Social Networking vs. Social Marketing

I’ve been noticing a trend lately, mostly among online marketers, to make the term “social networking” synonymous with “social marketing.” While it’s true that these two often overlap, they are very different activities, with different goals.

Networking involves actually building a network – of colleagues, contacts, and potential clients. Networking is an individual activity, and more “personal” (in the professional sense). It is not uncommon to network with people who have absolutely nothing to offer you at this time – simply because they are contacts of your contacts.

Marketing, however, involves promoting or advocating for your business, your service, or your cause. Part of an effective marketing strategy might be to judiciously promote your product, service, or cause to select members your well-developed network. Whether online or offline, if you do this too often (particularly without reciprocation within the network), you’re going to find your “network” diminishing, as people get grow weary of constantly being hit with a sales pitch. And notice, that in order to promote your product to your network, you need to have already developed the said network.

Let me repeat that last part: In order to promote your product to your network, you need to have already developed the said network.

What is happening all too often, instead, is that marketing professionals are discovering online social media outlets, and viewing them as “free advertising space.” They’ll jump onto Twitter or Facebook with no existing friends, no followers, no contacts, no followees, no prior history, no “networking” activity at all, and announce that they are there to promote their new splog (”spam blog“) – a website with no value to anyone who isn’t specifically looking for whatever they’re trying to sell.

This is the online equivalent of attending a local Bible study, or lodge meeting, or Thursday Happy Hour for the first time, and walking in with a stack of life insurance brochures and applications. How well would that be received? How effective would that be? Not very. And you might be asked to leave. But if you’ve made the effort to get to know the folks there over time, it’s likely that you’ll know who may or may not need and be interested in buying your product; they are more likely to trust you and at least listen to your spiel.

The same holds true online – if you start trying to sell to members of a social networking group before you build your network, you’re likely to be rejected as a “spammer.” However, if you first build the network, then very carefully market in a way that is not obnoxious, you’re more likely to have good success.

Also see: Harte Marketing & Communications – The Four Faces of Social Media (Hat-Tip Kristen Turley, APR @Kristen_Okla)