What does a tweet mean to your organization? How about a like or a comment on Facebook? A retweet or a share? Activity on social media sites can and does mean different things for everyone. For politicians, it affects the difference between victory and defeat, between one more term of service or having to find another job. The 2012 Presidential Election promises to be a battle and my bet is that an effective and strategic social media campaign will make all the difference. With social media efforts that matter this much, we are bound to see sophisticated campaigns that anyone running a social media endeavor can learn from.
Turn online activity into physical support
According to a Mashable article, while politicians do utilize social media platforms as a way to spread campaign platforms, they also use them as a way to get people to take action. By sharing insights such as goals, internal campaign activity and various accomplishments, campaigns extend their reach from retweets, mentions and shares. Sharing inside activity may also give followers a look at an environment they have never seen before and lead them to act. Direct engagement with followers also increases levels of interest and excitement to participate.
The main strategy for turning online activity into physical support is to call for action by building relationships. This is accomplished by helping followers build relationships with each other on these platforms so that they want to physically act together for a common cause. Action can also be increased by highlighting such efforts on social media channels. Try to “reward” people for participating.
Even the highest levels should take part
I think most people recognize that a candidate for president of the United States or the CEO of a company may have other duties besides writing a tweet or responding to a comment. But even making one personal update a month can have a huge impact on people who are active on your page. Participation by leadership is huge because it shows that the people who make the decisions are paying attention to the conversation, hearing what the people are saying and care about their input. A good example is Vice President Joe Biden’s twitter page. When Biden writes a tweet himself, he signs it “VP.” This doesn’t happen often, but when it does, it is pretty cool to think that I am reading something directly from the Vice President of the United States that was written for me, the follower.
According to a recent CNN article, the number one piece of advice Facebook has for politicians is “to be authentic,” by using the aforementioned techniques and by posting actual content instead of press releases.
Utilize the innovative, social world that we live in
We live in a social world – what we do impacts others and what they do impacts us. Politicians have begun to realize this and are using it to their advantage. For example, look at President Barack Obama’s Facebook page. You can see where he asks fans to like the page and answer the question “are you in?” This allows fans to “start inspiring your friends.” I don’t know about you, but I am much more likely to pay attention and respond to someone I know as opposed to someone I don’t.
With a technological world that seems to always be changing, it is important to remember to adapt along with it. Mitt Romney’s announcement of his 2012 presidential bid is a good example of this concept. Romney’s social media strategy allowed people from across the country to watch and feel like they were in the action by utilizing YouTube, Twitter and Foursquare. He saw that this is where audiences were going, and by being there too, probably guaranteed a large amount of interest.
Politicians also post a variety of content on a regular basis. If you do the same and get people to like the page and comment on statuses, their friends will see the activity and could be directed to your page. Once they are there, they will be able to see how many of their friends also like you, and then maybe they will like you too.
Politicians don’t do everything perfectly. No one does. But most understand that social media campaigns are imperative in growing communication with larger audiences, whether it is through providing information on relevant issues or ensuring support at the polls. We can all take principles from their strategies and apply them to our own. Following these principles can lead to a higher number of fans and followers, increased information sharing and knowledge, and who knows; maybe one day following these principles will help you win your own election.