Social Media Paralysis? Think Like a Punk Band.
“In a world when there are countless blog postings, tweets and status updates every second, meticulously constructed and over-thought content is quickly forgotten.”
BY ADAM WHITE
We have entered an age where the cost of access to powerful and far reaching communications mediums is dropping to zero. When it comes to social media tools like Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube, or blogging platforms like Wordpress, the largest multinational corporations and the smallest local business all start with the same blank canvas. With so many opportunities to connect, why do we fall into such unproductive ruts? We over-edit blog postings as if they were academic papers. We agonize over what is appropriate to say to our Facebook fans. We spend too much time fretting over the production qualities of our videos. How did people cope during past upheavals? Get your Doc Martins on, spike up your hair and let’s take a look.
In late 70s London, New York and California there was an explosion of musical activity. Hundreds of bands were cropping up playing a short, fast and loud form of music we now know as punk rock. The parallels between punk and social media becomes more obvious when you look at what came before punk: progressive rock. In the mid 70s prog bands epitomized virtuosity and musical excess. Groups like Yes, Emerson Lake and Palmer and Electric Light Orchestra emphasized orchestration and complexity. It was professional music created by experts. Punk bands like the Ramones were the opposite: unschooled, unruly and direct. Anyone could do it. It was that “do it yourself” approach that inspired countless others to pick up guitars and give music a try. It democratized rock for a generation that had been previously shut out.
How does this apply to your social media strategy? Think like a punk band. Understand that to frequently impact people you have to throw some of the old rules out. In a world when there are countless blog postings, tweets and status updates every second, meticulously constructed and over-thought content is quickly forgotten. Of course what you share has to be of some quality, but there is a reason why successful punk bands play hundreds of shows a year. If you want to rise above the fray it all comes down to sweat equity. You need to engage small groups of people sincerely and frequently. You may not be the best at your instrument, but you can work harder and make more genuine friends (and you better believe that they can smell a fake). Your social media presence is the equivalent of an independent band travelling in a cramped van playing basement shows in every small town that will have them. Leave paralyzing over-planning to the megastars playing stadiums twice a year. They are few and far in between anyways, and their tactics should not be yours.
Adam White (AdamWhite.org) is a developer at JMR SoftwareSystems (JMR.ca). For conversations with local businesses visit SocialMediaNiagara.com or join the Social Media Club (SMCNiagara.com).
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