The Difference Between Theoretical Social Media and Practical Social Media

This is the type of blog post that will get me into trouble with the wrong people. That’s absolutely fine by me. The people I want to reach are the people who need help for their business, not the people who make a business out of preaching social media.

There are two types of social media “gurus” out there today. One is like the law professor – more knowledgeable about the ins and outs of the law and its applications than most judges. In both the legal and social media marketing professions, the smartest usually end up teaching rather than doing. The other type is like the courtroom attorney. They aren’t immersed every day in legal papers or reading memos from the various courts. They aren’t sitting at coffee shops debate Roe v. Wade. They’re in their offices preparing arguments or in the courtroom making arguments.

I’ve been asked why I don’t write a book on social media. Blogging over 2000 words per day means I could bust out a book in a month or two. There are two reasons that I don’t. First, social media changes too rapidly. By the time someone finishes reading my book, parts of it will be obsolete. The second reason is because I’m better in the courtroom. Trying to teach people about social media has never been my thing. I like making social media marketing happen rather than theorizing about social media.

There’s nothing wrong with the law professor types. They make great money speaking at conferences, selling books, or driving traffic to their websites for ad revenues. It’s almost appealing, but there’s something about theory that I simply don’t like. To test a theory means you have to be doing it, not talking about it.

The reason I’m writing this is to point out one major flaw that I see businesses and marketers make. Many of you spend so much time reading, watching videos, or following your favorite guru that you miss the opportunities to really learn out in the field. The best strategies that we employ for our clients didn’t come from a blog post by a guru. They came from watching what other businesses and marketers are doing and improving on their concepts.

The best place to learn how to succeed on social media is by spending time on social media. Look at your competitors. Look at other industries. Look at what corporations are doing. Look at what tiny startups are doing. Ask yourself how it played for you when you saw this Facebook post or that Tweet. Did it work? Could it have worked better done another way? Could it work better for you?


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