Social Media and the Agency: Coach, QB or Cheerleader?
10 Nov
Marketing/PR pros: Do you spend your time talking ABOUT Social Media? Ever speak THROUGH it on a client’s behalf? Do your clients use SM?
I posed the question on Twitter this morning, and got some great feedback. Tom O’Brien responded with insightful questions about the agency’s role in conversations: Is outsourced “conversation marketing” viable? Is it sustainable?
Anyone who knows me knows I’m a huge football fan, so I thought I’d tackle the “What Role for the Agency in SM?” question in sports terms. What do you think. Share your SM –> Sports Role idea in the comments:
Agency as QB
In this model, the agency takes its cues from the coach coach/play-caller (the client), but has significant decision-making responsibilities. The quarterback can call an audible at the line of scrimmage after he reads the defense. Similarly, the agency as QB must read the field and adjust the play call accordingly. After the snap, the QB progresses through his reads, finds the open receiver, and decides where to throw the ball. The agency, too, makes split-second decisions: Should we respond to a Tweet? What should we do about negative blog comments?
Examples:
- Writing blog posts
- Responding to on-site blog comments
- Responding to third party blogs and off-site blog comments
- “Managing” a Twitter account
- Creating a network on Facebook, LinkedIn
Agency as Coach
Here, the agency isn’t the playmaker, but the play caller. The emphasis is on strategy rather than execution. The agency may advise the client on which social networks to join, just as a coach relays a play to the quarterback. Success depends on how well the client executes the play.
Examples:
- Providing recommendations for which social networks to join
- Offering strategies for connecting with key influencers
- Suggesting new content ideas (blog posts, photos, videos, podcasts, etc.)
- Initial set-up of home base, outposts and passports
Agency as Cheerleader
In the “Agency as Cheerleader” model, the agency is a social media player, but comes dressed as itself, rather than as a stand-in for the client. The client may or may not be a social media player. The agency’s primary role is to use social media to promote its clients — all of them.
Examples:
- Sending out a Social Media Release about a client’s news
- Tweeting a link to a client’s latest blog post
- Using traditional media to showcase the client’s SM activities
- Leveraging the agency’s online network of journalists and bloggers to get publicity
These are important questions to be asking, Scott, and I like how you have categorized them. I'm a big supporter of the Agency as Coach model – the client needs the leadership (especially when they're just starting out), but it's important that the client does the executing. They need to be the ones building relationships with their customers, and that is something that just can't be outsourced.
Scott,
This is an interesting post. I'm president of a social media agency (Ignite Social Media) and thought as I started to read this that I would have to pick which one we are.
But we've been all three, sometimes for one client. Social media is a toolbox that can be used so many ways. Many companies need basic counseling to bring folks up to speed, but they also need specific tactics to engage with their customers.
Good post, Scott. This is well articulated.
~Jim
accept
Thanks for stopping by, Jim. Ignite has been doing great work here in the Carolinas.
You're absolutely right about playing all three roles. Most of us fit predominantly into one category or another, but must also be versatile enough to change characters as needed.
These are important questions to be asking, Scott, and I like how you have categorized them. I'm a big supporter of the Agency as Coach model – the client needs the leadership (especially when they're just starting out), but it's important that the client does the executing. They need to be the ones building relationships with their customers, and that is something that just can't be outsourced.
These are important questions to be asking, Scott, and I like how you have categorized them. I'm a big supporter of the Agency as Coach model – the client needs the leadership (especially when they're just starting out), but it's important that the client does the executing. They need to be the ones building relationships with their customers, and that is something that just can't be outsourced.
Scott,
This is an interesting post. I'm president of a social media agency (Ignite Social Media) and thought as I started to read this that I would have to pick which one we are.
But we've been all three, sometimes for one client. Social media is a toolbox that can be used so many ways. Many companies need basic counseling to bring folks up to speed, but they also need specific tactics to engage with their customers.
Good post, Scott. This is well articulated.
~Jim
Scott,
This is an interesting post. I'm president of a social media agency (Ignite Social Media) and thought as I started to read this that I would have to pick which one we are.
But we've been all three, sometimes for one client. Social media is a toolbox that can be used so many ways. Many companies need basic counseling to bring folks up to speed, but they also need specific tactics to engage with their customers.
Good post, Scott. This is well articulated.
~Jim
Thanks for stopping by, Jim. Ignite has been doing great work here in the Carolinas.
You're absolutely right about playing all three roles. Most of us fit predominantly into one category or another, but must also be versatile enough to change characters as needed.
Thanks for stopping by, Jim. Ignite has been doing great work here in the Carolinas.
You're absolutely right about playing all three roles. Most of us fit predominantly into one category or another, but must also be versatile enough to change characters as needed.