If you have been finishing your last days of summer then you and your business might have missed an important report from the Pew Research Center.  Behind all the rhetoric and excitement around social media, I am sure you and your business have been a bit skeptical.  What can social media do for you?

Before we answer that question, let’s dive deep into the data.  The authors of the study interviewed 2,277 individuals eighteen years and older about their online usage. You can read about the methodology here.  They discovered that 65% of all online adults use social media.  Social networking is popular amongst adults below the age of 30, with women between the ages of 18-29 being the power users.  Women are truly leading the way when it comes to social media use. (69% of women use social media compared to 60% of men.)

The authors also discovered that there is no difference in the use of social media based upon ethnicity, income level, education, or where the user lives.  The use is the same.  No matter what generation a user fell into, the use of social networking sites is up across the board.

Social Media Use

So What

The so what factor for you business is simple: you need to be on social media.  All the hype has become reality as people – your customers and clients – are turning to social media to connect, educate themselves, and provide useful tips to their friends.  If you business is not on board, then you are missing out.

Will you close up shop and shutdown right away? Probably not, but what you will miss out on is the potential for growth, new clients, and building an image of community with those clients.

Now What

Take a deep look at your business and your clients.  I am talking about an exhaustive review to know who, how, where, when, what, and why you have the clients you do.  You have your ideal client type and then there is the reality of who your clients really are.

Once you’ve identified the reality, do they match up with the ideal?  If not, why?  These answers will lead you to your next set of questions, which are: where do my clients congregate online?  Where do my ideal clients go online?

The answers to the above questions will layout the arena in which you will compete in to attract and gain the attention of your clients.  This is where being creative, generating consistent and compelling content, and taking risks come into play.  The only thing that would hold you back from executing is if you have the team capable of making a social media campaign happen.  Do you?

Read the full report from the Pew Internet & American Life Project

Out of a desire to provoke, agitate, prod, and poke the eyes of those that consider themselves masters of the social media universe, the following twenty theses are put forward. You are invited to debate, comment, defend, attack, and otherwise attempt to credit/discredit the truths in these twenty theses.

WWMLD - What would Martin Luther Do?

1. There is no “Lord” of social media. There are only engineers, creators, and innovators that have created tools to be used/exploited.

2. As there is no “Lord” then there are no prophets of social media and therefore no gurus, priests, priestesses, reverends, imams, or other semi-religious-like leaders in social media

3. There are apostles of social media touting its siren songs of success. In the real world you would call them advertisers/marketers.

4. Only customers and clients that desire to purchase a product/service is how you will make money for you/your business. Social Media Does Not Make Money.

5. If you are joining a social media platform because it is the cool thing to do; congratulations! You have officially let the world know that you are a lemming.

6. Once you post anything it is out of your control.

7. No matter how much your friends tell you that you are funny and popular, those observances do not translate into success online.

8. If you think you are going to become an overnight sensation by creating a facebook fan page or twitter account, it is suggested you watch South Park’s Episode “Canada On Strike”.

9. If you think that “content counts” is profound new statement for a brand-new economy, then you need a smack upside the head. Content has counted ever since man first painted on cave walls.

10. You are going to make mistakes. It is okay, that is how you learn.

11. If you think that the number of followers, fans, subscribers, comments and retweets/reposts is equal to success as a business you are wrong. The only number that counts is whether you made a sale or not. The street vendor does not express joy at the number of people who walked by his stand, talked to him, and bought nothing.

12. If you think that the number of followers, fans, subscribers, comments and retweets/reposts is equal to success as a human being. Wow, it must really be hard to be you. How do you avoid the paparazzi on facebook?

13. By establishing an account on any social media tool you have made a pact with the nefarious criminal world; don’t expect privacy, there is none online.

14. A fool and his money are soon parted and if you are willing to buy followers… I have a bridge in New York for sale, great price!

15. If you think scheduling tweets, posts, and other “convenient” means of placing content online is a great use of the social media tools, thank you for adding to most of the crap noise in my streams.

16. Social media is really about leveraging what the Internet was always supposed to be: an exchange of ideas, content, creativity, knowledge, facts, etc., also known as engaging in a community or networking.

17. It is foolish to believe that the establishment of a social media account and building a following will save your business. If people were not buying what you were selling before in person, why would they online?

18. The use of social media is a commitment, like advertising, keeping sales appointments, and following through on what you said you would do.

19. There is always going to be the next best thing. Don’t get wrapped up in the hype, instead research and be where your customers are.

20. If you are not willing to risk, stretch, grow, face rejection, face criticism, and otherwise ruffle some feathers then you should never be part of a social media tool, campaign, etc.

The year is winding down and it could be said that 2010 is (was) the year of Facebook and social media.  The number of subscribers to Facebook has gone north of 500 million.  The number of big brands claiming their Fan Pages has grown dramatically as well.  Small businesses are flocking to social media, Facebook in particular, seeking a new means to engage potential customers.  Social Media has even captured the cover of the Harvard Business Review.

Which begs one to question: is social media only about marketing and therefore only for marketers?

“A Conservative is a fellow who is standing athwart history yelling, ‘Stop!’” – William F. Buckley, Jr.

All the case studies about engagement and conversation have revolved around big brands with large marketing budgets.  Think of Old Spice as one example.  Where is the successful Mom & Pop Small Business story?  The one where they pulled it off by themselves without using a marketing or social media guru?

Take a look at the backgrounds of who writes some of the most influential blogs about social media.   They are mostly marketers.

Review all of the posts and articles you’ve saved on social media tips.  Most of them approach social media on how to attract, engage, and convert into customers your “followers.”  An approach that is typical for a marketing person.

Therefore is social media really is not an engagement platform for ideas, building communities, and strengthening bonds.  Instead it is a new means to advertise business.

“Advertising is the art of convincing people to spend money they don’t have for something they don’t need.” – Will Rogers

Social Media Tips In 3 Easy Steps

Any post or insights into social media can really be broken down into three easy steps.  (Hint it is the same to print, tv, radio, and mailer advertising.)

1)   Create great content that draws attention!

2)   Entertain and educate the audience!

3)   Ask the audience to do something!

Otherwise known as a hook, a benefit, and a call to action.   It is the same thing that you see in advertising; the domain of marketers.  Is social media really that different?

The Backlash Is Coming

In my dealings with small businesses about social media the conclusion to the conversation is always the same: it is just another marketing tool.  The business owners I work with see it as such and just want to use it to drive traffic.  While I try to preach about building communities, engaging fans, and creating great content the end goal is always the same: make a sale.

The horror... the horror...

The alluring siren song of social media is that it is free.  It does not cost a company anything to set up a number of accounts and download a tool like Hootsuite or Tweetdeck and begin posting.  The only cost is time.  Time to learn, plan, create content and use the social media platforms to build a following.

The result is the same for most businesses (even large ones) who use social media: the posting of sales, gift certificates, events, and specials.  The noise level increases and it becomes harder for the message to get through.  Social media is becoming like email newsletters – another form of junk mail and telemarketing.

As with junk mail and telemarketing that led to opt-out lists, so too is social media heading in that direction.   Already businesses are seeing paltry openings of their email blasts, their fans choosing to hide updates in their feeds, and the failure to gain a large number of conversions.

What was once special and Pollyannaish about social media – creating communities of conversation and knowledge – has been boiled down to another advertising platform.  More noise to an already marketing saturated business environment.  It is only going to get worse.

“I’ve never found a client’s business problem that could be solved solely through advertising.” – Lee Clow

Your Call

So I ask you, what is your take on social media?  Is it only for the professional marketers?  Or is there really a success story out there about a small business that built a strong vibrant community?

How far does your customer service reach?

Is it limited to face-to-face meetings, telephone conversations, mail, email, or social media?

When does your customer service end?

These three important questions need to be answered by you and your employees.  Answer them honestly and you will find the hidden reasons as to why your customers are going to the competition or why it is harder to obtain new business.

It used to be that customer services ended after the sale.  Only to be revisited after a problem arose or it was time for an upgrade.  The in between time between a business and it’s customers was a purgatory for customer service.  A nowhere land.

If you have not noticed things have been changing, quietly over the past fifteen years, as the Internet matured.  Customers now research you, compare prices, and purchase online.  If a customer really wants to push the envelope, they can engage your business – therefore your customer service – without every getting out of their chair or putting their smartphone down.  Customers expect constant service.

It’s 10:23 am. 1:38 am. 3:51 pm.

Which Tool To Use?

Your customers are online 24/7.  This applies to global organizations and the shop owner on Main Street.  Your store hours are only one means of interaction.  When the shop is closed – or your client cannot sleep – the Internet is there… waiting to feed their desire for content/service.  Your customer service must be up to the task of a 24/7 business cycle.

In order to have your customer service a part of the twenty-four hour cycle you need to establish a plan.  Your customer service plan should detail for your employees and even your customers how you are going to provide service.  Your employees should know what a customer service engagement looks like and the proper steps in providing excellence.  Your customers and employees should know what your expectation of quality is for customer service.  For instance is your service going to be a full pampering/catering to every whim or are you going for the “no frills” model?  Lastly you must inspect what you expect and then some.

Once you have a plan in place the next step is the tools.  You have people, phones, email, regular mail, and website.  Those are the basics.  What about social media?  We are not just talking about Twitter and Facebook.  There are blogs, YouTube, Skype, Foursquare, and the list goes on and on.  These tools are additional means to reach out and provide service to your customers.  Service like price comparisons, how to use your products, feedback, updates on product changes, or anything else you wish to communicate.  You are only limited by your own imagination.

If you notice one thing about the above list is that advertising is not mentioned.  Advertisement is not customer service.  Yes it may educate, but it typically is not interactive, and it does not provide for a two-way exchange of ideas or seek to provide solutions/service.

Tools Change.  Engagement Is Forever.

Five years from now or shorter, there will be a new tool that will “revolutionize” how businesses interact with their customers online. Tools are always going to change.  What is constant is the engagement your business has with its customers.  That engagement builds a relationship of trust, emotion, and reciprocity.  Customer service – value – delivered correctly builds a cycle of wealth for all the parties involved.

Use the tools available now to maintain a level of engagement/customer service that is envied by the competition.  Embrace whatever means available to increase the depth and bonds of your customer relationships.

If you have a customer service that seeks to engage and understand then there will be no limit to its reach.  There will be no limit to the tools used to achieve success.  There will be no end to your commitment or level of service.  Once a client or prospect experiences your service it will always have an influence on them.  Your business will grow.

So… how far does your customer service reach?

It has been one year and a few days since the launch of the Finding Answers Blog.  This post represents the one-hundredth post for the blog.  There have been quite a few things learned since the launch of the blog last year.  This post has the top six lessons we learned that you could use to make your own blog better.

#1 The Echo Effect of A Guest Blogger

Other articles about how to make your blog effective always talk about having a guest blogger write a post.  The key of course is to have the right guest blogger with the right post at the right time.  Having those three key elements will have a tremendous impact on your blog!

The Echo Effect From A Guest Blogger

As you can see in the nearby graph, when Shelly Kramer of V3 Integrated Media wrote about The Power of Women In Social Media , traffic to the Finding Answers Blog soared in the month of December to 1,847 unique visits.  In the day the post was launched there were 947 unique visits.  Those are some pretty cool numbers.  What has happened since is that the number of unique visitors to the blog has never dropped below four hundred.

Shelly’s post is still read and shows up in searches almost every day.

#2 Write Consistently

To maintain readership and the sharpness of your own writing skills you need to post frequently.  Not only do the search engines enjoy the fresh content that you are creating, so do your readers who have taken the time to add your blog to their feeds.

You will also learn how to fight through writers block, make arguments concise and relevant, and you will discover your voice.  If that is not enough for you, all the new content that you are creating will position you as a thought leader against your competition.

#3 Promote Your Posts Wisely

There are guides out there that tell you to “shout out” far and wide when you have finished a recent blog post.  These guides tell you to post on Twitter, Facebook, Ning, LinkedIn, etc. etc.  Be careful because all that shouting can back fire!

You have to send out notifications wisely and in the right locations.  The Finding Answers Blog posts to the LinkedIn groups where the post makes sense and does so sparingly.  An auto tweet is sent when the post is initially put up online.  Then, if it is appropriate, a link to post is shared on a few business websites like Business Week’s Business Exchange.

Where you announce or link to your blog posts has to match with the niche your business is trying to serve aka your audience.  The best way to be heard is to not over promote yourself!

#4 Pick A Reader Friendly Theme

When it comes to blog themes there are as many as there are manufacturers of beer.  A lot!  You have to get over yourself first.  It is not about what you like, it is about what is easy to use for the reader.  Many bloggers forget this and overload their posts with too many buttons, Google ads, and other junk.  Blog posts are like the AM/PM convenience stores: your readers want to get in, get out, and get on with their lives!

Keep your blog theme simple, easy to read, and with buttons easily visible so your readers can share your great content!

#5 Titles Open The Door; Content Means Everything

While we are all trained as children not to judge books by their covers, alas we do!  It goes with titles too.  Some of the catchiest titles that tend to grab the most readers are the “How To” “Top Secrets” “X Number of Easy”.  These titles will get you readers.  They will not stay long.

No matter how enticing your title is, you have to have the content to back it up.  There are a dime a dozen “Secrets To Social Media” and “How To Make A Tweet Cool” blog posts out there.  Some are valuable, but most are not because they only reinforce what most people already know by reading the other similar posts!

Readers (search engines included) devour content that is fresh, bold, and enlightening.  Your job as a blogger is to deliver that content.  So once you get past the coolness of the awesome title you must deliver the goods when it comes to content.  If you do not… you will not retain or attract readers!

#6 Patience Young Blogger

It has been one year and a few days since the Finding Answers Blog was started.  Has it delivered?  Yes it has.  We have built steady readership overtime through consistent valuable posts that match the mission of the blog: getting information you can use today.  Do we deliver exceptional content every time? No, we admit that we miss the mark sometimes, but we do not quit.

It takes time and patience to become the best at anything.  Even if you have talent.  People are not born immediate stars — they practice.  So you too must practice, write, edit, post, and your readers will come.

Thank You

To our readers, our guest bloggers, our commentators, and those who forward our posts to their friends… thank you!  We look forward to writing more posts and providing you with the information you need to make your business a success!

Video Blogs, of Vlogs, are becoming a new means for bloggers and other creators of content to get their message out.  It is just another medium for the message.  Just like, blogs, Facebook, and Twitter, vlogs are becoming part of the fastest growing social media segment: YouTube.

In April of this year 13 billion videos were viewed on YouTube alone.  Those are huge numbers!  Why isn’t your business taking advantage of that?

You can see from the video below that with some time, a camera, and some editing software you can make a Vlog without a huge production company.

In the case I am using the Vlog to poke fun at the trend of “Hauls” and Shelly Kramer.  Total time from start to finish: 1 hour 35 minutes.

Rules for Vlogs

If you break them you might not get a lot of viewers:

• Keep it short.
• Keep it entertaining.
• Keep it informational.
• Keep it fun for you.
• Have a script – outlines work too.
• Keep an open mind and use your creativity.
• Remember that you are never too cool for school and don’t take yourself too seriously!

In my experience, I think I have violated the first four, but hey, it is just the beginning!

Watch Shelly Kramer’s Haul here.

Many companies, both large and small, have embraced social media.  It has been reported by Facebook that advertising on social media by businesses has increased 1000%.  More and more people are increasing the size and depth of the social media gene pool.

This blog, for one, thinks that is a wonderful thing.  Growth is great!  Just make sure your business is ready to handle using social media correctly.  When you fail in the social media realm everyone, including your mother, is going to know about it.

All lasting business is built on friendship – Alfred Montapert

A Tale Of Two Tweets

140 Characters or Less

There were two business leaders seeking help from esteemed customer service representatives through Twitter.  They had thrown their troubles out into the Twitter Stream hoping that some angler would snare them, reel them in, and not eat them for dinner.  No, these two tweets sought advice that only a customer service representative could provide.

The first tweet came from a fiery haired vixen of the high-plains who has a mouth that would make sailors from any nation across the centuries blush.  She had dismounted from the saddle of her two-wheeled whinny and dusted of her hands to type out a call for help.  She tweeted about her woes with a fruity phone and wanted to make a switch.  Alas her pleas (or tweets) went unanswered.  And these from some very large companies that would love to make the fruity cell phone maker blush bright red.

The second tweet came from a lion.  Granted it is a little weird that a lion would wear glasses, but hey… who is judging?  This lion wanted to participate in an online meeting.  A meeting, whose organizers successfully marketed and reminded all the attendees about, making the lion salivate with anticipation!  Sadly, when the lion went to logon he could not.  He tried numerous times.  He contacted the organizer to no avail.  The lion thought, I’ll use Twitter! To which the customer service rep – about twenty minutes after the first tweet – said, “I dunno.”

Since our fiery foul-mouthed redhead was not able to get a response, she had to hop on her two-wheeled stallion and visit a retailer.  Meanwhile the bespectacled lion was dumbfounded that this reputable online webinar provider did not even try to find out why there were problems.   Both business leaders are now even wary of using social media for their own customer service interactions.  If the big guys fail, what about us? They thought.

Quality Is Job 1 – Ford Motor Company

Customer Service Is A Brand

These two tales share the common theme of a failure to deliver basic customer service through Twitter.  Sure, it can be chalked up to the fact that it is hard to communicate in 140 characters or less, but then why use that for a customer service outlet if you believe that?

What these companies – and others – fail to realize is that by entering the social media realm they are extending the image of their brand.  That extension can be a boon or a harmful substance if it is not planned for correctly.  Customer service is part of that brand image.  Consumers are not willing to fork over their money if they get treated like crap, even on Twitter.  Your brand will suffer.

Is there customer service behind all this code?

Your 3 Step Solution

Your business can harness the power of social media to build brand awareness, create relationships, forge partnerships, and extend your reputation for exceptional customer service.  You have to invest the time to plan for a successful strategy and execution of your social media campaign.  You need to role-play the “what ifs” and plan for them.

If these businesses – whose customer service agents let our two protagonists down – where yours here is what you could have done differently:

• Monitor your competition by brand name and keywords associated with them.  This would have helped the cell phone makers hear our heroine’s plea for help.
• Break your social media teams down so that they respond to specific regions – the more localized the better.
• Have a back-up line to go to when 140 characters is not enough to solve the problem; this can be an online chat area which allows for more text or (heresy for saying this) a phone number to an actual human being.

Granted that social media is still in its infancy and the kinks are still being worked out.  With all the case studies out there for using new mediums to connect with customers, it is the expectation of most consumers that the big companies will get it right.  That is what they pay all the big money for to hire staff, consultants, and advertising firms, right?

It is amazing what the power of social media can do.

Someone in my LinkedIn network had an update about another software platform called SocialGrow. They used a video from Xtranormal, which has pre-cut computer animated scenes. All you have to do is type in a script, place some camera angles, and… you have a movie! It is even easier than iMovie.

Here is what I cam up with.

In the right marketing hands this can be a very powerful tool!

There is a cost to publishing your video but for a small business it is very minimal i.e. under $100. The downside is that there is a limit in the expressions and you cannot upload your own music or sounds. If you keep your videos short — say under two minutes — then it should not be too much of a problem.

Be on the lookout as I have found a new tool to use!

Measurement.  It is how you address the sate of your progress towards your goals.  It helps you discover new opportunities and weaknesses you may not be aware of.  In sports the ultimate measurement is the scoreboard at the end of the match.  In social media… the measurement is more than just followers and fans.  Measurement in social media is what you define it to be.

Alice – Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?

Chesire Cat – That depends a good deal on where you want to get to.

Alice – I don’t care much where

Chesire Cat – Then it doesn’t matter which way you go.

– Alice In Wonderland

What You Measure Matters

If you have developed a plan for your social media effort then you have identified metrics you are going to measure.  (If you haven’t done this then you better reevaluate your social media plan!)  These metrics can be new fans/followers, depth of conversations, new leads, response times, and possibly even new sales.  Whatever your metrics are you need to measure them against your investment of resources and time.

What you measure matters as it is where the focus of your efforts are during your social media campaign.  It is that old adage of “inspect what you expect.”  If what you are measuring is not acceptable or working, there is nothing wrong with making changes.  As you do meet your goals, your metrics will change and they should.

A man’s friendships are one of the best measures of his worth. – Charles Darwin

Pros and Cons of Different Metrics

When building your social media plan you have most likely identified what success looks like.  Perhaps it is something like this:  Your business is rolling in business from all the hits your website gets, and these visits start from the success of your Facebook fan page and tweets.  Nice story right?   What are you going to measure to get there?

There are a number of different metrics for social media, and currently there is not really a gold standard.   That will change with the expansion of use of social media by different businesses.  Remember that what you measure matters.

Fans & Followers. This is the easiest metric to measure.  You need fans, friends, subscribers, and followers to allow your social media campaign to have any effect at all.  How fast you grow this list is a direct measure to the strength of your brand, the quality of your content, and the sincerity of your interaction.  The feedback on your efforts is instant.  This metric is dynamic and will always be changing.  Another thing to keep in mind is that popularity does not translate into business.  If you are collecting fans/followers like baseball cards then you are not valuing the real benefits of social media: conversation.

Depth of Conversation. Here is a startling statistic for you to ponder:  99% of all tweets and posts do not get a single interaction.  (Data from Yahoo R&D Labs.)  This means that no one forwards them through re-tweets, responds to the information offered, or comments on what has been sent.  This could be due to the volume of information being created on a minute-by-minute basis or that most posts lack quality.

Independent of what your goals are for your social media campaign, this metric is one of the most important you want to measure.  It is also the most difficult.  Why?  Well, what is the definition for “Depth of Conversation”?  Is it duration of interaction?  Is it how many times it gets forwarded and re-tweeted?  Is it the driving force behind a purchase?  The answer is it can be one or all of these things.  You need to decide what “Depth of Conversation” means for you and your business.

New Leads/Sales.  According to Dell, they made over $7 million in sales using Twitter.  Special deals and offers were extended only to their followers and those that had received re-tweets.   Yet direct sales from twitter and other platforms seem to be the exception instead of the norm.  Development of new leads and business relationships tends to be the result of social media campaigns.  Measurement of these two metrics is fairly straightforward.

You can measure opportunity with the same yardstick that measures the risk involved.  They go together. – Earl Nightingale

Right now the rules are being written on how to measure effect, investment, and impact of using social media.  If you are not measuring then you better start now!  Otherwise you are just grasping in the dark and that type of effort is usually wasted effort.

Additional Resources On Measurement

Impact of blogs for businesses

How To Track Social Media: Analytics

Get A Yardstick

Measurement And Analysis of Social Media

How do you measure your social media impact?

When it comes to social media there is a lot that has been written.  There are blog posts about how to create a successful marketing campaign.  There are articles about how to select the perfect social media software for your business.  Many people have written about bringing value to your conversations.  This post is going to add to that cacophony of information by discussing the tactics you should employ in each social media situation.

Nine-tenths of tactics are certain, and taught in books: but the irrational tenth is like the kingfisher flashing across the pool, and that is the test of generals. – T. E. Lawrence

The 5 Tactics of Success

Listen.  If you have been reading about social media then you are quite aware that listening is one of the most important things you must be doing.  It is going to be talked it about in any reputable writer and user of social media.  Yet how does one listen when most of social media is written?

If you have set up searches on your brand, competition, and key words that you are interested in then you should be receiving data.  As you sift through what you are reading you need to be aware of what must be responded to, what should be responded to, and what can be ignored.  With your priorities in place, to listen you need to give your brain – or your team – time to digest the information.  Do not be too quick to respond without actually understanding what you are responding to.

Engage. Once you have made the choice to respond or create comment you need make sure that it will create engagement.  You want a response.  By response you want something that will generate a conversation where you can learn, inform, and build a relationship.  If you think it is easy to do just think about this static from the Yahoo R&D Team:  96% of all social media content never gets forwarded or responded to.

Assess. Measure your conversations and other social media content against the goals you have set out in your social media plan.  This assessment will change depending on the platform(s) you are using for your campaign.  While most people are focused on followers, you should really be assessing how people actually engage with you in social media.  You should be assessing your retweets, interaction with your fan page on Facebook, commenting on your blog, and those who are reacting to your answers on LinkedIn.

Respond. Oddly enough some companies just only respond to the negativity of their company or their brand.  If you are listening and creating engagement then you should be responding to positive as well.  This can be as simple as thanking someone for forwarding your link.  You need to respond, no matter what it is about, to be seen as a source of value.

Notice. One of the greatest things you can do is to call attention to others.  If you see something you like you should share it.  If someone has written a wonderful article, made a really creative video, or is simply a key resource… draw attention to him or her and make others take notice.  Those good deeds will be returned with more attention given to you as well.

Strategy without tactics is the slowest route to victory. Tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat. – Sun Tzu

Using The 5 Tactics

The five steps or LEARN should be used with every action you take in social media.  While it would be best to have them all used with each social engagement, it is not always the case.  Regardless the five steps should be used.  It makes for a richer interaction for you, your fans, and the social media community as a whole.