Phil Cooke is a nonprofit marketing guru. He has written numerous books on the topic, including Unique: Telling Your Story in the Age of Brands and Social Media (2012) and Branding Faith: Why Some Churches and Non-Profits Make a Difference and Other’s Don’t (2010). Recently, he suggested that “finding your authentic voice in social media isn’t that different from traditional media.” In order to find your voice, Cooke suggests you
- don’t say things on social media you wouldn’t say to someone face to face,
- think about your own personality, and
- write about the One Big Thing in your life.
So What?
I often tell people the best way to get started in social media is to give it a try. While it is important to have some sense of what social media is all about, it is a necessarily experiential realm. Once you get started, it is essential that you work toward clarity about what it is you are doing and why. Cooke’s suggestions for finding your social media voice are simple and solid.
- What would you add to Cooke’s list? Why?
- How long did it take you to find your social media voice?
- What advice would you give someone who feels he or she either never found or somehow lost her or his social media voice?