{"id":2930,"date":"2011-04-18T04:03:47","date_gmt":"2011-04-18T04:03:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thesocialcmo.com\/blog\/?p=2930"},"modified":"2011-04-18T04:03:47","modified_gmt":"2011-04-18T04:03:47","slug":"the-business-case-for-social-media-straight-talk-to-the-cfo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thesocialcmo.com\/blog\/2011\/04\/the-business-case-for-social-media-straight-talk-to-the-cfo\/","title":{"rendered":"The Business Case for Social Media: Straight Talk to the CFO"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cIf you doubt that social media is effective or delivers ROI, count the business owners who have flown to Social Slam 2011, in Knoxville, Tennessee, at our own expense. We own marketing\/PR firms and generally bill by the hour. What\u2019s the cost of a firm\u2019s time? What\u2019s the value of engaging on a panel of social media practitioners? Is there a business case? We are your proof.\u201d\u00a0 \u2013 Anne Deeter Gallaher<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cStrategy is all about how to deploy scarce resources.\u201d\u00a0 \u2013 Dale Evans, CFO, The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company<\/em><\/p>\n

CFOs are thinking about how to create shareholder value: tell them how social media will help with better communication, investor relations, wiser investments, better returns, more referrals, more press, and stronger communities.<\/p>\n

How can you better communicate social media intentions to your CFO or CEO?<\/p>\n

1.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Know how business works\u2014there\u2019s a cost associated with time\u2014someone will pay.\u00a0 There\u2019s often a clash between \u201cEveryone deserves clean drinking water\u201d and \u201cWho pays for clean drinking water?\u201d If you\u2019re providing a service, like advertising, how much of social media research for education purposes can you pass on to your client? Not much. What\u2019s the cost to understand, ramp up, and engage? Shorten the learning curve by finding smart people on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.<\/p>\n

2.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Think like the business owner. If it were your money, would you pay someone like you to dive into social media channels?<\/p>\n

3.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 CFOs are risk-averse. Have a digital policy in place before you take the company and its reputation online. CFOs are quantitative and comfortable with fixed costs. Social media is time-intensive.<\/p>\n

4.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Understand operational expenses vs. revenue-generation. How can you use social media to generate revenue? If you use social media for an event, is there an opportunity to showcase your skills to the attendees? Are they C-levels who can hire you? If so, then it\u2019s a good investment and worth the risk.<\/p>\n

5.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 If the government is in the channels, then it\u2019s a good idea for business to be in them.<\/p>\n

6.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 What\u2019s your goal? Be specific with the CFO. Give examples:<\/p>\n