10 Comprehensive Tips to Evaluate Social Media Agencies – Part 3

Posted on | June 2, 2009 | No Comments

In a roundup of the 3-part blog series, below are the final points to consider when seeking to outsource your social media project.

8. Others cite this person’s / agency’s work
In the same way that citations in peer reviewed academic journals are used as a measure of credibility and expertise in the academic world, individuals or agencies in social media that are regularly cited in articles, features and blogs are also considered professionals in the social media field.

On the flip side, an expert in their own right who cites others’ work in their blog can be viewed as a specialist who does not consider themselves an expert in all things digital but gives credit to others where it is due.

9. Is the agency outsourcing their social media efforts?
Buzzwords in social media are ‘two-way conversation’, ‘listening’, ‘building an online reputation’, ‘managing’ that reputation and giving your company a ‘voice’. This requires strong communication skills, a solid understanding of the company brand and cultural sensitivity to your market.

So, what happens to the above factors if your social media agency is outsourcing aspects of the campaign, say to India? Will this dilute the quality of your social media efforts and can you be confident that culturally, your social media message will not negatively skewed or misrepresented?

Make sure that you know exactly who will be handling your social media campaign. Maintain a tight grip on all aspects of the campaign. If there is not a strong commitment to building customer relations, it does not matter where the social media provider is located or what the costs are, it will not work.

10. Social media technology platforms
Has the social media agency developed its own custom social media platform that will be used to manage your online social media presence?

If not, are they using another online platform or even not using one at all? The answers to the above questions will provide valuable insight into how your social media campaign will be managed.

Examples of social media technology platforms that allow businesses to manage their interactive, dynamic and social relationships online, include:

Read part 1 and part 2 of these 10 comprehensive tips to evaluate social media agencies.