Here is a quote from Bill Maher that I absolutely love: "We have a Bill of Rights, what we need is a Bill of Responsibilities."
Your Social Media Bill of Rights
When using social media, you have the right to:
- Out research your competition;
- Out innovate your competition;
- Out communicate your comptetition; and
- Out service your competition.
That's quite a list, and certainly requires elaboration. We'll get to that in the next series of posts. But before you dig in to the goodness that awaits you in social media land, it's important that you know your responsibilities as well. As I was taught in law school, ignorance of the law is no defence. The same applies here.
Your Social Media Bill of Responsibilities
There are a large number of responsibilities that come along with connecting with your customers and prospects online. Today I want to focus on one in particular: raising your "real world game." I had an experience today that serves as a good analogy for what I am talking about. I have been done some business with somebody who has been less than responsive to phone calls, emails and any attempt at communication on my part. At the same time, I have noticed that they have been spending plenty of time on Facebook and on their blog. Even a few years ago, there was no outlet for the frustration I felt in this situation, other than telling a few friends not to do business with this person. But today I have a blog, a Twitter account, and many other ways to talk back as a customer. I'm not one to "call people out," but there are plenty of people who are. Just a couple of examples:
- Jeff Jarvis called out Dell for bad customer service, and created Dell Hell.
- David Carroll called out United for breaking his guitar, and created a music video to get their attention.
You don't get to have a mediocre product or service anymore. If you do, you'll eventually be found out. Here's the part that should be a wake up call. You don't get to choose whether or not to accept the Social Media Bill of Responsibilities. Why? Because people, including your customers, now have a voice. And that means that you need to bring your "game" to new heights.
Email
ShareThis