Around every new social development there arise the shamans. Those who seek to shroud the obvious in mystery to create the illusion that only they can interpret the “unknowable”. And thereby make a buck.
For example, look at the hype over “social media” (presumably this means traditional or mainstream sources are “anti-social media” and perhaps that’s right).
The cyber charlatans smell their chance to cloak in complex jargon and gobbledegook what is a rather pedestrian development in the age old behaviour of human conversation and gossip, so as to give themselves an edge and a marketing opportunity. So arises the new priesthood of the “social media expert”.
They are generally the humble common or garden PR hack but they garnish their profiles with witless phrases like they’re into “relationship building”, “stakeholder management” and “community building” through mastery of the dark art of online marketing and, in one absurd case, describing themselves as being a “human media monitor”.
Social media and marketing has become the Macarena craze of 2010, a meaningless orchestrated pop chorus that someone, somewhere, is making big bucks out of.
The money lays not so much in using social media or mastering it as a form of commercial communication but in selling the pseudo-science of “understanding social media”.
I read on Dave Farrar’s Kiwiblog of a thing called The Social Media Junction, a social media conference that apparently costs around $700 to attend.
$700?! For that huge sum you can hear people talk about things like, “Becoming a Trust Agent – Social Capital and The New Tribe.” If you have no idea what that means, apparently it’s about “being human at a distance.” Right.
Apparently places like Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, You Tube, Linkedin and the blogosphere are the new frontier where only those well educated in the enterprise of social media can “boldy go” where no one has gone before and make their fortune.
There is no mystery in social media, no real secrets, because using social media for marketing, branding and selling is much the same as using any form of media.
Yes, you have to engage with your audience, grab their attention, and earn their trust but that is the same with any form of advertising or public relations.
Social media just provides yet another channel of communication.
Sure, as with any form of media, you can make mistakes. One peculiar to the online world is that your audience there probably have better attuned “bullshit detectors”.
Online is a reasonably savvy, slightly cynical world and falseness can easily shine through the spin. Even if one reader fails to spot it there are plenty of others out there who will enter an online conversation to point out hypocrisy and pretence.
One potentially fatal fad being pushed by social media experts is “ghosting”, where busy CEO’s and public figures get a ghost-writer to Tweet or Facebook on their behalf. Sadly, there are plenty of ghostbusters out there who can spot the fake Tweeters and either lose all respect for the brand or, worse, blow the ghosters somewhere on line and forever damage their brand’s credibility.
People are not stupid. They know when they are being preached to or pitched to. Woe betide the social media marketers who put what amounts to a hyped up ad on a platform like You Tube. Derision and contempt is heaped upon them.
Yes, it pays to be up to speed on what social media marketing can do for your business, what nifty tricks can be found in that toolbox such as plonking key search engine words in blog posts for example, but beware the snake oil salesmen, the new social media priesthood who flog you their voodoo rites as the cutting edge of modern marketing.
They’re just dancing the Macarena and you’re paying for it.
says PR hack Bill Ralston, mouthpiece for some of the most unpleasant people in advertising.
Time to come kicking and screaming into the 20th (sic) century, grandad.
That’s right, you’re Ogilvy’s PR guy aren’t you?
Charming! I love the way people are so brave online when they can hide behind anonymity or just a (probably made up) Christian name.
There’s a word for that … oh, that”s right, gutless.
I’m always happy to put my name to what I think, pity you guys (or gals) don’t.
Lovely rant but wrong wrong wrong. Did I mention mistaken? If it was all so commonsensical why do experienced marketing firms as Cadbury, Jetstar and Dominos screw it up so moumentlly?
And why have AirNZ and Vodafone made it such a prosperous exercise? There’s a new art to this type of marketing.
I’m attending and sponsoring said event thinking I might learn sommat.
You might too, Mr Grouch.
Well said Bill. I laugh when talking to fellow bloggers and so called “social media experts” and they dream up wild ways to make money off corporates, plotting and scheming.
Issue being that they forget that a) no one will pay them to do what they will happily do for free anyway – spill their own brand of bile, b) the average blogger/social media person I have found doesn’t actually have a track record dealing or working in a corporate to understand that the corporate is shit scared of being caught out doing “black ops” with strangers as it’s rather as dumb as having sex without condoms and c) the bastards are not the ones buying me drinks with all this supposed potential and actual loot. Leading me to think that $10k they made from Vodafone bashing Telecom last week was a figment of someone’s overactive imagination and penis extension.
Bagging the shit out of a corporate on your website and getting your mates to post a viral campaign that you’ve been paid to hock surely doesn’t require $700 and a conference to do.
Bless my readers, they know that I provide impartial, unpaid bile on my blog and I mean what I write. Unlike others (ugh, hmm who will remain nameless) who are selling their readers out for paltry sums that could not effect the action above at c), in other words paying me back for all the drinks they didn’t buy me.
Oh not to mention I must add these social media experts do something and then can’t shut the fuck up about it as they want to take all the credit.
Therefore missing the meaning of the term “black ops” perfectly.
You’ll find this chap a kindred spirit: http://adcontrarian.blogspot.com/
He has a compelling way of thinking about social media.
The most insightful thing I’ve ever heard about social marketing is that there are three components: social networks, which have existed ever since people spoke (and probably before). Social objects, the things we’ve always shared with each other, like jokes, pictures of children and events, stories and the like. And now we’ve added social media, which is a new very efficient way of exchanging social objects with each other.
Simple.
So if you’re going to do social marketing, the aim is to create social objects that are worth spreading, and that carry with them at least some rub off of or on your brand.
Or you can pretend that you’re going to have conversations with people “about your brand”. But really, what you’ll be talking about 99% of the time will be service or quality issues, so you’ve effectively just created another customer service channel.
It doesn’t really feel like it needs experts to run it, although it does need dedicated resource if you’re going to do it properly.
But maybe I’m just naive.
What’s wrong with anonymity? Reveal your identity, and everybody knows you’re a prick, eh Billy Boy?
Well said, Bill.
Social media is indeed PR using a different channel. It is a channel unsuited to PR, as it’s about as welcome as an Amway salesman at a pub gathering amongst friends. Wrong time, wrong place.
“Social media expert”. So 2008. Now the codeword for “unemployed”.
Well said Bill. The so called social media experts these days that appeared to have popped up from nowhere are nothing more than experienced toilet cleaners who have self-anointed themselves as experts. I mean, really, does one need to be an expert in social media? I wouldn’t be surprised if they (some institutions) start teaching degree courses in social media studies. These idiots (social media experts) are no different to psychics, who sell their services to gullible people & suckers out there for nothing of real value other than guess work, deception & lying.
This is interesting – lots of people taking the time to have a pop at social media via a social media channel, which in turn – see top right of screen can link off to a about a couple of other social media channels including Twitter, et al .
As it happens I am speaking on Monday – my pitch is to offer 10 examples of not for profit – non commercial places who are using social media platforms to have a conversation with their users.
I’m doing it because I think the examples I’m giving are interesting and worth sharing. I’m also looking for some similar insights from the other peoplein the room, including Vincent above.
I suspect, the people I expect to learn the most from aren’t remotely interested in the idea of expert, cos as someone up the batting order has already said, being an expert these days is as about as interesting or as relevant as being the CEO of Vatican City.
As for costs – it is a liitle on the hard side – especially as speakers like me aren’t being paid. But there is some decent international talent and someone had to pay to get them here.
Also, and I say this with awe and respect, isn’t the cost around about the same as some of Mr R’s legendary lunches?
This is interesting – lots of people taking the time to have a pop at social media via a social media channel, which in turn – see top right of screen – can link off to about a couple of other social media channels including Twitter, et al .
As it happens I am speaking on Monday – my pitch is to offer 10 examples of not for profit non commercial places who are using social media platforms to have a conversation with their users.
I’m doing it because I think the examples I’m giving are interesting and worth sharing. I’m also looking for some similar insights from the other people in the room, including Vincent above.
I suspect, the people I expect to learn the most from aren’t remotely interested in the idea of expert, cos as someone up the batting order has already said, being an expert these days is as about as interesting or as relevant as being the CEO of Vatican City.
As for costs – it is a little on the hard side – especially as speakers like me aren’t being paid. But there is some decent international talent and someone had to pay to get them here.
Also, and I say this with awe and respect, isn’t the cost around about the same as some of Mr R’s legendary lunches?
Paul Reynold said…
This is interesting – lots of people taking the time to have a pop at social media via a social media channel.
Vincent & Paul Reynold, stop trying to be expert in something that don’t need expert on. First of all, this is a discussion forum. You can label it what you want, but online discussion forum existed before blogs and a whole lot of industry pseudo-experts like you started labeling it with names, such as social media, web-2.0, blah, blah, blah,…
The exorbitant fees that the likes of you & the so called social media gurus are charging is a ripoff. There is nothing difficult there to advise anyone on social media since they can figure out how to use it.
I have no respect whatsoever for the likes of you. I frequently see you making comments on TV about IT issues. What do you know about IT? You appeared on TV once (I think it was TV1) where you made a comment about the Google Mathematics (I know that you referred to its PageRank algorithm), and your comment was general one that perhaps mislead the viewers that you knew what you were talking about, while in fact, you didn’t.
Paul Reynold said…
But there is some decent international talent…
Perhaps 2 or 3 people I have seen, but the rest of them were just bogus experts. The 3 who came here, were R&D people, which they have published their work in peer review computing journals. Why does one need to pay $700 is beyond me, when one can just check out the regular seminars/talks at our local Universities, where R&D guys frequently give presentations about their work or an overseas visiting scholar giving a talk about his work. It is mostly open to the public and they’re free.
I’ll give you 2 examples of free talks by overseas visiting scholars that I have attended at Auckland Uni last year.
#1) Leveraging Sentiment Analysis for Topic Detection
Abstract:
The emergence of new social media such as blogs, message boards, news, and Web content in general has dramatically changed the ecosystems of corporations. Consumers, non-profit organizations, and other forms of communities are extremely vocal about their opinions and perceptions on companies and their brands on the Web. The ability to leverage such “voice of the Web” to gain consumer, brand, and market insights can be truly differentiating and valuable to todaypsilas corporations. In particular, one important form of insights can be derived from sentiment analysis on Web content. Sentiment analysis traditionally emphasizes on classification of Web comments into positive, neutral, and negative categories. This paper goes beyond sentiment classification by focusing on techniques that could detect the topics that are highly correlated with the positive and negative opinions. Such techniques, when coupled with sentiment classification, can help the business analysts to understand both the overall sentiment scope as well as the drivers behind the sentiment. In this paper, we describe our overall sentiment analysis system that consists of such sentiment analysis techniques. We then detail a novel topic detection method using point-wise mutual information and term frequency distribution. We demonstrate the effectiveness of our overall approaches via several case studies on different social media data sets.
#2) Social and semantics analysis via non-negative matrix factorization
Abstract:
———
Social media such as Web forum often have dense interactions between user and content where network models are often appropriate for analysis. Joint non-negative matrix factorization model of participation and content data can be viewed as a bipartite graph model between users and media and is proposed for analysis social media. The factorizations allow simultaneous automatic discovery of leaders and sub-communities in the Web forum as well as the core latent topics in the forum. Results on topic detection of Web forums and cluster analysis show that social features are highly effective for forum analysis.
Well, I paid nothing attend and I listened to real experts and not bogus ones who claim to be experts in real experts.
I said…
and not bogus ones who claim to be experts in real experts.
but I meant to say:
and not bogus ones who claim to be experts in social media.
@paul reynolds you have a point but for my $700 at lunch I get a couple of bottles of good wine, a nourishing meal and good conversation!
I humbly acknowledge you as a proven expert in this field, you make your living at it and provide a fine service but, as with all new opportunities and developments, soon the carpet baggers and snake oil salesmen soon invade the marketplace to cream what spoils they can.
Funny – I’d willingly pay $700 for a ringside seat if participants would have the guts to say these things face to face. People are so brave on line, snarling and hurling the most vile insults at each other, usually, as Bill says, behind the protection of a pseudonym. But get them in a room together at a conference, with a lovely snuggly name like “social networking” or whatever, and they are inevitably so polite and naice to each other. So disappointing.
I don’t really do nice – must be the accent – but it’s great to see a more fluid tempo in the last two posts.
Anyway it wasn’t a bad gig from my point of view – and the lunch provided was excellent: it worked for me because I got the chance to roll out some projects which I admire who are using social media/networking tools to do some interesting stuff online around their core business.
And on that note the best example – which naturally I shared as the next series of the History of the World Project from the British Museum.
Its here – and helps to put some of this in perspective. Also, I amuse myself at the thought that somewhere in the basements of the BM there probably is a vial of snake oil?
http://www.britishmuseum.org/
arra best to all
p.
p.s. I have just had tweet from the British Museum thanking me for citing them in the presentation – strewth – spooky!
Well I spoke at the event and I’m no expert.
but that all pales now that I hear Paul R has died… and now in my mind the SMJ conference becomes the last time I spoke to Paul R.
He was gracious as usual (“I’m not the other Paul Reynolds”) and bumptious (“These lights are too bright”, they were too) and just typically Paul, getting stuck into Thatcher and then complaining about conference hosts who don’t have clocks on the wall so speakers can’t tell how long they’ve got left. I got to heckle him for that (“Buy a watch”) and he got to complain that I never shut up and now he won’t get to badger me for an iPad and we won’t get talk about how it might be the saving of the newspaper industry and that is that.
Here’s to you Paul Reynolds – the original, the one and only.
Good Lord! You’re a bit like a rabid televangelist, railing against infomercials. What’s the latest spin, on May Wang?
Why are we looking at Social Media today as a free service when what we learn from it can takes years of investigation.
I look at Social Media Marketing Experts just that ,$700-00 for a day to seek my business more opportunities to place it on the Social Media Sector is just another way of advertising and who do we go to get this done for us the same type of people.
Not all Business People know how to benefit Social Media Marketing into their businesses.
Just for example how many Businesses know how to use Facebook to their advantage with a 500 million audience to date?
Thought much,dont give the Social Media Expert a hard time they were created for a reason to help navigate this Country into using Social Media Marketing as a new face to their Business .
I believe you need to have a good Portfoilo to present a workshop to any audience
- Trainer Adult
- Business Mentor
- Financial
- Organiser
- Manager
Aquiring these skills take years to obtain,so to the person in business who is looking to enroll in courses like these by all means do ,just make sure you get what you paid for .
It nice to walk the walk just make sure you can talk the talk .
Experience always overides the Social Media Expert FRAUDSTER delivering a Quick Fit wanting to make a buck,whether we like it or not Social Media is part and parcel of this evlovling business world its not about choice any more its about being part of the change or we will be left in the dust . REALITY SOCIAL MEDIA IS HERE THE NEXT NEW GOLD COMODITY
Well done Bill, this post ranks just higher than our site for “social media courses”.
Just leaving this comment in case anyone comes along who doesn’t want their ignorant dislike of the new reinforced. Instead, there may be a few who are brave enough to spend a few dollars upskilling themselves.
Yes, the principles of communication haven’t changed much, but the way they’re applied surely have. You can muddle along on your own, but it sure doesn’t hurt to get some people alongside you to help. And it’s fair enough to be paid for your work, if it adds value to your company. Our clients think so, anyway.
As for Social Media Junction, I can vouch that the food was excellent, the likes of Vincent, Paul and Paul were great (as was the overseas talent), and it was also the last time I saw Paul Reynolds. I will miss him greatly, he made a hell of a lot of sense.
[...] not with Bill Ralston’s post Social Media – Shamans and Shysters. In one single post he has attempted [...]
Wow Bill…did a social media consultant break your heart?
No but seriously, I think the fact that you’ve only responded to one comment (the one that attacked you) and haven’t bothered to engage with any of the thoughtfully put together comments that follow shows that you truly don’t get it!
Now I’m not sure if you’re Bill Ralston the TV presenter or Bill Ralston the PR spokesman for Ogilvy (maybe you’re both) – either way where is the opinion coming from?
You haven’t presented any examples and there is no case study or explanation and you also don’t seem to be speaking from personal experience! So why are you so anti???
What’s wrong with social media knowledge being distributed through traditional means like conferences and events…
You’ve said…
“$700?! For that huge sum you can hear people talk about things like, “Becoming a Trust Agent – Social Capital and The New Tribe.” If you have no idea what that means, apparently it’s about “being human at a distance.” Right.”
I could say something similar about all PR events – but I wouldn’t as I’m sure not all PR events are created equally. Did you actually go to the social media event that you criticized?
Moreover have you ever tried to deploy a media campaign through the open feedback channels of social media? If you had you’d probably know just how hard it is to manage feedback (of all descriptions) and make sure that brand value is enhanced.
I can see why for someone who only wants to operate in social media at a personal level it would appear that there isn’t too much to social media – but when you through branding in the mix social media becomes the most complex and real-time form of PR on the planet…the reason that social media consultants and social media keynote speakers exists is because agencies like Ogilvy aren’t actually very good at it yet. Assuming you are the spokesperson for Ogilvy PR maybe rather than criticizing you should team with an expert such as Simon (who commented above)!
If this article was written as link-bate or to be inflammatory then judging by the response you’ve got you’ve succeeded but in my eyes (not that you’d care – Mr Big Shot) you’ve shown yourself to be quite short-sighted!
Interesting banter.
Yes, looks like NZ is still in the cynical or curious phase. Each is just part of the journey. Whether you give intellectual ascent to Social Media or not, it is here to stay. It is inescapable. It is now becoming part of what we do – as you did through this blog, Bill.
I too have held concerns. Yes, there are those out there who have little or no business experience let alone marketing experience who jump on the Social Media bandwagon. Some are even described as gurus!
Where does this sit with integrity?
Many have no experience except in training others, have not made any real money for others. First hand sources talk of the inexperienced creating botch-ups in the corporate sector. Can anyone learn from these folk? Yes, and they do. Is it the best endorsement being a trainer but no ROI except by teaching what they learnt last month or borrowed knowledge from someone else? Maybe that is the next part of their journey. Beyond that they will eventually learn to get past the basic ‘how to’s of Social Media’ into the strategic and creative aspects.
You choose who you’d rather learn from – the rare ones who know because they built (or walk beside those who build) a NON Social Media business through Social Media practices, or a Social Media trainer who learns how to be effective in teaching others.
Those who others describe as Social Media experts have no need or desire to describe themselves as an expert. I’d say they see themselves as further down the learning journey as than others.
We who were among the handful (no exaggeration) of those pioneering Social Media activity and education during and prior to 2008, merely share what we have learnt in the trenches. Wouldn’t you if your efforts with a one man band NON Social Media business produces leads up to the value of up to $4 million each (no hype – this is a for real NZ business). All 100% from Social Media and online marketing. You’d want to help others be successful too, unless you have a miserable streak.
So, Bill you’d have to admit quietly to yourself that it takes tremendous faith and tenacity to persevere in creating greenfields Social Media businesses when the market has many years to catch up. How could you not secretly admire those who build a business despite all odds. On-lookers call them overnight successes as they don’t see the hard graft in the quiet, lean years.
Now onto another note – the influence of Social Media overseas has been so significant that it has changed how businesses operate within, and their whole psyche with it. So is Social Media merely an extension of PR? Yes, but not solely. Of online marketing? Yes, but not solely. Way more than that? A 21st century way of doing business? For sure.
Bill and others, let yourselves move from cynicism to curiosity.
Seek those who are genuine in Social Media.
Seek those who genuinely want to make a difference in others’ businesses.
[...] not with Bill Ralston’s post Social Media – Shamans and Shysters. In one single post he has attempted [...]
world best tech blog…
[...]Social Media – Shamans and Shysters « Bespoke Media Training[...]…
Hello would you mind sharing which blog platform you’re using? I’m going
to start my own blog soon but I’m having a difficult time making a decision between BlogEngine/Wordpress/B2evolution and Drupal. The reason I ask is because your design and style seems different then most blogs and I’m looking for something
completely unique. P.S Apologies for being off-topic but I
had to ask!
I use WordPress, which I have to say is really good. But my website has been designed by a fabulous woman called Helen Smith at McGovern Online, which is based in Queen Street, Auckland. I hope this helps. If you need anything more please email me on wilsonjanet03@gmail.com. I’d be happy to point you in the right direction.
[...] The river water quality survey report on Campus – [...]
This is very interesting, You’re an excessively skilled blogger. I have joined your feed and look ahead to in search of more of your excellent post. Also, I have shared your web site in my social networks
hello.thanks for your posted,i really love your site,thanks