I just saw a tweet from someone attacking “self-declared social media gurus.” This has been going on for a long time, to the point where people who have some professional relationship to social media would probably rather be called a shoplifter than an expert. It’s gotten a little out of hand and I don’t think it’s doing us any good anymore.
Last year I recorded a short video at BlogWorld adding my voice to a theme I had heard there from a number of smart people: If you really want companies to adopt social media and use it in the right ways, praise them for their positive efforts, and stop attacking them for their missteps. The danger is that when people start piling on, the din of negativity becomes all that anyone hears.
We’re at the same point with the argument over “experts” and “gurus.” Yes, I know there are a lot of people out there who stand up and say, “I’M AN EXPERT! HIRE ME!” Well, we’ve always had that, in every profession. I’ve been going to business conferences of one sort or another for close to 20 years. The people shouting the loudest are the ones who end up shouting to themselves. Most business people have the sense to know when they’re talking to an idiot. If they don’t, they’re not listening to your guru warnings, anyway.
Yes, you need to be careful not to hire unqualified consultants. Ask for references. Ask for results. Be clear about what you want. Show the same due diligence you would if your company were hiring an attorney an accountant. And be cognizant of the fact that there are not a heck of a lot of people out there yet with a tremendous amount of experience in this field.
Focus on the positive. Praise the people who do it well. As for the people who don’t, don’t worry so much about them. They’re digging their own graves.
photo by Tim Green
5 Comments
Isn't "digging their their own graves" a little harsh?
Okay, digging their own metaphorical career graves.
I agree with the overall tone of your post. However its not as simple as comparing hiring a 'social media consultant' to another professional such as attorney or accountant since both of those professions have rather high barriers to entry and feedback mechanisms compared to social media consultants. unfortunately the due diligence process just isn't that simple.
I think many of the issues people have with social media professionals is that they are getting paid to do work that requires comparatively little technical expertise. I'm guessing that a lot of the derision that you get probably comes from those in highly trained professions (like lawyers, doctors, IT professionals, and most everyone in R&D), and I can understand and empathize with their position. It looks like (and this could be completely untrue) social media is the 'easy' road to getting a job. The reason that people get frustrated at social media professionals is that they've worked hard (and probably made sacrifices) to gain the expertise for their profession, while the social media professionals got the 'easy ride' by specializing in technologies that everyone else uses for fun in their time off.
This is not to say that I agree with these ideas. For one, they exclude the fact that social media is now used in the workplace and that SAS effectively uses social media as a way to connect to customers directly. In fact, I think it's important that every organization have a social media professional around to manage those interactions. Who knows, I could be completely wrong about everything I said here. But if you're wondering why people attack social media professionals so much, here's one theory.
This comment represents my personal opinion and not the opinions of SAS Institute.
Thanks for your comment, Jacob. The phenomenon that I'm primarily concerned with is the way that people are so eager to attack anyone who claims a degree of expertise in social media. We're at such an early stage in the development of the discipline that there's no standard to judge someone's competency. Professional certifications and credentials give some people a measure of comfort when hiring someone.
But there probably never will be, nor do I think there needs to be. I've been in marketing communications for nearly 20 years. I'm not certified in any way. If I tell someone I'm a marketing communications "expert" or professional, I'm expected to back that assertion up with facts.
My primary concern is that the people who spend a lot of time thinking and talking about social media waste a lot of air worrying about labels, and complaining about charlatans.
I think business people are smart enough to know a blowhard and a phony when they see one, and if they aren't, they'll be disappointed, the same way they would be if they hired a bad lawyer or accountant without asking for references.