Open Letter to CEOs: Don't Cut SM Staff.

Dear Chiefs,

These times really suck.

You didn't sign up for meeting after meeting about "cutting once and cutting deep," "non-essential staff" and "bottom line." You get it. When you walk around the company, you see the look in their eyes or how quickly they try to look busy. People are scared and it is your job to decide what members of your team you must do without. Your company's survival depends upon it. Hell, your survival depends upon doing it right.

There are those who will tell you to just look to the bottom line and just eliminate anyone who does not produce in revenue what they are compensated. That would include most people in social media if you look at it simplistically enough.

I'm writing you to tell you that such moves would be painfully short-sighted. They would put your company terribly out of position for the recovery, which will not come soon, but will come inevitably. When that recovery does come, will you be in a better position than your competitor? Will you be in a better position than a new competitive thrust from a start up created by some bright laid off employees?

This is the time to think about the most efficient way to be closest to you customers, to what's left of your company ecosystem. You need to be among the first to detect the nuances of your market and adjust. You need to think about the most efficient way to keep in the conversation. You need to be closest to the young and bright people you will want to hire when the time to build again comes back.

That will not be advertising or brand building. That will not be PR or events. It will be in social media. Social media people cost little budget except their employment packages. They are on the front line where change is going to be first detected. They don't place ads in media where most people who hear or see the message don't matter. They just follow conversations that can make a difference to you.

The same goes for internally in large organizations. You need to be in touch with the team you keep. You need to let those who survive the cuts know how important they are. You need to be able to share information fast an accurately. A monthly newsletter just isn't going to do the job the way a behind-the-firewall community will do it.

Now is the most vital time there ever has been for online collaboration, and the tools of social media are the best there are for doing that. They are two way, not one way. They eliminate travel costs in many cases. They are real time, and oh yes, they are inexpensive.

I could go on and on. Social media is sort of a pet topic of mine. But I know you are pretty busy these days. And you don't need anyone preaching to you. I just wanted to get this word in to the conversation. While a lot of people are telling you how bad today is, you need to execute strategies that make tomorrow more efficient than yesterday.

Hope you pull through this mess and have some fun with you loved ones on the holidays,

Shel

Comments

[@ggroovin]

Thanks for the support, Shel. May be too late for me & 2 other folks on my 5-person team. Hope not, hope I get a chance to stick around, but I do appreciate your attempt to provoke some thought that may get some execs to consider the power of SM in their decision-making.

Cheers!

-- Ricardo G. (@ggroovin on Twitter)

[Tim Marklein]

Good post, Shel. The CEOs may not be tracking social media enough to see this, but that's *exactly* why they need their social media teams on board. This is also another reason why social media pros should take on more of a front-line "customer service" orientation -- which is a well understood role and less "optional" from a business standpoint. The bottom line: CEOs are less likely to cut customer-facing, value-producing people in tough times.

[Douglas Karr]

I recently wrote a post where I talk about the lasting impression that SM has versus typical online advertising. When your ad money is gone, so are your ads... and your visitors. This isn't the same with SM. Blog posts that I've written 2 years ago are still finding their way amongst searchers on the Internet. They are more impressionable (no pun intended) as well. It's an incredible investment with huge lasting ability.

[mark silva @marksilva]

Shel, you got it right from the "look busy" part to the unaccounted benefits of SocialMedia. Good open letter, but for the intended it will likely remain unopened. I'm not sure C-Suites/Companies with existing SM staff are where the focus needs to be. Rather than trying to protect existing SM jobs within companies already realizing the value, we need to get more CEOs bringing the practice into their business now.

Unfortunately most of these CEOs aren't using SocialMedia at a time when it would be most relevant for them as well as their customer, employee, and partner constituents. If they were, they would understand that SocialMedia isn't just a good communications forum, it's also where people are going to help people through this mess.

And, instead of feeling resolve for the actions they need to take and--if they have any part humanity--a little aweful even with the knowledge their actions are for the greater good and long-term sustainability of their vision, SocialMedia provides an immediate way that they can give back for the greater good.

Those forward thinking companies with SM staff in place that are even doing a half-decent job of populating their company's SocialMap will understand this isn't a place to touch. Not enough impact on expenses for one. And it's probably feeding them real-time feedback on the effects of actions from the broader market.

So, perhaps we need to scribe a different Open Letter to those CEOs missing their leadership and shareholder-value-driving opportunity in SM: In Toughest Times Your Greatest Opportunities Lie in SocialMedia--Going Dark Is Death. This axiom comes from Advertising, btw, I just swapped SocialMedia for its predecessor communication form and saved them millions on media investment. :-)

[Dave Fleet]

Nice work Shel.

The only part I would take issue with is your implicit assertion that social media sits separately to PR, brand building or other forms of marketing.

In my mind, these functions are highly integrated. I work in PR, but I spend a large chunk of my time thinking about social media and how that integrates with public relations.

Viewing social media as a completely separate entity means missing opportunities, duplicating costs and running the risk of missing the implications of online conversations.

Just a thought. Apart from that... umm... what you said :)

[shel Israel]

Dave,
I'm pretty sure I said "traditional" PR and marketing, which to me, does not include social media.

[AG]

Shel,

As companies try to figure out what a deep cut truly means, I agree. The ones that realize they have to completely change the way they approach marketing, they'll survive.

So many companies spend so much money on a traditional media buy, when the cost of one display ad (inside front cover) will fund a few freelancers that can better target their base.

Many companies out there don't know about SM and about blogging. Or about creating an interesting brand beyond the traditional means. I'm constantly amazed how many times I have to tell people what a blog is.

Or tell people that there are other ways to reach their base beyond the way they've been doing this.

[Marcel LeBrun]

Hi Shel,
Good letter.

I am wondering - Shel - are you seeing this unfold currently with examples that you are hearing about? We are all hearing about layoffs, but so far they seem to be broadly based. I'm not seeing a specific impact (or a disproportionate impact) in social media. In fact, many social media investments are relatively small and, of course, ROI is easier to demonstrate when the "I" is small. I would expect the larger programs (i.e. the big TV ad campaign, etc.) to be the big targets.

With the current economic pressure to reduce expenses comes a need to innovate and find more creative uses of lower cost communications channels. In fact, I think we will see an increase in innovative uses of the social web BECAUSE it is so cost effective as a communications medium.

Also, in a time of relative "crisis" or downturn, "listening" becomes that much more important.

Of course, not everyone reads your letters ;-(

Marcel

[dawntrenee]

I am a firm believer in social media and the benefits to companies and products. There are many times I find "what I need" through my social media contact.

[Maria Reyes-McDavis]

This is such an insightful post for any company, small business, or online entrepreneur to pay attention to. Getting closer to your customers at a time like this can bring great rewards in the short and long-term. Well beyond our current economic situation.