The Five Pillars of Social Media Marketing

Monday, October 30th, 2006 by Ben Wills

The Five Pillars of Social Media Marketing

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So, in the late, late nights that I’ve spent making sense of and organizing Social Media Marketing, I’ve been able to find nothing that outlines strategies or fundamentals of Social Media Marketing. Yes, Rohit Bhargava created a post that kicked into gear the “5 Rules of Social Media Optimization (SMO).” After 20 days and much buzz in the blogosphere, it was expanded into 17 rules, with additions from all over the online marketing and business community’s thought leaders. And yet, while it’s an absolute must-read, there’s still no strategy outlining the fundamental strategies or tactics of Social Media Marketing.

That’s what I’ve racked my brain to figure out and this is what I define as the Five Pillars of Social Media Marketing.

The Five Pillars of Social Media Marketing

Any and all forms of Social Media Marketing tactics fall under at least one of these five forms of action. Often the same channel will incorporate two or more of these:

Declaration of Identity
Identity through Association
User-initiated Conversation
Provider-initiated Conversation
In-Person Interaction

Identity-based Interaction is your declaration of your value, who you are, and where you can be found. Your customer happens upon your online identity that you, as a provider, define and declare. This is anything from your About Us pages on your blog or website, to your MySpace profile, to your Naymz profile. Here, there is very little interaction outside of your own declaration, but this becomes critical in defining how you can benefit your marketplace.

There has been a recent outcrop of websites created purely for this function. An expanded business card, if you will. Most also include the opportunity to link to your other forms of presence online, bringing together your presence in one place…well, kind-of. They include:

Association-based Interaction is your customers’ opportunity to associate themselves with you and you with your customers. Most obviously, this is accomplished through things like becoming “Friends” on MySpace, you and your customers’ BlogRoll, or through their social bookmarking. This is your customer wearing your company’s logo proudly – Like Andy wears his Beatles shirts.

The most explicit form of allowing for this ability is through social bookmarking sites. I say this, and not social networking sites, because this is the sole function of these sites. Make it easy for your customers to bookmark your site, blog posts, etc with their favorite tool.

User-initiated Conversation is your users’ opportunity to create their own declarations or questions, and your opportunity to respond. This is your opportunity to be there and cater to them. Here, you serve your customers.

Perhaps the most cut-and-dry examples of this lie in messageboards, forums and “groups” sites such as Google Groups, Yahoo! Groups, community sites, etc. So, how do you find these conversations? Andy Beal’s Online Reputation Monitoring Beginner’s Guide. Here, he walks you through, step-by-step, how to find out what conversations are being initiated by others online.

In order to get directly involved with your customers, the most well-known example of this is “GoogleGuy” on the WebmasterWorld forums, is through your users’ forums, and sites such as:

Provider-initiated Conversation is your chance to find out what your customers think, feel, love and hate about your product. Ask them. Challenge them. Present yourself to them, but do so respectfully. As much as it’s an opportunity for them to tell you what they love and hate about your product, it’s also their choice whether to do so or not. Be kind. Be respectful. Appreciate their time.

Although it’s not a primarily online company, there is one company that has made this their culture. Seeking feedback and input from its customers 24/7/265. And it is: Current.tv. There’s little-to-no format, except for about half of the content is contributed by its users. If you haven’t seen it or don’t have digital cable, find someone who does and watch it. Do that this week, you won’t regret it.

Social networking strategies for connecting with your customers can certainly be complex, tricky and cumbersome, so I’ll be writing up strategies in the very near future to hopefully assist on those fronts. In the meantime, find your customers and interact with them here:

In-Person Interaction is the pinnacle form of interaction with your customers. You’re interacting with them online, why not in person? Does it get better than that? This is where relationships are built and authentic conversation is had with so much more input, feedback, collaboration and communication. I had a seven hour conversation with a good friend last night. It was one of the best conversations I’ve ever had about so many things, and I could have never had that quality of a conversation online. Nothing beats face-to-face.

Get out there. Meet your customers. Let them interact with other customers. Build your community. Go to conferences…better yet, organize your own gatherings.

To help this along, coordinating, managing attendee status, etc, there have been several sites that can help in either finding local events or coordinating your own:

Final Thoughts

One thing about social media marketing: It’s complicated for two reasons: no one has created a structure to work from, and there’s so much overlap in functionality of different sites, that it can be quite confusing as to a site’s single purpose because…well…there usually isn’t a single purpose.

Don’t let this hold you back. Get out there. Spend time with these sites. Sign up, Use them, meet your customers, talk to your customers, and LOVE THEM.

But wait! There’s More! Feel free to use my Social Media Marketing Tactics chart (on BenWills.com) to make sure your next campaign is a success.

>> Liked this post? You might also want to read our Social Media Marketing Beginner’s Guide <<

Want more marketing news & views? Follow Marketing Pilgrim's Andy Beal on Twitter!

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80 comments on “The Five Pillars of Social Media Marketing”

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October 30th, 2006 at 11:47 am

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October 30th, 2006 at 12:13 pm

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October 30th, 2006 at 11:29 am

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October 30th, 2006 at 7:28 pm

[...] When it comes to social media marketing, no one has created a structure to work from, and thereâ€™s so much overlap in functionality of different sites, that it can be quite confusing as to a siteâ€™s single purpose, if there’s such a thing. Of late, however, marketing types have churned out rules of social market optimization, strategies or tactics of social media marketing. Marketing Pilgrim has a roundup – 1. Declaration of Identity 2. Identity through Association 3. User-initiated Conversation 4. Provider-initiated Conversation 5. In-Person Interaction [...]
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November 6th, 2006 at 10:51 pm

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November 7th, 2006 at 2:38 am

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November 7th, 2006 at 12:34 pm

[...] Posted by Dave on 07 Nov 2006 at 05:34 pm | Tagged as: Uncategorized Social media marketing is so painfully new, and there is such an unfocused buzz around it, that it is easy for the laybusinessperson to get completely overwhelmed. Is there any difference between SMO and SMM, for example? How can MySpace and Digg both be categorized as social/new media when they are fundamentally so very different? And, more importantly, how can I claim my own plot and start prospecting? The strokes are very broad right now, and subcategories that are going to help the layperson understand the new landscape are emerging. The best breakdown I’ve found is Andy Beal’s Five Pillars of Social Media Marketing – but I will try and form some original thoughts for the less experienced. Marketing 101 tell us to identify our target market before even getting out of bed in the morning. So boil it all down and think about which new media outlets your targets are most likely to be converging at? Let’s look at a few of the juggernauts. [...]
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November 10th, 2006 at 2:04 pm

And here is how you build buzz and links, ladies and gentlemen. Well …. good content as well of course.
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Mayra Harley Says:

December 29th, 2006 at 9:35 am

Great read. Well put together, succinct and organized. I found it insightful. Very smart!

Congratulations Ben!
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December 31st, 2006 at 9:26 am

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January 3rd, 2007 at 11:02 am

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Kin Lane - Social Media Marketer Says:

May 8th, 2007 at 2:11 am

Interesting perspective of Social Media Marketing.

Curious when a business comes at it from their “selfish” perspective. What do we need from social media marketing?

How many of the pillars go out the window? What will they compromise?
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August 7th, 2007 at 9:59 pm

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Michael Samuel Says:

September 9th, 2007 at 8:44 am

It is the first time for me to hear the idea of Social Media Marketing but it appears to be a brilliant idea. I will try it and give you my feedback….
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September 25th, 2007 at 11:39 am

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October 15th, 2007 at 3:19 pm

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December 12th, 2007 at 7:55 am

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Dallas Web Designer Says:

January 14th, 2008 at 11:08 pm

Great post. I really liked how you broke down the sites into “pillars”. Great idea. Well done.
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January 27th, 2008 at 7:24 pm

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March 6th, 2008 at 7:54 am

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Marketers: Why Facebook is Not the Next Google at Ben Wills Says:

March 10th, 2008 at 12:19 pm

[...] network users engage in an active process to socialize. It is an extension of one’s identity through their own interpretation and through the details of their social connections and [...]
Tom Lynton Says:

March 27th, 2008 at 3:24 am

I would like to add one more and that is “Massively Redistrutable Media”. This would be things like “Badger Badger Badger” – there are some good comments about packaging media so it can be redistributed http://www.demonzmedia.com/DemonzBlog/?p=9

A good example is the “Dolphin Bubbles” video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TMCf7SNUb-Q). I have seen this posted on many of the sites I frequent and it is brilliant content. At the same time it is a brilliant advertisment for Sea World Orlando, and every time someone reposts the video, that means another potential lead back to YouTube to read the comments.

The conversation is important to – if you can get content that is appealing and post it on your own site with good comments, people may link to your site.
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March 31st, 2008 at 7:08 am

[...] ability to identify the passionate interests of community site-users is a modern media miracle. Conversational marketing is the true promise of demographic research embodied and a pillar of social media. That’s the [...]
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April 4th, 2008 at 10:58 am

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April 28th, 2008 at 1:41 pm

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April 29th, 2008 at 11:46 am

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May 11th, 2008 at 1:48 pm

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Social Media Marketing Says:

May 28th, 2008 at 11:00 pm

Great Post, I really think it is important to know where you are going when you are setting up social media marketing profiles.

Its so easy to get lost in the world of apps, games and groups. You have really cut to the core about what social media marketing and strategy is all about.

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June 9th, 2008 at 10:27 am

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August 18th, 2008 at 2:42 am

Nice blog entry there’s a ton of small online businesses that are able to compete online using effective social media marketing tactics. There’s a good social media firm to checkout as well http://www.viralmediapros.com. Many companies use this firm.
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August 20th, 2008 at 9:28 am

blog written is very good and quite eay to understand.

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August 25th, 2008 at 5:09 am

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September 16th, 2008 at 7:43 am

You say that you you had a conversation in person that never could of had the same quality online..Why is that? Why do you think that nothing beats Face to face? Is it our tribal and raw desire to socialize? Is it that we don’t have the senses filtered by a screen…thoughts?
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October 8th, 2008 at 4:43 pm

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October 23rd, 2008 at 3:39 pm

[...] Marketing.” After a lot of thought he was eventually able to determine what he feels are the “five pillars” of social media marketing. These include declaration of identity, identity through association, [...]
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Jason kUiper Says:

December 8th, 2008 at 10:21 pm

Yeah, 5 pillars is a good read!
Joe Says:

December 17th, 2008 at 5:21 pm

You are right in identifying those 5 as the basic pillars, but we cannot forget the credibility factor.

In order to establish a decent marketing campaing, the reputation of the product, company or indibidual need to be establish in order for others to be properly influenced.

Joe’s last blog post..SEO Glossary…
Norman Flecha "STRAIGHTALK" Says:

December 25th, 2008 at 8:14 pm

Man I must say that I was impressed by Your article, Hope to hear and see more of You in this up coming Year..

STRAIGHTALK
Norman Flecha
Joanne Zimakas Says:

January 9th, 2009 at 7:20 am

Hi, I just finished transcribing all the interviews for The Social Media Bible (www.TheSocialMediaBible.com). I was hired virtually by the author. I only mention this as a testament to the power of social media, or as I like to call it, Social Media ².

I urge all to go to and listen to these nearly 50 interviews with the top SVP’s and founders of the major social media companies world wide, Google, Yahoo, Microsoft, Twitter, LinkedIn, MySpace, etc. They are 30+/- minute podcasts about how each social media technology is being used for business.

Joanne Zimakas
Norman Flecha "STRAIGHTALK" Says:

January 14th, 2009 at 4:10 pm

Nice article and website.. have been able to use your suggestion and watch things change marketing can be and is always of finding ways too make Your job easier..
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Ali Hussain Says:

January 17th, 2009 at 1:36 am

Thankyou for explaining on how to use social bookmarking the better way. I am searching for other ways as to which i could promote my blogs

Ali Hussain’s last blog post..Color Overlay
Pinklady Says:

January 18th, 2009 at 5:21 am

Wow, I didn’t know social bookmarking can be so powerful. Do you think it can bring a lot of traffic to the site on a short period of time?

Pinklady’s last blog post..By: Popular People � Blog Archive � Red Cliff Ii
Guenther’s World » Top 5 Ways to Market your Business in 2009 Says:

January 24th, 2009 at 12:04 pm

[...] Social media – Yeah yeah, social media has been around for years, and its starting to get played out. But I [...]
sandeep Says:

May 23rd, 2009 at 12:24 am

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Thanks
Sandeep
sandeep Says:

May 23rd, 2009 at 12:29 am

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Sandeep

Marketing Pilgrim