The Digital Dojo of Social Media Mastery

Earn your black belt in building authority, generating buzz, and increasing sales with social media.

This article was contributed by Vincent Brissot,Vice President of Digital Marketing Platforms & Channel Enablement at HP.

Digital Dojo Wisdom: “It’s not about winning, it’s about being better than you were yesterday.”

Whether you’re a beginner or a mastery-seeker when it comes to social media, you know that it’s essential to your business’ success, but mastering the art can be daunting. Over the past few years I’ve honed my social media skills to achieve levels that have helped our business grow and expand in ways never imagined. Time to share with you, some success and failures I encountered along the way.

Digital Dojo Wisdom: “The journey starts with a 1st step.”

At HP, we currently have more than 50,000 employees. Recently, I was ranked top 2 most-visited HP employee profiles on LinkedIn. Fast forward to last quarter, I reached the number two spot of the most-visited LinkedIn profiles of all HP employees. And today, I have the pleasure of seeing content my team developed becoming the source for HP’s social selling, both internally and with our partners.

A lot of the lessons I’ve learned along the way, I can equate to martial arts. Even if you achieve top status of “Master”, you need to continue practicing the art.

Gichin Funakoshi, considered the founder of modern karate summarized it this way “Karate is like boiling water: without heat, it returns to its tepid state”.

The same goes for social media. It’s a never-ending journey of exploration and practice. As I continue my journey in social media I want to share some of the key principles I follow, that will hopefully have you moving from social media white belt to black belt in no time.

Digital Dojo Wisdom: “First learn to stand, then learn to fly.” — Mr. Miyagi

You can’t truly excel in social media without investing time upfront to establish your voice and set your objectives. It’s helpful to use the CLEAR criteria when defining your goals: make them Collaborative, emotional, appreciable, and refinable.

In order to make them collaborative, encourage engagement and value comments from the entire team. As for emotional, make a connection to employees and tap into their energy and passion. If they’re appreciable, you’ll choose topics that matter. Be sure your goals are inspirational, as well large and important enough to be noticed. Lastly, they need to be refinable, meaning as new situations or information arise, you must give yourself permission to refine and modify your point of view.

9 out of 10 buyers say online content has a moderate to major effect on purchasing decisions

Digital Dojo Wisdom: “Be constantly mindful, diligent, and resourceful.”

Social media is full of people who over-promise and under-deliver. It’s also filled with talented and helpful experts who can assist you in jumpstarting your success. Tap into those experts because before you can fly with your own wings, it’s important to learn from those who are already flying.

Digital Dojo Wisdom: “When the student is ready the master will appear.”

About 2 years, ago, I contacted Daniel Newman on LinkedIn. What began as a simple InMail message in search of a speaker for an omnichannel conversation, led to working together on a social profile. Daniel was instrumental in putting me on the right path, jumpstarting me and helping me define my strategy.

Experts also know that you should use automation to make your social media life easier. Activate free or cost-efficient platforms like Buffer, HootSuite, and HP Social Media Center, and you’ll avoid time-consuming activities like curating content and posting content in real-time.

85% of marketers who use automation tools believe they don’t use them to their full potential.

It’s imperative that you create a process for social media that covers strategy, content creation, posting, engaging and measuring. It’s even more imperative that you utilize the technology and resources that help you master social media in a fraction of the time.

Digital Dojo Wisdom: “Begin and end with respect.”

An important precept in the martial arts and the art of social media is exuding respect for those you are engaging with. I follow four basic rules when it comes to being mindful on social media:

1. Think before you share. Identify your audience and ask yourself if the content you’re sharing is confidential or sensitive. Remember to think globally and cross-culturally.

2. Be accurate and truthful. Only share facts that are honest and accurate. If you do make a mistake, own up to it and correct it. And be sure to disclose any affiliation with your company in your bio or in any posts and comments you make online.

3. Always add value. Post relevant content that will help you become a trusted source and provide helpful information to your followers.

4. Rise above. Show respect for others’ opinions even if you disagree. Take the high road, and respond just as you would if you were face-to-face with a business associate.

62% of millennials become loyal to brands who engage with them on a social network.

Digital Dojo Wisdom: “Learning is an ongoing process. It’s a life-long pursuit.”

As I mentioned earlier, just like karate, you’re never really done learning when it comes to social media. In my social media journey, I’ve learned new systems, met new people, and launched a HP Social Media center, a platform that is used across the globe. I know I still have much more to learn.

In the end, the best way to learn is to get out there. So, tighten your belt and keep these tips in mind when stepping up to the proverbial matt.

And stay tuned because I can’t wait to share a similar story about how we’re helping partners tap into the power of Artificial Intelligence!