Throughout history, public relations professionals have assisted companies in gaining exposure and getting the right message to the right audience at the right time. In the past, PR agencies relied on connections with journalists, media contacts and industry publications to relay relevant company news. With the arrival of social media, and digital marketing, PR agencies have had to evolve with the times. It has become a content-driven world, with a whole lot more opportunities to place content.

While it is now easier for PR agencies to spread a company’s message, the amount of information news outlets and other publishing platforms receive is quite overwhelming. As such, it is now more important than ever to get your messaging right, so it does not get lost in the noise, or, even worse, turn the audience away.  A good public relations agency knows which types of messages are appropriate and most effective for each type of content. Public relations firms are now frequently retained in order to keep a company’s message consistent throughout all forms of content.

Here are a few tips on how to best maximize your exposure to your audience:

1. Press Releases - Publishers, editors and journalists are forced to sift through hundreds, if not thousands, of press releases on a daily basis and decide whether the news is really news, or rather advertising in disguise. Due to the sheer volume of material sent, the media has less time to spend on each release. The trick to getting your press release noticed is ensuring that the headline and first few sentences are compelling and well written. It is important to capture the reader’s attention quickly.  It is also important to ensure that for the most part, your press releases are news and something a reporter would be interested in. Don’t get a reputation for sending bad marketing messages disguised as “news.” Otherwise your content will be ignored by your core journalists.
2. Content marketing - Blog articles are an excellent way for companies to establish themselves as thought leaders within their industry. When company executives choose to share their knowledge in a way that helps their audience and/or delivers relevant insights into current events, their audience grows and they gain more attention. However, if a company chooses to use their content marketing solely as a thinly veiled form of advertising, they could actually achieve quite the opposite. Blogs should not be used solely to release news or advertising. Use them as a forum to provide good, useful content for the reader. Readers can smell blog articles that are actually pitches a mile away. And, with limited time in their day, they must choose who and what to read. If a company gains a reputation among readers for producing advertorial content, chances are they will gloss over that author whenever his or her content is published. Yes, the content is out there and may have SEO benefits, but the power great content gains in attracting attention, is then lost.
3. Social media - In the past, Facebook rewarded companies that posted relevant and engaging content by increasing exposure to that company’s target audience. Now Facebook is increasingly limiting a company’s ability to reach their audience, regardless of whether the content is engaging or advertising. While, to date, Twitter has not filtered the content on its platform, it has hinted at introducing algorithms into its platform designed to assist users in reading what they feel is most relevant.

Twitter users have always had a choice to either filter content themselves through the use of lists, or to simply unfollow a company. As Facebook, Twitter, etc., further develop, there is an increasing “pay to play” model emerging. Has that decreased the potential reach of social media with consumers? No. What it has done, however, is force companies to choose whether to include social media in their marketing/advertising budgets, whereas in the past it only took a little time and effort to post content.

Social media is still an excellent way to market to your audience, if the content is compelling, has intriguing calls-to-action and delivers a relevant message. However, advertising/marketing via social media shouldn’t be your sole activity, as the audience will tire of continuous advertising messages. The key is a good balance. Social media is an excellent tool to engage customers, monitor for sentiment and respond to customer complaints or praises.

It is vital to know how to achieve maximum exposure to the correct audience. Whether that be through press releases, blogs, articles in trade magazines or social media – realize that in most content marketing efforts, you’ll achieve more success and position yourself for optimum results by not trying to sell, but rather by providing valuable news and useful content. Pay attention to the type of content appropriate for the venue on which it’s published. This will help you create and implement a more effective overall marketing communications strategy.

Throughout history, public relations professionals have assisted companies in gaining exposure and getting the right message to the right audience at the right time. In the past, PR agencies relied on connections with journalists, media contacts and industry publications to relay relevant company news. With the arrival of social media, and digital marketing, PR agencies have had to evolve with the times. It has become a content-driven world, with a whole lot more opportunities to place content.

While it is now easier for PR agencies to spread a company’s message, the amount of information news outlets and other publishing platforms receive is quite overwhelming. As such, it is now more important than ever to get your messaging right, so it does not get lost in the noise, or, even worse, turn the audience away.  A good public relations agency knows which types of messages are appropriate and most effective for each type of content. Public relations firms are now frequently retained in order to keep a company’s message consistent throughout all forms of content.

Here are a few tips on how to best maximize your exposure to your audience:

1. Press Releases - Publishers, editors and journalists are forced to sift through hundreds, if not thousands, of press releases on a daily basis and decide whether the news is really news, or rather advertising in disguise. Due to the sheer volume of material sent, the media has less time to spend on each release. The trick to getting your press release noticed is ensuring that the headline and first few sentences are compelling and well written. It is important to capture the reader’s attention quickly.  It is also important to ensure that for the most part, your press releases are news and something a reporter would be interested in. Don’t get a reputation for sending bad marketing messages disguised as “news.” Otherwise your content will be ignored by your core journalists.
2. Content marketing - Blog articles are an excellent way for companies to establish themselves as thought leaders within their industry. When company executives choose to share their knowledge in a way that helps their audience and/or delivers relevant insights into current events, their audience grows and they gain more attention. However, if a company chooses to use their content marketing solely as a thinly veiled form of advertising, they could actually achieve quite the opposite. Blogs should not be used solely to release news or advertising. Use them as a forum to provide good, useful content for the reader. Readers can smell blog articles that are actually pitches a mile away. And, with limited time in their day, they must choose who and what to read. If a company gains a reputation among readers for producing advertorial content, chances are they will gloss over that author whenever his or her content is published. Yes, the content is out there and may have SEO benefits, but the power great content gains in attracting attention, is then lost.
3. Social media - In the past, Facebook rewarded companies that posted relevant and engaging content by increasing exposure to that company’s target audience. Now Facebook is increasingly limiting a company’s ability to reach their audience, regardless of whether the content is engaging or advertising. While, to date, Twitter has not filtered the content on its platform, it has hinted at introducing algorithms into its platform designed to assist users in reading what they feel is most relevant.

Twitter users have always had a choice to either filter content themselves through the use of lists, or to simply unfollow a company. As Facebook, Twitter, etc., further develop, there is an increasing “pay to play” model emerging. Has that decreased the potential reach of social media with consumers? No. What it has done, however, is force companies to choose whether to include social media in their marketing/advertising budgets, whereas in the past it only took a little time and effort to post content.

Social media is still an excellent way to market to your audience, if the content is compelling, has intriguing calls-to-action and delivers a relevant message. However, advertising/marketing via social media shouldn’t be your sole activity, as the audience will tire of continuous advertising messages. The key is a good balance. Social media is an excellent tool to engage customers, monitor for sentiment and respond to customer complaints or praises.

It is vital to know how to achieve maximum exposure to the correct audience. Whether that be through press releases, blogs, articles in trade magazines or social media – realize that in most content marketing efforts, you’ll achieve more success and position yourself for optimum results by not trying to sell, but rather by providing valuable news and useful content. Pay attention to the type of content appropriate for the venue on which it’s published. This will help you create and implement a more effective overall marketing communications strategy.

Social media can be a tricky thing. Finding and publishing content that a business’s audience will both enjoy and interact with can be challenging. And as Facebook exposure for business pages is increasingly diminishing, businesses are more dependent on audience engagement than ever for those elusive likes, shares and comments. The type of content posted is highly important as there is a line that can be crossed and turn public perception against you. Sometimes, what may have been a sincere piece of content can be perceived as simply self-promotional.
 

The reality is that behind every piece of content produced by a business there is a person. Whether that’s one person or a team, ultimately, it can be difficult for marketers to separate personal feelings from their social media content. Take for example the viral campaign to raise awareness and money for the ALS Association named “The Ice Bucket Challenge.” It’s fantastic that individuals are raising money for the ALS Association and are spreading awareness for this awful disease. Everyone from the average man on the street, to celebrities, to business executives and their staff have filmed themselves dumping ice water on their heads in the name of a good cause. As a result donations to the ALS Association have hit record numbers. One company, however, may have crossed the line in its participation.

Samsung Mobile UK posted a YouTube video with the Galaxy S5 getting dunked in icy water and challenged the iPhone 5S, and other phones, to the same treatment. The video does not mention if Samsung also supported the charity campaign with a donation.
 

The Galaxy S5 is waterproof and that feature is highlighted in the video which has the phone getting splashed with icy water and challenging its rivals.
 

The public’s comments about the video show anger as some consumers were left with the impression that the company was cashing in on a charity campaign that has so far raised $88.5 million.
 

The first comment on the video sums up many people’s reaction:
 

“Did you seriously just (expletive) use a way of supporting charity to market your (expletive) phone?”
 

“The whole point of the ALS ice bucket challenge is to spread awareness and raise support for the research of a cure and you just used that support and awareness as a way to make money? It’s like some guy going to a funeral to market his coffins. Wow Samsung. Just wow.”
 

Some people are already skeptical of the legitimacy of the ice bucket challenge. I’ve seen comments on Facebook from people claiming that they feel that people are participating simply to publicize themselves and that it is not being done in the true spirit of the challenge. Opponents to this view would disprove this based on the record donations and awareness this campaign has generated.

Perhaps it was not the best idea for Samsung to choose to create a message that is very clearly marketing and then piggyback it on a viral awareness campaign for a horrible disease. What may have been intended as cute sure did backfire. While Samsung did indeed make a donation to a charity which researches ALS along with other motor neuron diseases, this did not placate all consumers. Sentiment on social media regarding Samsung’s gimmick has been decidedly negative.

As a business it’s important to put yourself in the shoes of the public when attempting to piggyback marketing on trending topics. While this tactic can pay huge dividends, (a la Oreo and its now famous “Dunk In the Dark” tweet when the lights went out in the Super Bowl), it is important to ensure that you aren’t crossing a line that can turn your marketing into mocketing.

Social media can be a tricky thing. Finding and publishing content that a business’s audience will both enjoy and interact with can be challenging. And as Facebook exposure for business pages is increasingly diminishing, businesses are more dependent on audience engagement than ever for those elusive likes, shares and comments. The type of content posted is highly important as there is a line that can be crossed and turn public perception against you. Sometimes, what may have been a sincere piece of content can be perceived as simply self-promotional.
 

The reality is that behind every piece of content produced by a business there is a person. Whether that’s one person or a team, ultimately, it can be difficult for marketers to separate personal feelings from their social media content. Take for example the viral campaign to raise awareness and money for the ALS Association named “The Ice Bucket Challenge.” It’s fantastic that individuals are raising money for the ALS Association and are spreading awareness for this awful disease. Everyone from the average man on the street, to celebrities, to business executives and their staff have filmed themselves dumping ice water on their heads in the name of a good cause. As a result donations to the ALS Association have hit record numbers. One company, however, may have crossed the line in its participation.

Samsung Mobile UK posted a YouTube video with the Galaxy S5 getting dunked in icy water and challenged the iPhone 5S, and other phones, to the same treatment. The video does not mention if Samsung also supported the charity campaign with a donation.
 

The Galaxy S5 is waterproof and that feature is highlighted in the video which has the phone getting splashed with icy water and challenging its rivals.
 

The public’s comments about the video show anger as some consumers were left with the impression that the company was cashing in on a charity campaign that has so far raised $88.5 million.
 

The first comment on the video sums up many people’s reaction:
 

“Did you seriously just (expletive) use a way of supporting charity to market your (expletive) phone?”
 

“The whole point of the ALS ice bucket challenge is to spread awareness and raise support for the research of a cure and you just used that support and awareness as a way to make money? It’s like some guy going to a funeral to market his coffins. Wow Samsung. Just wow.”
 

Some people are already skeptical of the legitimacy of the ice bucket challenge. I’ve seen comments on Facebook from people claiming that they feel that people are participating simply to publicize themselves and that it is not being done in the true spirit of the challenge. Opponents to this view would disprove this based on the record donations and awareness this campaign has generated.

Perhaps it was not the best idea for Samsung to choose to create a message that is very clearly marketing and then piggyback it on a viral awareness campaign for a horrible disease. What may have been intended as cute sure did backfire. While Samsung did indeed make a donation to a charity which researches ALS along with other motor neuron diseases, this did not placate all consumers. Sentiment on social media regarding Samsung’s gimmick has been decidedly negative.

As a business it’s important to put yourself in the shoes of the public when attempting to piggyback marketing on trending topics. While this tactic can pay huge dividends, (a la Oreo and its now famous “Dunk In the Dark” tweet when the lights went out in the Super Bowl), it is important to ensure that you aren’t crossing a line that can turn your marketing into mocketing.

As a PR professional, my primary goal is to assist my clients in achieving the most exposure possible and build top-of-mind brand awareness among their potential customers. To help better understand how to best position my clients for success, I did a little research on how dealers perceive vendors and their practices.

I reached out to Bobbie Herron, Digital Sales and Marketing Manager for the Garber Automotive Group. Herron was recently named to Automotive News’ “Retail 40 under 40” list and she was kind enough to share a few things with me that vendors do to irritate her, causing them to potentially lose her business.

Herron responded with what irritates her, along with some best practice tips on how vendors can better approach dealers as follows:

1. “I’m a very progressive person and willing to try new solutions if I feel that they will benefit the stores in my group. One of the things that irritates me is when a vendor asks me to participate in a beta test of their product and then wants to charge me for it. In my opinion, I’m doing them a favor. They are getting access to my data and getting feedback from me as a user, which assists them in fine-tuning their product. This is very valuable data for them to have and for them to try and charge me for it is ridiculous.”
2. “When a vendor reaches out to me trying to solicit their product or service, my first piece of advice is to back off with the constant calling and e-mailing. Most vendors don’t provide me with any useful information in these communications. I either get a generic voicemail or an obvious e-mail template that offers me no reason to return their call. The best way for a vendor to earn my business is to learn about me and my stores before they contact me. Give me a reason why their product is a good fit, with examples and data specific to my group. Most of the time, it is obvious that I’m simply on a list and have been placed on a CRM cycle. That drives me nuts. If a vendor doesn’t care enough to take time to learn about me, and can’t provide me with a thoughtful and logical argument for why their service will help my group, then they won’t get my attention.”
3. “Vendors who approach me with over-the-top claims and promises might as well stop. I know this business very well. If you think you will earn my business by making outlandish claims that are impossible to achieve, you’re wrong.”
4. “When I get calls from vendors that actually do get through to me, have managed to get my attention, then cannot answer my questions, they’re done. If you’re going to try and sell me something, at least know your product and enough about the automotive industry to give me practical examples.”
5. “The fastest death sentence a vendor can achieve is by overstepping a hierarchy. I understand that the obvious assumption most vendors make is that they need to contact either the General Manager or Dealer to speak with a decision maker. The fact is that there are many stores in which an Internet Director, e-Commerce Director, or Digital Marketing Manager are the actual decision makers. Make an effort to know who the decision makers are. There’s nothing I hate more than being called into one of my General Manager’s offices to be confronted with a vendor who managed to skip over me. They’re only going to throw the vendor back to me. Even worse is when I walk into a meeting in which a vendor proceeds to criticize and blast all of the things we’re already doing in an effort to prove how much their product or service will improve our existing marketing.”

Herron didn’t stop there, however. She also had some valuable advice for her existing vendors as to the three things they do that make her question their partnership:

1. “One of my biggest pet peeves is a vendor who never reaches out to me. I feel like once they got my business, they stopped caring. They should be reaching out to me regularly; if only to check in with me and see if I have any questions. Many vendors don’t do this very simple thing and then wonder why the dealer cancels their service. Maybe if they had ensured that the dealer knew how to use their product properly, and were using it to its fullest potential, they wouldn’t have lost a client.”
2. “Many vendors, especially at the start of the relationship, will automatically advise me to change my process to whatever process their best clients are using, without taking the time to learn my existing process. Rather than trying to transform everything we do immediately, they should take the time to see how their product or service can fit in with what we are already doing. I’m not opposed to changing processes if they will help my stores sell more vehicles, but don’t come in with guns blazing and shoot down everything we’re already doing before even knowing what those things are.”
3. “Last, but not least; when one of our existing vendors makes additions or changes to products or services we are already using without notifying me. One of the first things I do at each conference I attend is visit the booth of every vendor we use. I have them give me a product demo as if I were a prospect, rather than an existing customer. By doing this, there have been many times where I have learned of new features or services that I already had, but didn’t know about.”

Taking the time to listen to feedback from a dealer can help all of us vendors better evaluate practices so as to offer our clients a first class experience; from prospecting to customer service. Dealers share stories about companies and products in the same ways that consumers do about dealerships. Every employee and customer touch point shapes a company’s personality. Knowing what irritates potential and existing clients is the first step to earning and keeping business. To your success!

As a PR professional, my primary goal is to assist my clients in achieving the most exposure possible and build top-of-mind brand awareness among their potential customers. To help better understand how to best position my clients for success, I did a little research on how dealers perceive vendors and their practices.

I reached out to Bobbie Herron, Digital Sales and Marketing Manager for the Garber Automotive Group. Herron was recently named to Automotive News’ “Retail 40 under 40” list and she was kind enough to share a few things with me that vendors do to irritate her, causing them to potentially lose her business.

Herron responded with what irritates her, along with some best practice tips on how vendors can better approach dealers as follows:

1. “I’m a very progressive person and willing to try new solutions if I feel that they will benefit the stores in my group. One of the things that irritates me is when a vendor asks me to participate in a beta test of their product and then wants to charge me for it. In my opinion, I’m doing them a favor. They are getting access to my data and getting feedback from me as a user, which assists them in fine-tuning their product. This is very valuable data for them to have and for them to try and charge me for it is ridiculous.”
2. “When a vendor reaches out to me trying to solicit their product or service, my first piece of advice is to back off with the constant calling and e-mailing. Most vendors don’t provide me with any useful information in these communications. I either get a generic voicemail or an obvious e-mail template that offers me no reason to return their call. The best way for a vendor to earn my business is to learn about me and my stores before they contact me. Give me a reason why their product is a good fit, with examples and data specific to my group. Most of the time, it is obvious that I’m simply on a list and have been placed on a CRM cycle. That drives me nuts. If a vendor doesn’t care enough to take time to learn about me, and can’t provide me with a thoughtful and logical argument for why their service will help my group, then they won’t get my attention.”
3. “Vendors who approach me with over-the-top claims and promises might as well stop. I know this business very well. If you think you will earn my business by making outlandish claims that are impossible to achieve, you’re wrong.”
4. “When I get calls from vendors that actually do get through to me, have managed to get my attention, then cannot answer my questions, they’re done. If you’re going to try and sell me something, at least know your product and enough about the automotive industry to give me practical examples.”
5. “The fastest death sentence a vendor can achieve is by overstepping a hierarchy. I understand that the obvious assumption most vendors make is that they need to contact either the General Manager or Dealer to speak with a decision maker. The fact is that there are many stores in which an Internet Director, e-Commerce Director, or Digital Marketing Manager are the actual decision makers. Make an effort to know who the decision makers are. There’s nothing I hate more than being called into one of my General Manager’s offices to be confronted with a vendor who managed to skip over me. They’re only going to throw the vendor back to me. Even worse is when I walk into a meeting in which a vendor proceeds to criticize and blast all of the things we’re already doing in an effort to prove how much their product or service will improve our existing marketing.”

Herron didn’t stop there, however. She also had some valuable advice for her existing vendors as to the three things they do that make her question their partnership:

1. “One of my biggest pet peeves is a vendor who never reaches out to me. I feel like once they got my business, they stopped caring. They should be reaching out to me regularly; if only to check in with me and see if I have any questions. Many vendors don’t do this very simple thing and then wonder why the dealer cancels their service. Maybe if they had ensured that the dealer knew how to use their product properly, and were using it to its fullest potential, they wouldn’t have lost a client.”
2. “Many vendors, especially at the start of the relationship, will automatically advise me to change my process to whatever process their best clients are using, without taking the time to learn my existing process. Rather than trying to transform everything we do immediately, they should take the time to see how their product or service can fit in with what we are already doing. I’m not opposed to changing processes if they will help my stores sell more vehicles, but don’t come in with guns blazing and shoot down everything we’re already doing before even knowing what those things are.”
3. “Last, but not least; when one of our existing vendors makes additions or changes to products or services we are already using without notifying me. One of the first things I do at each conference I attend is visit the booth of every vendor we use. I have them give me a product demo as if I were a prospect, rather than an existing customer. By doing this, there have been many times where I have learned of new features or services that I already had, but didn’t know about.”

Taking the time to listen to feedback from a dealer can help all of us vendors better evaluate practices so as to offer our clients a first class experience; from prospecting to customer service. Dealers share stories about companies and products in the same ways that consumers do about dealerships. Every employee and customer touch point shapes a company’s personality. Knowing what irritates potential and existing clients is the first step to earning and keeping business. To your success!

Last week, Tesla Motor’s CEO, Elon Musk, announced via the Tesla Blog that Telsa would be making its technology available to any car manufacturer that wants to use it.

Elon Musk explained his decision very eloquently when he said:

“Technology leadership is not defined by patents, which history has repeatedly shown to be small protection indeed against a determined competitor, but rather by the ability of a company to attract and motivate the world’s most talented engineers. We believe that applying the open source philosophy to our patents will strengthen rather than diminish Tesla’s position in this regard.”

Tesla is in a tenuous position as it finds itself mired in court battles fighting for its right to sell vehicles using the business model it has chosen. Due to its direct-to-consumer model, dealers have continuously challenged Tesla’s position in the automotive industry through state automotive dealer associations. At the same time, consumer sentiment and support for the automaker has gotten increasingly more vocal.

While Tesla may have just thrown any future licensing revenue out the window, what it stands to gain could possibly prove more valuable in the end.

Tesla considers itself a technology leader in the electric vehicle field and in his blog, Elon Musk criticized large automakers for producing electric vehicles with limited range in limited volume. He also criticized those OEMs that produce no zero emission cars at all. Perhaps Tesla has grown weary of the large automakers efforts to prevent it selling vehicles and has resorted to the most powerful resources that they have… the public?

I’d be interested to know what others think about this issue. Is Tesla’s open sourcing of its EV technology a true gesture of philanthropy. Or simply a ruse to get attention?

Last week, Tesla Motor’s CEO, Elon Musk, announced via the Tesla Blog that Telsa would be making its technology available to any car manufacturer that wants to use it.

Elon Musk explained his decision very eloquently when he said:

“Technology leadership is not defined by patents, which history has repeatedly shown to be small protection indeed against a determined competitor, but rather by the ability of a company to attract and motivate the world’s most talented engineers. We believe that applying the open source philosophy to our patents will strengthen rather than diminish Tesla’s position in this regard.”

Tesla is in a tenuous position as it finds itself mired in court battles fighting for its right to sell vehicles using the business model it has chosen. Due to its direct-to-consumer model, dealers have continuously challenged Tesla’s position in the automotive industry through state automotive dealer associations. At the same time, consumer sentiment and support for the automaker has gotten increasingly more vocal.

While Tesla may have just thrown any future licensing revenue out the window, what it stands to gain could possibly prove more valuable in the end.

Tesla considers itself a technology leader in the electric vehicle field and in his blog, Elon Musk criticized large automakers for producing electric vehicles with limited range in limited volume. He also criticized those OEMs that produce no zero emission cars at all. Perhaps Tesla has grown weary of the large automakers efforts to prevent it selling vehicles and has resorted to the most powerful resources that they have… the public?

I’d be interested to know what others think about this issue. Is Tesla’s open sourcing of its EV technology a true gesture of philanthropy. Or simply a ruse to get attention?

Just like any business, I have potential clients that I reach out to in an effort to see whether my services are a good fit. Recently, a potential client, who I had been talking to but hadn’t heard from in a little bit, suddenly “liked” one of my posts on my personal Facebook profile. While this does happen occasionally, I have always used LinkedIn as my primary method of connecting with people on a business level. Consequently, this Facebook interaction caught my attention and sparked my thought process for this blog.

Experts have advised for years that employers use social media to screen applicants and factor in a person’s online presence when considering whether to hire them. This also applies in the B-to-B world; business executives are increasingly utilizing social media as a tool to screen companies they plan to partner with.

Potential business clients expect a company to portray itself in the best possible light. As executives are the public front of any company, the fact is that their personal social media profiles are now also game. They are just as likely to be viewed as the business profile.

What you personally choose to post on Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn may say more about your business than your website and PR efforts. Just as social media is used to screen applicants to help provide valuable insight into individuals, it can also be used to provide insight into the lives and personalities of company executives. This can then be projected upon the business. Executives would be wise to carefully consider the types of content they are sharing on these social networks. Some people choose to maintain multiple personal profiles – one of which is truly personal and includes a network limited to family and true friends -- while the other acts as their online business persona.

As I discussed in my last blog article, “Perception Matters”, companies must instill in their executives the importance of careful consideration when it comes to what personal content is shared online, especially when that content is shared publicly. If you are the executive charged with protecting your brand, consider that, in the eyes of prospective partners, the individuals that work for your company ARE your company. The higher a person is in a company hierarchy, the more likely it is that a potential client will review that person’s personal social media accounts when considering whether or not to do business with you.

On LinkedIn, you can see who has viewed your profile. Most members tend to be more business-like, just by the very nature of the network. Facebook, Twitter and other networks, however, tend to be more personal in nature. If you’re an executive at a B2B company, take time to review your personal social media profiles and honestly ask yourself whether you would do business with yourself.

Since most social media networks don’t allow you to view who is looking at your social media profile, you’d be wise to operate under the assumption that every potential client is. Otherwise you may end up losing business without even realizing it. 

Just like any business, I have potential clients that I reach out to in an effort to see whether my services are a good fit. Recently, a potential client, who I had been talking to but hadn’t heard from in a little bit, suddenly “liked” one of my posts on my personal Facebook profile. While this does happen occasionally, I have always used LinkedIn as my primary method of connecting with people on a business level. Consequently, this Facebook interaction caught my attention and sparked my thought process for this blog.

Experts have advised for years that employers use social media to screen applicants and factor in a person’s online presence when considering whether to hire them. This also applies in the B-to-B world; business executives are increasingly utilizing social media as a tool to screen companies they plan to partner with.

Potential business clients expect a company to portray itself in the best possible light. As executives are the public front of any company, the fact is that their personal social media profiles are now also game. They are just as likely to be viewed as the business profile.

What you personally choose to post on Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn may say more about your business than your website and PR efforts. Just as social media is used to screen applicants to help provide valuable insight into individuals, it can also be used to provide insight into the lives and personalities of company executives. This can then be projected upon the business. Executives would be wise to carefully consider the types of content they are sharing on these social networks. Some people choose to maintain multiple personal profiles – one of which is truly personal and includes a network limited to family and true friends -- while the other acts as their online business persona.

As I discussed in my last blog article, “Perception Matters”, companies must instill in their executives the importance of careful consideration when it comes to what personal content is shared online, especially when that content is shared publicly. If you are the executive charged with protecting your brand, consider that, in the eyes of prospective partners, the individuals that work for your company ARE your company. The higher a person is in a company hierarchy, the more likely it is that a potential client will review that person’s personal social media accounts when considering whether or not to do business with you.

On LinkedIn, you can see who has viewed your profile. Most members tend to be more business-like, just by the very nature of the network. Facebook, Twitter and other networks, however, tend to be more personal in nature. If you’re an executive at a B2B company, take time to review your personal social media profiles and honestly ask yourself whether you would do business with yourself.

Since most social media networks don’t allow you to view who is looking at your social media profile, you’d be wise to operate under the assumption that every potential client is. Otherwise you may end up losing business without even realizing it.