keeping in touch and connecting with other people, we want good information and content. We also desire to share good information and content when we come across it. This is the reason videos, tweets, photos etc. go viral. If we have something of value to offer others, we want to pass it along! Who doesn’t enjoy receiving an excellent piece of information through social media or seeking out information we desire?

We want to be “in the know”. No one wants to feel left out or like they are missing out on something. Being on social networks allows you to keep on top of what’s current, what your favorite brand or business is working on, what your friends are up to, what products are most loved by consumers, etc.

I would love to hear your thoughts about other reasons why we crave social media!

-    If you do not position yourself and communicate that position, your customer WILL do it for you. Like it or not, you already have a position. This may or may not be the opinions you would like them to have, but the formation of  those opinions is inevitable
-    The companies that try to be “everything to everyone” become “nothing to no one.”
-    Your positioning statement gives your company focus and without a solid focus, chaos exists.
-    Your company is already being perceived. Companies that win know how to influence that perception and turn it into positive differentiations.

Creating the statement is done through thoughtfully answering the following questions:
(1)    Who are we?
(2)    What do we do?
(3)    Who is our customer?
(4)    What needs do those customers have?
(5)    Who are we competing against?
(6)    What’s different about us?  -or- What is our key benefit?
(7)    Why is that benefit important to your customer?

Once you have a grasp on the answers to those questions ask yourself, “Is this positioning statement matching the position that already exists in the minds of my customers? If not, make that your goal to alter your communication and take small steps to bridging that gap. If so, congratulations! You are on the right track.

Branding and marketing… it all comes down to one thing: image. Your image is the basis for everything. It is what causes people to associate certain feelings and perceptions with your brand, product, or service. As we have discussed numerous times, people will choose a brand over another because of these associated feelings.

Every aspect of your marketing MUST tie in with your image. This is crucial, and yet so often we see advertisers sending mixed messages to the consumer. For example, a restaurant that wants to portray an image of hip, young, fresh, and new needs to take that image into account with everything. This surpasses just logos and promotional materials and must span down to couponing, where to advertise…everything! Corporations spend huge amounts of money trying to change consumer perceptions that have been built up. It may be time to ask yourself…what image do I want to portray? And what image am I actually portraying? After all, perceptions are reality.

What does your audience look like?

Demographics and Target audience… Both terms that are used by advertisers on a daily basis, but how much time is really spent delving deeply to find out exactly what makes that target consumer tick? What are their likes? dislikes? Where do they work? What kind of car do they drive? Where do they spend their time? The questions could go on and on!

Not understanding your target is like buying a birthday present for someone you have never met. You take a CHANCE and hope that they will like what you are offering. Before a brand or campaign is built, the audience must be dissected and understood. If you’re target is a 20 year old male, good luck finding him on the radio. He’s watching a YouTube video instead! Advertisers sometimes try to “guess” what it is that will appeal to their potential customers, but might end up missing the mark. Finding answers to these questions is not always a simple solution, but it is the solution that will yield the most.