Southwestern Company Difference Blog
I just got back from the Direct Selling Association’s (DSA) Communications & Internet Marketing Conference in Las Vegas.
This is a conference I have been proud to be associated with since it was established about five years ago as an attendee and presenter. This year, the entire conference was about social media and the direct selling industry.
Over 325 direct selling communications, marketing and IT folks, Presidents and CEOs attended. I presented on the topic of blogging and buzz marketing. It was amazing to have a room full of industry peers that were all seeking their “ah-ha” moment when it comes to social media. And, let me tell you… they went home with a bag full of “ah-has.”
In a pre-conference marketing piece, I was quoted by the DSA as saying “Social media can no longer be ignored or simply dismissed as a non-credible means of communications to your various audiences. Direct selling is as much about relationship-building as it is selling.” I really think social media is revolutionizing the direct selling industry (among others). Currently, you have your technology innovators and your early adopters. Alarmingly, however, you have your late-bloomers. And sadly, you have your not-gonna-do-its who refuse to adapt. As heard at the conference, we know what happened to the dinosaurs…
Social media is a very effective means of communication. It is the combination of the emergence of pull technology, content sharing, and both user and consumer generated media. It’s two-way communication that offers advantages to both parties. It is the latest technological tool for relationship-building. I could go on and on about how it takes the personal part out of the sales, out of the relationship. However, if used adeptly, it can be the beginning of long-lasting, fruitful relationships – perhaps cyber first, leading to up-close and personal.
Each generation has traditionally developed different consumptive habits of digesting media…HOWEVER, technology has bled through the generation gap.
– EVERYONE’S DOIN’ IT!What we have done at Southwestern Company is to realize this and act on it. In our 155-year history, we have never been able to be so transparent and open to contact and feedback. With all the viable social options to our independent sales force of college students and the customers they generate, we have an even greater opportunity to reach out to students, parents, consumers, and others – including detractors.
Even this very blog is a result of our social media resolve. To spread our opinions, philosophies and stance on consumer issues, ethical standards and industry-wide educational efforts is a big thing! Thanks for reading… I hope this blog serves as a two-way forum for consumers and other interested audiences relevant to the topics covered.
Social media is simply the way of the present and looks to be the way of the near future. It’s good to know Southwestern Company and other direct selling companies are embracing it to communicate to their sales field and others.
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As a fellow blogger and adopter of social media with Trey, I will say that this is truly the way of the future! Good points!
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All I have to say is, “Ah ha!”
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I agree, this IS truly the way of the future. The Economist has published a special report on online social networks and how they are changing the way people communicate and work:
„The social networks’ great achievement has been to turn themselves into superb tools for mass communication. Simply by updating a personal page on Facebook or sending out a tweet, users can let their network of friends—and sometimes the world—know what is happening in their lives. Moreover, they can send out videos, pictures and lots of other content with just a few clicks of a mouse. “This represents a dramatic and permanent upgrade in people’s ability to communicate with one another,” says Marc Andreessen, a Silicon Valley veteran.“
Full article here:
http://www.economist.com/specialreports/displaystory.cfm?story_id=15351002
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HM – thank you for your comments and the link to the article which represents further eveidence that social media, although eveloving, is here to stay. I’m excited about tall of the possibilities and look forward to see how these new communicative application will affect our personal and professional; relationships. The way companies do business using social media will change as well. Adapt or be left behind!
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