Analytics Is King

Even though I left Cleveland/Northeastern Ohio six months ago (exactly to the day), I still say in pretty regular contact with friends/professional contacts that I made in the area. It's one of the beauties of social media, right? Geography is no longer a factor in effectively networking with like-minded professionals. With that ability comes lots of good, and bad news. Over the last few weeks, I've heard a number of accounts from "locals" who still say that the corporate community in Cleveland has yet to really adopt social. Why? If we wrote this post two years ago I could see it, but now? Sure, the area is not typically a trailblazer when it comes to technology, but with so many using social media to bolster communications efforts why is there still hesitation? With that as a backdrop, I offer this open letter to Northeastern Ohio brand managers.

Dear Northeastern Ohio Brand Manager -

I write to you in the hopes that this letter will spark something within you, and your organization to get started in social media. There is a large number of you that have yet to adopt. Why? Is it because of regulatory concerns? Is it because your "corporate culture" is very conservative when it comes to technology? Is it because you do not spend as much money on communications as other companies who are already engaging in social? Are you concerned about scaling up to meet the demands of social media? Is it because you think it isn't measurable, or result in real return? I can tell you that there are companies of similar size who have asked, and then answered these questions -- many 12-24 months ago.

Unfortunately for you, the number of different technologies has exploded exponentially, while the possible uses has gone up. There's even more to consider now. Where do we start? How do we start? What do we say? Now, you've got these questions, plus some of the ones I asked above.

So what do you do? Well, assuming you work with an outside firm I'd recommend you bring them in to talk about using social technologies to augment current efforts. Or even bring them in to have a frank discussion about how social could be used to support your business goals. One word of caution though: If they come in talking about tools, politely ask them to leave. This isn't about tools. It's about using social tools to solve business problems. OK, so if you bring them in who should be there from your side? Well, ideally you'd bring in someone from corporate communications, marketing (other than yourself), internal communications (HR), legal (yes, even legal) and market research. That last one might surprise you, but these are the folks who really help set the direction for your communications efforts. If you aren't ready to engage in social, at least you can be listening to conversations. Ideally, you'd want your listening agenda to align with your offline research agenda. Hence, why market research should be in the room.

Social media allows you to get closer to your customers than what has ever been possible through traditional communications channels. Why wouldn't you want to know your customer better? I'll assure you that if they are already an ambassador of yours, they wouldn't mind knowing you better. Even the folks who have only recently bought your product want to know you better. It's how you turn them from someone who casually buys your product into someone who constantly buys your product, and then tells everyone else about it. You want the latter...trust me.

Are you still looking for case studies? I'd encourage you to check out this list, or even a list created by Chris Brogan. I can assure you that they aren't all Dell, or Comcast, or Southwest Airlines. They are companies big, and small who all had the same questions you have. They are companies that have saved millions in recruiting costs, or sold millions through Twitter, or increased the number of generated leads through social media.

I can attest to there being a lot of smart pros in the area - talk to Lisa Zone. or Dominic Litten, or Melissa Koski. Heck, give me a call if you want. I may not be living in the area anymore, but I still care what happens to people there. After you've talked to them, or someone else, start by listening. The reasons for engaging in social become clearer the more research you conduct.

It's time to wake up and ditch the communications efforts that involve deluging the world with press releases. No, I'm not saying press releases are bad. It is also time to ditch the media relations effort that involves pitching nonstop. Guess what? That doesn't work. How about you use social to determine who has the most influence and then reach out to that group? Sounds much better right? Time to stop advertising for the sake of advertising. Time to stop using old recruiting methods when LinkedIn gives you a better chance to reach the people you want to reach.

Pull some people together. Do some research. Get in the ballgame. We, and your customers are waiting!

Sincerely,

Chuck Hemann

There's no reason to rehash the events of July 8th, 2010. In the minds and hearts of Clevelanders that day will forever carry great significance as our native son ditched us on national television for the glitz and glamor of South Beach. He decided that the opportunity to try and win multiple championships with Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh was something he couldn't pass up. The challenge of being THE leader of your hometown franchise was clearly something that had weighed on him over the last seven years. Being THE man isn't for everyone. There's a reason guys like Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, Bill Russell are considered greats -- because there just isn't many of them.

It's difficult for us Clevelanders to stomach the move from the "King" because he was one of our own. We THOUGHT he was the guy who would bring us sports glory for the first time since the 1960's. We obviously thought wrong. It's because of that, and the manner in which he delivered the news, that has us so upset. 

The point of this post isn't to necessarily criticize LeBron James (though I imagine that'll be a popular pastime for quite a long time) for the decision he made. I, like him, would be interested in chasing the titles. That said, I'd want to be the leader on the team chasing the titles rather then a follower. No, the point of this post is to challenge all of those who consider Cleveland's reaction to be a gross overreaction. "There's obviously more to life than winning and losing in sports," they tell us. "My happiness isn't dictated by whether or not my local sports team wins, or my favorite athlete performs well," they argue.

Guess what? I'm happy for you. But that's just not how it is for millions of Americans. Most of us live and die with our sports. How many of us grew up watching sports on television with a father/grandfather and can recall those stories even today? *Raises Hand* How many of us cried as kids when our favorite teams lost in a crucial game? *Raises Hand* In 1992, I was a huge Kentucky basketball fan (don't hold that against me). When Christian Laetner hit this unbelievable shot to beat Kentucky in the 1992 regional final, I cried. Why? Because I wanted the people I looked up to then to succeed. When they didn't, that was devastating to me. 

Think about baseball... how often have you heard those stories of our fathers fathers sitting around the radio trying to catch what's happening with Babe Ruth, or Joe DiMaggio? *Raises hand* How often on television do you see families together at baseball games? Quite often, right? It's something we do to spend time together because thats the way its been for more than 100 years. 

Think about college football or the NFL. We all look forward to Labor Day weekend because we get some much needed time off. Why else? Because that's typically the start of college football season. Living in Austin now I can tell you the start of college football is a HUGE deal around here. Not just for the money it generates for the city, but for the sense of comradery it creates with our fellow man (or woman). Similar story with the NFL. How often do you get together with the buddies on a Sunday during the fall to watch your favorite team play? Quite often, right? Is that just to drink beer? Ok, maybe a band analogy. But seriously, you get together to watch so you can check out your favorite team, but also spend time with friends. 

Sports, like it or not, has become part of our culture. So when one of our favorite heroes turns out to be a goat it hurts us. That doesn't make us bad people. It doesn't mean that our priorities are out of whack. It just means were like most of society looking for something/someone to help us either make sense of the world or escape it for a few hours. 

There's more to life, and Cleveland, than Lebron James. There's more to life, and Cleveland, than sports. But if Lebron James' antics taught us anything on Thursday night it would be just how important sports really is to our society. And, to the chagrin of many it seems, that isn't going to be changing anytime soon. For that, consider me VERY grateful. 

GO BROWNS!