Avoiding the Cut: Social Media ROI in Perspective

July 26, 2011

Toronto: July 20, 2011 - In response to a tight economy, most organizations face a financial call-to-action: reduce the expenses, tighten your belts, and cut-cut-cut. Financial management will explain that revenues no longer support the level of expenditure, so either sales must increase, or expenses must be cut - this seems reasonable.

But how do they determine which cuts to make? “Too often, it is a question of what is easiest to cut, what are the newest programs, or which programs have the weakest sponsors,” says Randall Craig, social media and web strategist and author of the Online PR and Social Media series. “A far better approach is to cut based on efficiency and effectiveness.”

Looking only from the perspective of cost may not allow you to measure the worth of the initiative and if it is actually pulling it’s weight. Cutting lazy investments frees resources for higher-value activities. “This concept is even more important when it comes to social media. Managing and measuring all too often are forgotten in the excitement of the latest tweet or blog posting – they shouldn’t be,” adds Randall Craig.

Building an evaluation of each initiative should be done at inception. What are the goals of the program? How will they be measured? What are the expected results: financial, marketing, operational, and otherwise? What are the downstream benefits? Understanding these upfront means mid-course corrections are easier to make. And it also means that when the call to cut happens, objective measurements can be introduced as criteria. In short, you cannot manage what you cannot measure.

Adds Craig: “Review your social media initiatives, and set the goals, measures, and expected results. Don’t get caught when the call to cut occurs.”

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Since 1994, Randall Craig has advised on web and social media strategy. He is the author of six books including the Online PR and Social Media series. More information about Randall Craig can be found at www.RandallCraig.com.

For more information contact:

Randall Craig
416.256.7773 x101 / Randall@ptadvisors.com

Carolyn Bergshoeff
416.256.7773 x 101 / Carolyn@ptadvisors.com


http://blip.tv/file/get/Randallcraig-RandallCraigOnSocialMediaEfficiency448.m4v


For more information contact:
Randall Craig
President
Pinetree Advisors
Phone: 416-256-7773 x101
Email: Randall@ptadvisors.com
Website: www.RandallCraig.com

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Randall Craig, Social Media and Networking Expert

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