Historic Conference Centres of Europe and social media
- Category: Blog
- Created on Tuesday, 10 May 2011 23:13
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What are the practical tools and strategy that historic venues can use when putting a social media strategy together?
That was the question posed to us when the Historic Conference Centres of Europe invited Stuart Forrester, Co-founder and MD of The Forrester Corporation, to their 2011 Annual General Assembly held at Zlot Zeist in The Netherlands.
Our plan developed and our presentation unfolded into a quick practical demonstration of nothing more than a screen telling humans what to do.
At first everyone looked and smiled at each other politely and then one, and another and another followed the instructions until nearly everyone became a 'Forrester follower'! So what? What was the purpose of the exercise?
We all expect as a result of creating a bookmark or a 'fan' page that people will flock to our group and spread the word that our offering or service is the best.
The First Reality
It is not the brand or venue that is in charge of this new channel - it is everyone, every individual who has access to the net via a computer, phone or Internet ready tv. It is these people that we must learn to converse with, to listen and understand. Their expectation is that they will be rewarded with a range of things from simply being listen too to exclusivity of products or services. And perhaps the strangest aspect to comprehend, this also applies to business to business
The Second Reality...
...is that we will all experience good, bad and ugly things about our products and services. This was a significant concern of those at the conference, but only a few actually had any connection to the raft of social networks that one day could influence their fortunes.
The clear message for all is to get involved - to be part of this exciting communication channel in a way that makes you part of the conversation.
Being part of these social networks is only the beginning of a journey that many organisations are realising will impact on their business. The opportunity to harmonise digital and traditional strategies is now to realise the new 'word of mouth' channel that takes comments from down the local pub or in the shopping mall onto global social networks with the potential to make or break big and small brands.
Our presention went on to some of the tools, both commercail and free, that would allow members of HCCE to begin their own journey or challenge their current relationships with social media - and their communities!
To find out more or to invite us to make a free introductory presentation to your organisation, please call +44 (0)1480 223458 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
