BUT WHY???
If you have children or have had the luxury of spending quality time with a three year old, you probably have encountered the "Why Stage". Every statement, question, and sentence, regardless of how silly, is answered by a sweet young voice asking, "WHY!??!??" Enterprises need to harness “their inner child voices” while developing their social strategy The first rule and milestone to agree upon is the "WHY". This is your primary goal for establishing a multi channeled conversation. This "WHY" will identify also the first audience you also want to impact. It will set the table for some of the milestones and metrics you as a company want to accomplish with this journey.
"WHY?" is a nagging and grueling question. "WHY?" can drive you crazy. One answer is never correct. It is a typical answer from adults… "BECAUSE I SAID SO!!!. You see, this answer, doesn't satisfy the audience. The three year old hates this answer. You can already see the resentment and tears forming in the eyes of the cherub. That cherub is your intended corporate audience. Whether that audience is your employees, customers, prospects, partners, or OEM's… the last thing any company needs is a social effort that brings tears to your stakeholders' eyes. It is crucial to be able sit down and clearly articulate the "Why" in terminology that anyone (even the three year old) can understand. A clear message on why will help:
- Internal staff responsible for the effort to understand their role
- Stakeholders understand the purpose and what they will gain from collaboration
- Clarify the metrics and the message
- Reach the ROI potential
Some samples of corporate whys:
- Increase online sales and support our franchise network
- Customer support and retention
- Increase our place in the XXX listing of our competitors
- Reduce product innovation and time to market costs
- Improve employee collaboration and institutional memory
- Increase fan loyalty during the off season
If you are having trouble selecting one or formulating this, it may be time to reach out to someone to assist with this. I encourage you to share either your corporate "WHY" or comment on what challenges you faced determining the "WHY" your enterprise entered the social conversation.
