@warrenveach Great article, Warren!

I guess I would be classed as one of those “social media experts”, although I don’t call myself that. I just know a lot about social media. Which doesn’t make me better than anyone else – just that I know more than some in a particular area.

I would agree with most of what the author is saying – there are a A LOT of “experts” out there who are a sham. And that is unfortunate for people like me who actually really want to help small business owners achieve great results online.

While the author is spot on, the main point he is missing is that small business owners (and others) do need help sometimes.

Most aren’t marketers and they sometimes cannot write blog posts very well, or come up with snappy tweets…. in the beginning.

That is why I have built my consultancy around helping people help themselves.

Yes, I offer to run your social media efforts at the beginning, but as I do I work closely with you to help you eventually run your own social media marketing – as I believe that is the only way to truly succeed.

Well, that’s my 2 cents.

Russell Allert

@warrenveach I am sure you will get numerous comments on this post as did the writer who has over 600 comments at this point – so I won’t go there!  Like @russellallert, I offer Social Media Services in consulting, training and implementation.  I don’t call myself an expert but I took the time to get a certification as a Social Media Marketing Specialist.  I got my certification because I learned far more from the thought leaders than I could ever learn from just gathering information off the internet through blogs and articles.  I’ve been in Social Media since the beginning of 2008 and watched it morph and change and improve over the years.  It’s all about being authentic, having business ethics, commitment to customer service, sharing, industry knowledge, knowing your competition and above all, a marketing strategy specific to Social Media efforts with clarifying your goals, expectations, timelines, etc.

I networked locally about Social Media back in 2008 to many and often they shrugged it off as a “fad”.  Two individuals who “shrugged” recenty appeared on a local cable channel as Social Media Experts and I shuddered at the misinformation they shared, ie.15 mins.of Social Media activity a week would bring success and lots of business.  Those indiiduals will give us all a bad rep but it happens.

I often use the analogy that Social Media networking is very similar to networking locally.  The “know-like-trust” you build over a period of time will bring in lots of prospects, leads, customers and referrals.

I did not find much to disagree with… Social Media is a part of the right approach. But it usually helps to have a coach.

As a web developer I witnessed what happened with no SEO investment or no social media coach”YOU set up this web site and it cannot be found” “YOU charged me to set up this blog and no comments on it!” “YOU charged me to set up this Facebook page and no one follows it!” Well sure – you would not let me coach you in how to find followers… So now I am at the point where I write coaching and full SEO  into every contract as an option, even if they have told me they will turn it down. Why? To keep the reminder in front of them that it is my recommended route to success and “Good Luck without it!’

Who else noticed what it said at the end of his post? “Follow him on Twitter”! Bwa ha ha!

I remember reading Peter Shankman’s post when it came out and thought he was pretty spot on. Back then, I was VP, Marketing in a medium-sized business, and we had mixed experience dealing with so-called SM experts. Funny that less than a year later I find myself consulting, providing marketing strategy services that include, yes, social media expertise…

Having said that, you may also have heard Gary Vaynerchuk saying all social media experts are clowns!

Malcolm Gladwell, in his book Outliers, talks about the fact that, in order to be considered an expert, one needs to put in 10,000 hours at what they do. Like Gretzky in hockey, or Bill Gates or whoever has achieved greatness in their field. So with social media being so recent, it’s tough to weed out the true experts out there. But there are some: folks who have been blogging for 10 years, or that dealt with online distributions channels back in 1995! Heck, these folks certainly can share and spread a lot of knowledge.

At the end of the day, though, I think Russell summarized it best: it’s all about the mindset. A consultant that comes in with the genuine approach to share his or her knowledge, train and empower the client to work by himself in time, will always get by just fine. It’s those other clowns we have to beware of…

This is funny. I’ve written an article to post this week at one of my blogs concerning this very issue.  I’ll be back to post the link here when I upload the article. I agree with the posted article so many will have to take it with a grain of salt.

One thing I can add is that social media is like SEO was a few years back. So many scammers online that businesses had to turn to word of mouth (social media?) to find someone to obtain actual results.

.02

@Ann at greenoak

Hi Ann – sorry, but anyone who takes money from anyone else under false pretenses is referred to as a “scammer” online and actually, it is appropriate. Not to put too fine a point on this, as it is just my OH!pinion, and everyone has at least one. 

It does sound harsh, but the truth often is harsh. The problem is that calling a cat a kitten and a dog, a puppy, makes a difference in what you visualize.  The end result however, is always the same.  You have a dog or a cat to care for that is no longer a small cuddly fluff, just to play with.

With claims of this type, real responsibility must apply. Small companies can be devastated by paying out with no real ROI.  This is not a game. Honesty should prevail.

As I said, just another OH!pinon. 

So much of this comes down to great communication of expectations from the very beginning. It’s entirely possible for a consultant in good faith to begin a relationship – and that consultant actually being a good, honest, ethical person – who just didn’t ask the right questions of their prospect before they got started. What are your goals, your fears about getting started, your expectations, what metrics will we agree on? Without these questions being asked, two good and well-meaning parties can disconnect. Then you have one labeling the other as a “scammer” and one labeling the other as a “total headache.” When both might have had the potential to have a good relationship all along or perhaps walk away from each other if it was clear there wasn’t a fit. Not everybody is an outright liar about what they do for a living. It takes good strategic planning and good communication from the onset and beyond – and that is as important as anything else in the process. I’m continually working on bettering myself in that department.

I think the post and suggestions here are like a good substitute for a personal mentor/coach. In fact, many small business cannot afford the luxury of personal mentors for many of their needs! That is one reason i m really coming  to like this club.

Janardhan

I also thought it ironic that he ends the article with:

Please follow War Room on Twitter and Facebook.
Follow Peter Shankman on Twitter.

And then has links to: Twitter, Facebook, Buzz, Digg, StumbleUpon, Reddit, LinkedIn and Embed.

Then, on his own website, he says, “companies turn to Peter Shankman when they need to understand how the worlds of social media, customer service, marketing, advertising, and public relations are merging into one.”

I’m not sure if he is saying a company doesn’t need Social Media (Expert), or if he’s saying, “If you do need one, hire me”.:-)

@ Nadadur Janardhan

Yes, this is why most all of us are here.  Some can answer questions while also asking questions about items in which they have no experience.

It’s a two way street; give and take; share and share alike.