Social may not be relevant for every business decision, but the ability to harness social at any point in time is a powerful one, says Neal Schaffer, business social media expert and Forbes Top 50 Social Media Influencer.
Social keeps the business' finger on the pulse of what its customers and the public think about its products, industry and competitors, according to Schaffer, who will be speaking at the ITWeb Social Business Summit on 15 October 2015 at Summer Place in Hyde Park.
In a recent interview, asked what "the next big thing" in the area of social media would, Schaffer said: "The next big thing is now, it's here, it's all the social networks and I think very few companies have leveraged the potential that all these different networks have.
"So, until you come back to me and say I've done everything I can do on LinkedIn, everything I can do on Twitter, on Facebook, with my blog, on YouTube, SlideShare, Instagram, Pinterest, Snapchat, Xing. When you can say you've done everything you can then we'll talk about the future but until then there's a lot of work to do. Roll up your sleeves and get busy."
His advice to companies is to start with one or two channels, see the ROI from it and then from there develop other channels. "That's how you determine the must-have versus nice-to-have."
Schaffer believes social media will inevitably bring various departments together - if they are already collaborating on a wide range of issues, adding and integrating social is not a problem. But for companies that still operate in silos, though, this is a challenging aspect of becoming social, he adds.
Vast experience
Schaffer's experience in social media is extensive. He has been acknowledged as a Forbes Top 50 Social Media Power Influencer two years running, as well as a Forbes Top 5 Social Sales Influencer.
He has written three books: "Maximize Your Social: A One-Stop Guide to Building a Social Media Strategy for Marketing and Business', 'Maximizing LinkedIn for Sales and Social Media Marketing' and 'Windmill Networking: Maximizing LinkedIn'.
He is also the creator of the social media for business blog Maximise Social Business. This year he introduced two new ventures: the Social Media Center of Excellence, to build and educate a community on best practices in using social media for business, and the Social Tools Summit, a biannual live conference to educate businesses on social media tools available to increase efficiencies and ROI.
Join Schaffer at the ITWeb Social Business Summit 2015, on 15 October and learn how to leverage social for your business.
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