Likeable Social Media

Editor’s note: This is the sixth post in our monthly #ThrowbackThursday series, which features a prominent, successful PR pro taking a look back and sharing tips from his/her days as a new pro.

For many, starting your own business and writing your own book are just two “some day” goals on an aspirational list. For Dave Kerpen, they were both opportunities he jumped at in the face of fear.

Kerpen’s list of accomplishments is a pretty lengthy one – most notably including his best-selling book, “Likeable Social Media“, leading Likeable Media and Likeable Local. In honor of this month’s book review theme, we chat with the author about his journey.

Question 1: How did you know when it was the right time to start your own company and then go on to start your own book?

We all have lots of fear and a lot of people let that fear hold them back. I was just fortunate enough to have enough windows where I didn’t let that fear hold me back and just went for it. It’s funny because I talk to a lot of people every day and I often ask people, “Do you have a book to write? Do you have a book inside of you? Are you an entrepreneur?” And I’m amazed at how many people say yes. So then I say, “Well, what’s stopping you?” And they come up with a whole list of excuses. The bottom line is, we’re all held back by fear. The most successful people are the ones that choose to not let that fear hold them back at least once.

Question 2: What challenges have you had writing on social media since it is such an ever-changing industry?

It’s really hard since the publishing world has a lead-time of six months to a year. So by the time a book goes from submission manuscript to actual publication, it’s already out of date in many cases. In my books, I try to write more about timeless strategies and less about tactics and platforms since they change so often. Obviously, if a book is going to be useful it can’t be only strategies. There was some content in “Likeable Social Media” that was really irrelevant, which is why we wrote a second edition. It’s definitely a challenge for all social media and online marketing books because of how quickly the space changes.

Question 3: Where do you see the industry going in five or ten years, specifically with social media?

Social media is really no longer a distinct discipline; it’s part of what we do and part of our lives. You can call it a distinct discipline, you can call it a subset of PR, you can call it marketing, you can call it whatever you want, but it’s here to stay. Social media is so pervasive that it’s just going to be an accepted part of all of our jobs and business practices sooner or later.

Question 4: How do you keep your skills sharp?

I read a lot. I read more than I’ve ever read in my life thanks to social media and my mobile phone. I use LinkedIn publisher and Twitter to keep up with hundreds of sources that I track. I actually also read a lot of books – more business books than social media an online books. For social media content I read a lot of blogs and I’m fortunate to have my Likeable Local and Likeable Media team who write for the blogs. They both keep me on my toes which is something I’m proud of – I was able to start something that taught my team and now they’re also teaching me.

Question 5: What advice would you give to today’s young pros?

First, network by seeking and finding mentors. It’s easier now than ever to do that thanks to social media where you can literally get a hold of just about anyone on the planet. I’ve gotten connected with everyone from Miranda Cosgrove, who wished my daughter a happy birthday, to Ashton Kutcher, who we ended up doing some work with, to Cory Booker, who might be president one day. Go out there and connect and network with amazing people and mentors.

Second, read and write. It sounds really basic, but it’s true. The more you read and write, the smarter you’ll get and you’ll sharpen your skills. Too many people waste their time on stuff like TV. However, as good as reading is, writing is ten times better. Writing takes those ideas and forces you to synthesize them into something bigger.

Third, feel the fear and do it anyway. Courage is action in the face of fear. We all have fear; there’s nothing wrong with that. I hate when people tell me they’re not afraid – I’m afraid every day, but I still get up in the morning, and go to work, and take chances and go for it. That’s sort of what courage is and we all have it inside of ourselves. We can all take that fear, accept it and then be courageous and go for pursuing our dreams.

Dave Kerpen is an entrepreneur, author, speaker and most notably the CEO and Founder of Likeable Local, a social media software company serving thousands of small businesses. Kerpen also serves as chairman and cofounder of Likeable Media, an award-winning social media and word-of-mouth marketing agency.

As one of Entrepreneur’s top 10 up and coming leaders, Kerpen has been featured on CNBC’s “On the Money”, BBC, ABC World News Tonight, the Early Show, the New York Times and countless blogs. He has also keynoted at dozens of conferences across the globe including Singapore, Athens, Dubai, San Francisco and Mexico City.

Kerpen’s first book was a NY Times bestseller, “Likeable Social Media: How to Delight Your Customers, Create an Irresistible Brand and be Generally Amazing on Facebook and other Social Networks. His other books include Likeable Business, Likeable Leadership and his current project, The Art of People.

Kerpen is also a father of two beautiful girls and husband to his amazing business partner.

As a new PR pro, one of the many roles you may play on your team is to manage the social media accounts for various clients. I already know what you’re thinking. How hard can it be to post on a client’s page once a day?

When you take on this responsibility, it’s important to keep in mind what you think might be common sense, isn’t after all. I was reminded of this after reading Dave Kerpen’s “Likeable Social Media: How to delight your customers, create an irresistible brand, and be generally amazing on Facebook and other social networks.”

A New York Times and USA Today bestseller, the book explores the basics and fundamentals of managing a Facebook page on behalf of a client while offering real-life examples from Kerpen’s own experience. Cofounder and CEO of Likeable Media, Kerpen uses his own experience with national brands such as 1-800-Flowers.com, Neutrogena, Uno’s Pizzeria and more to paint a picture of real-time case studies.

What was interesting about Kerpen’s approach and what I especially appreciated were the action items found at the end of each chapter. While I was highlighting ferociously every time I came upon something I found relevant or applicable to my client, I found it super helpful that there were three to five quick takeaways for how the reader could apply what was covered in the chapter on their own.

Here are my own three quick takeaways from Likeable Social Media that hopefully can serve as food for thought in your own social media strategies:

Be human.

When posting and engaging on behalf of your client, converse with your followers in the voice and tone that is appropriate for the client. But be careful to not come off as a robot. For example, a luxury eyewear brand wouldn’t respond to a customer’s compliment with “That’s totally awesome. Thanks for sharing!” Instead, their response would likely sound a bit more like “Thank you so much for your kind comment. We appreciate you taking the time to share your great experience with us.”

Respond to your positive comments, too.

This might be a no-brainer, and a bit of a “duh” moment. No matter how simple it might seem positive comments might get overlooked more than a negative comment would. Think about it – one negative comment from a customer complaining about customer service or a product on your website and the entire team can go up in arms, trying to respond to the customer in a timely and appropriate manner. A simple thank you from a customer, however, could go unacknowledged from the company for hours – even days.

Take the time to respond to your positive feedback. After all, these are the people who could possibly be brand ambassadors for your company down the road by sharing your company’s news with their friends.

Create a community.

Kerpen shared various examples such as Stride Rite that successfully created a community using their Facebook page. The shoe company achieved this not by posting about shoes every day, all day. Rather, the company decided to shift gears and take the approach of sharing content that would be interesting and relevant to their target audience: moms – and their kids who wore the shoes.

Now, this community of moms is consistently engaging on Stride Rite’s Facebook page on tips for new moms, pictures and videos of babies and milestone moments, and general questions for raising a child. And what’s key is that Stride Rite has embraced this and responds to comments, questions and shared items. As a result, Kerpen says the company online sales increased steadily week over week since the initiative launched.

Finally, my one criticism of the book was that I was searching and hungry for additional best practices on other social media platforms, specifically Instagram and Twitter. If Kerpen decided to come out with a book on best practices for Instagram, I’d read it.

If you’ve just started your first PR job and will be handling social media for a client, I’d highly suggest this book. It will take you from the newbie in the office to the rock star rookie with stellar social media strategy in no time.

If you have any questions or want to chat more about what I found interesting from this book, find me on Twitter at @shandihuber!

Shandi Huber is a senior account executive at Wordsworth Communications, a public relations agency in Cincinnati, Ohio. An enthusiast for all social media platforms, you can often find her pinning her dream closet on Pinterest or posting photos of her new puppy on Instagram. Connect with Shandi on LinkedIn and Twitter(@shandihuber).