Zero-G Creative

Should you hire a social media agency?

Apr 21 2010

Earlier this week, Zero-G Creative unveiled it’s first ever social media offering. But that decision did not come without a great deal of consideration which will not surprise those who know us and our not-so-secret feelings on the widespread abuse of social media for profit. Our offering does come with a disclaimer though: while we will help businesses plan, create and maintain a social media presence, we will NOT do it for them.

Coincidentally, our friend Jeff Hilimire opened a debate on his blog this week asking whether social media is best managed by an agency or by the brand and I was compelled to weigh in. Here’s what I said:

In the idealistic world that exists only in my head, I’d prefer to see agencies stay out if it entirely. But that’s not reality and I think many brands are going to require the assistance and guidance of an agency to plan the strategy, provide feedback and likely handle some of the upfront and ongoing effort to maintain the strategy. But I think it is a HUGE mistake for a brand to outsource its social media entirely to an agency as it seems many are doing. As a culture, we’ve immunized ourselves to advertising in part because of overload and in part because people have become increasingly aware of how “manufactured” advertising is. By contrast, we are drawn to social media because there’s still an element of authenticity there that has been stripped out of traditional marketing, advertising and PR over the years. Ultimately I believe that brands need to control the tone, content and tempo of their social media, no matter how impractical it is from an organizational perspective. I believe that impracticality can be overcome in many cases with a combination of effort and creativity

But it’s hard to overcome the disappointment and betrayal that our best customers would no doubt feel if they ever discovered that they were being misled. How would you feel if you found out that a company insider you’ve been developing a relationship with was actually a ghostwriter or a fictional character?

Authenticity is a prerequisite for a successful social media effort and outsourcing it wholly to an agency is disingenuous at best. Agencies can and should play a role — this is a big job after all, but any scenario that takes the brand out of the driver’s seat is a failure in my book.

Don’t give your brand’s voice away. No one can manage your company’s relationships or evangelize your company’s products and services as well or as passionately as you can. Should you ask for advice? Should you engage others both inside and outside of your organization to brainstorm ideas and help you evaluate success? Absolutely. But I could never offer or endorse any service that encourages companies to outsource such a critical element of their brand.

Business owners, I promise you — you can do this and you can do it well. It takes time and effort, no doubt — both commodities that are easily outsourced. But is also takes care and authenticity which are much harder to buy and impossible to fake.

Published by Erik Wolf under Small Business,Social Media,Strategy,Viral Marketing,Web/Interactive