Impossible is a word I personally don’t use that often from years of Traffic/Print Production “it has to get done” conditioning, but a few weeks ago I received a Facebook friend request from my Grandmother! This is the same woman who refers to her computer as “the machine,” turns OFF her answering machine when she goes away for more than a day so people won’t know she’s not home, and finally agreed to keep, and not secretly return, a microwave after six attempts. So yes, when I saw the notification my first thought was… impossible!
After I checked to see if the sky was falling, or perhaps hell had frozen over, I called her. Yep it’s verified, she is on Facebook.
For many years now Grandma, who is over 80 and closer to 90 and would kill me if I revealed her exact age, has been using email via AOL. I don’t think she has really gotten the hang of that though since all I get from her are mass email forwards. When it comes to actually communicating, she calls or get ready for it, sends a card or a newspaper article she thinks I’d like through the mail. A few months ago as a matter of fact she called and told me to be on the lookout for something she read about this new website for professionals called Link something.
Now that her Facebook friend request and my impossible reaction have hopefully been solidified, you are probably wondering as I did what catalyst caused Grandma to go social. The answer… “Well, that’s where all of you are.”
So, where is your audience?
In January I gave a presentation at the Paper Distribution Council’s Executive Meeting on “Marketing Paper in a Multi-Channel World” where I touched upon the importance of finding their social audience, communicating through the social platforms their audience was most likely using, and some tips on how to engage with them. I hope you find some of this useful as you build your social audience – and just substitute “paper” for whatever products and services work for you. Despite the absence of my color commentary, I think you will get the picture just like Grandma did! But if you need any guidance, you know how and where to find me…
