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Norm! Cheers vs. a Drive-By

image The secret an effective online presence:  Become a regular.  Make sure everybody knows your name.  Like Norm Peterson.

You build trust and respect when you are a regular participant in an online community.  People know who you are. People start to listen to you.

Most companies are guilt of a drive-by shooting.  They wait till they have something to sell or a negative post to respond to.  They show up out of the dark and spray PR shrapnel.  And look like total idiots.  This never works.

Here are the steps to being an effective participant in the online social media community:

1. Show up.  The more you participate, the more effective your participation becomes.

2. Earn credibility BEFORE you need it.  It’s too late to respond after you have a problem.  You need to be a regular, respected member of the community long before you can ask that community to support you.

3. Use multiple voices.  Companies shouldn’t bet on one employee becoming their official evangelist. You lose all of your credibility and relationships if you lose that person. Empower many people to be out there.

4. Be human. Participation is not a marketing strategy. Just join the conversation, add to it, and enjoy yourself.

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