The Social Media Agency Landscape

Today, just about every agency “does social media” in one form or another. But there are so many different aspects, it’s like saying an agency does “creative” or “media buying”. The real question is what kind of social media services exactly?

Most all business use social media, such as LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter. But these are just tactical channels. To make it work for your business there’s needs to be an objective and strategy around it.

Are you looking to manage your brand’s online reputation and improve customer service? Gather research and customer insights? Promote key messages among audiences and influencers? Activate a fan base and drive traffic to a website or location? Different social media channels and tactics will vary accordingly, and so will the type of social media services you need from an agency.

Agencies and social media firms have different areas of expertise, ranging strategy through tactical support. Some firms just develop profiles, fans and followers, while others just tweet. PR firms come at it from a buzz monitoring, conversation and message promotion perspective. Creative agencies leverage emotional, engaging and viral creative. Seeding that content and distribution requires an entirely different expertise.

Clarify your objectives and investigate the water before you dive in. When you hear “yes, we do social media!” look carefully at how the agency approaches it and where their strengths lie to make sure their social media services aligns with your goals.