10 Reasons To Thank Your Advertising Agency For Running Your Social Media

As we gather with friends and family to celebrate Thanksgiving, I suggest that you take a moment and give thanks to the advertising agency that is managing your social media for you. They do such a yeoman’s job keeping your brand relevant that taking a moment to reflect upon their performance over the last year may indeed be worthwhile and appropriate.

In that regard, in case you’re not sure what to be appreciative of, here are 10 Reasons To Thank Your Advertising Agency For Running Your Social Media:

1. Be thankful that they understood the need for you to develop and publish contextually relevant content on an ongoing basis. They understand that you just can’t post tweets and Facebook updates. You should rest easy that they are skilled enough to know how to tell your brand’s story in a compelling manner. They are socially competent to know that display banners, pop-up ads, and the other digital wizardry used by lesser agencies are interruptive in nature and that your audience is repulsed by such tactics.

2. Be thankful that your highest engagement numbers on Facebook were within the last 60 days otherwise it would indicate that what they’re doing recently isn’t working. I’m sure that they have provided your with data that shows that the content that they’re putting up on the social networks is resonating and that the highest numbers achieved aren’t from 6 or 7 months ago.

3. Be thankful that the content that they produce isn’t about your company, your products or their price because it means they are smart enough to know that doing that actually decreases audience consumption and sharing. They know that what the audience wants to see and share is more important that pushing out a marketing message upon them.

4. Be thankful that they have set such a high bar of performance for themselves that they aren’t fooled by being happy with a few hundred likes on a post that resides on a page with a 100,000 fans or more. What kind of agency would be happy with a post with a few hundred likes on a page with a million fans? Surely heads would be rolling in your agency if they produced those kinds of results! I shudder to think what you’d do if your agency brought you reports with those kinds of numbers!

5. Be thankful that they’ve taken the time to staff a videographer and photographer with real composition and editing skills to take real authentic photos, videos and microvids that your audience loves and that they aren’t creating horrible images that no one cares about. Like I’ve said, a picture of a hamburger isn’t content.

6. Be thankful that your agency is so skilled that they’ve either created events or placed your brand in monthly events and promotions that allowed your brand to actually activate your audience. It shows that they understand the number 1 reason people actually participate with your brand on social media is to participate in promotional events. (note: they’re also skilled enough to know what a real promotion is….we’re not talking simple contests and sweepstakes here…and we’re certainly not talking about pushing coupons…be thankful that your agency knows the difference)

“If you are considering trying out a social media promotion for the first time, remember this: just because a consumer follows your business on social, it does not mean they want to be communicated to as a customer. Social media is about being social, being human. Drop the corporate speak and start humanizing your business.” via digitalsherpa

6b. Be thankful that your agency understands the need for your brand to be seen by your audience as human. As stated above, they know that using phony catch phrases and inauthentic corporate “copyspeak” is the kiss of death. Thankfully your agency understands the importance of humanizing your brand.

To “humanize your brand is the golden rule of social media, because humans connect with humans, not logos. Traditional marketing has always approached branding as a way to control the message…it’s crucial for a brand to provide access to its personality in some capacity because logos have zero ability to socialize. Controlled messages are distrusted in a world where social media can expose them so quickly…trust is the first step to building loyalty.” via Amy Jo Martin in the Harvard Business Review

7. Be thankful that your agency is artfully supporting your content with social ads because it indicates that they know that Facebook isn’t going to show your content to much of your audience and that it’s pretty much futile to be posting anything on Facebook if your audience isn’t going to see it. It means that they have a grasp of what EdgeRank really means and they are advising you with that knowledge at the forefront of their Facebook strategy.

8. Be thankful that your agency doesn’t spend a lot of time and money updating your profile images and putting mundane pictures on Facebook. It means that they know that over 94% of your brand’s fans will never return to your Facebook page. They’re not fooled by the number of “fans” that you have. They are so savvy that they know how completely meaningless and misleading that number really is. Instead of building a database of users that you can contact at will, you are essentially paying Facebook to build a list of people that you can then advertise to. (via Forbes)

Your agency is well versed on Facebook and surely has advised you of this dilemma. You should be grateful. There are some unscrupulous outfits that simply let you believe that you actually have a rabid fan base that comes back to your Facebook page time and again…or they try to convince their clients that fan page likes are the Holy Grail of social media. You have much thanks to give that you’re represented by a house with such integrity to make sure that you know the truth about Facebook. It means that your retainer isn’t simply being used to fund jobs for staffers working on other business.

9. Be thankful that your agency has created a mobile optimized blog for your brand. They should be lauded for understanding how the corporate website is deader than a doornail and that emerging as a brand newsroom can increase activity by over 1,200%. Be extremely thankful that your agency understands content marketing and has even created a blog full of relevant content for your audience to enjoy and that the C-Level execs at your agency aren’t “people who make decisions in boardrooms predicated on their bonus”.

Fortunate for you, your agency understands the importance of social media and comprehends with great proficiency that Facebook, Twitter, YouTube etc…are great distribution points for your content.

10. Be thankful that your agency understands that you no longer control the message being given to your audience. They understand that social media isn’t a radio commercial or television spot and that authenticity trumps copywriting.

Your agency must be run by C-Level execs who know that the

“YouTube and Twitter generation couldn’t care less about polished videos or super-refined writing. They care about stuff that sparks their interest, they want the opportunity to chime in through comments and mash-ups, and they love communication in real time. For this demographic, a 140 character Tweet, or a “quick and dirty” video taken by a leader on a Smart Phone about insights gained during a customer visit will go a long way to create engagement, and it demonstrates a hands-on, agile leadership style.”  via Brian Solis

Yes, if your agency is this much on the ball then you certainly have much to be thankful for.

On the other hand, if your agency hasn’t been this competent, you may be enjoying turkey in more ways than one this Thanksgiving.

If that’s the case, perhaps it’s time for a New Year’s Resolution regarding your social media.