Scope Of Services

Social Media Directions is a leading management consulting practice that enables organizations to effective adapt and maximize their return from use of social media.

Social Media Directions offers a portfolio of strategic consulting products and services, each customized according to the client’s objectives.

Selection of Products and Services:

After a client’s needs are initially identified, SMD will work with the client to identify the appropriate portfolio products and services. The client may choose from our existing portfolio, or SMD and the client will define custom products/services not currently listed within the SMD portfolio. During this initial planning phase of an engagement, SMD will work with the client to specify desired outcomes of any product/service chosen within the engagement.

Product and Service Portfolio Definitions

a. 7 Step Business Planning and Strategy Development of Selected Mediums

• Step 1: Current Situation: Organizational Assessment This step involves an assessment of the organization’s readiness for social media. Numerous areas need to be examined and analyzed, and the findings will enable the organization to focus on key improvements likely to influence successful usage of the social technology.

• Step 2: Problem/Opportunity Identification: Leveraging the Vital Few From step one, the data collected and analyzed should be aimed at the vital few issues that provide the greatest leverage for improvement and fulfillment of opportunities identified.

• Step 3: Possible Solutions and Gains: The How and Why Once step 1 & 2 are completed, the data should reveal a view of possible solutions aimed at maximizing the use of social media for specific business purposes.

• Step 4: Cost/Benefit Analysis Many business have and will continue to react to the emergence of social media. Reactions usually create costly actions that are not well thought out relative to the previous three steps. Thus, many businesses abandon new efforts because a thorough cost/benefit analysis was not conducted prior to launching a new initiative.

• Step 5: Measures of Success Steps 1 – 4 provide the framework of critical elements, which are required for any business to have a purposeful objective for engagement within the medium of social media. Any plan should have measures in place to assure that the assumptions of any initiative’s perceived value is producing the desired results.

• Step 6: Implementation Planning: Organization 1 -5 Steps 1-5 can bring a clear path to “what needs to be done,” but it is the “doing” that provides the envisioned results.  Planning for implementation of what is discovered in steps 1-5 is critical to achievement of the stated objectives of the plan.

Social Media Directions has a pool of diverse experts representing the multiple disciplines that drive the       value of social technology. Its pool of resources understand the dynamics of the medium and are considered “best in class” within the community of movers and shakers within the social web.

Social Media Directions also maintains strong relations with platform operators who represent the largest networks globally and with media contacts that follow the space and report to both traditional and non traditional outlets of distribution.

• Step 7: Execution and Adjustment Process: Plan, Do, Check & Act {PDCA) When implementation begins, new learning, new discoveries, and new constraints not foreseen when the plan was developed can be expected due to the dynamic nature of social media, including social networks. Planning for adjustments insures periodic reviews of the unexpected, and provides the means for adjusting to those rapid, ever-changing market dynamics.

b. Research and Analysis Services

Client’s  may need original research for a variety of possible solutions. SMD provides the resources for internal and external research and analysis, custom designed to provide the answers to the pressing business needs of our clients. Assignments for Research & Analysis will be developed with work orders that specify the parameters and objectives of research and analysis assignments.

c. Marketing Support for Client Products and Services

Our clients may need resource support for the purposes of executing on specific marketing initiatives identified in the planning stages of the engagement. Assignments for marketing support will be developed with work orders that specify the parameters and objectives of  assignments

d. Organizational Positioning

Our clients may require support for the methods and means of establishing their presence within specific communities for business purposes. SMD has the resources and expertise to assist the client with this objective. Assignments for Organizational Positioning support will be developed with work orders that specify the parameters and objectives of organizational positioning assignments.

e. Product/Service Design and Development Aimed at Social Media

Our clients may require support for development of specific products/services for business purposes aimed at use of social media. SMD has the resources and expertise to assist the client with this objective. Assignments for Product/Service Design and Development will be developed with work orders that specify the parameters and objectives for design and development of specific products and services for the benefit of the client’s business purpose.

f. Organizational Transformation Services using Social Mediums for Internal and External Purposes.

Our clients may require support for Organizational Transformation Services using social mediums for internal and external purposes. SMD  has the resources and expertise to assist the client with this objective. Assignments will be developed with work orders that specify the parameters and objectives for Organizational Transformation Services using social mediums for internal and external purposes for the benefit of the client’s business goals and objectives.

g. Organizational Branding & Awareness within Social Media

Our clients may need resource support for the purposes of Organizational Branding & Awareness within social media. SMD has the resources and expertise to assist the client with this objective. Assignments will be developed with work orders that specify the parameters and objectives for Organizational Branding & Awareness within social networks

h. Development of Custom Social Media Platforms for Industries, Organizations, Associations, and Governments

Our clients may desire to develop custom social media platform for business purposes. SMD has the resources and expertise to assist the client with this objective. From design, purpose, technology, testing and deployment Social Media Directions  can provide resources to successfully execute and maintain the momentum of a custom social media platform for your business purposes.

Assignments will be developed with work orders that specify the parameters and objectives for Development of custom social networking platform.

i. Formal Training, Education and Coaching of the Organizations Resources that will be engaging in Social Mediums

Our clients may desire training, education and coaching of the organizations resources that will be engaging in social mediums. SMD has the resources and expertise to assist the client with this objective. Assignments will be developed with work orders that specify the parameters and objectives for Formal training, education and coaching of the organizations resources who will be engaging in social mediums.

j. Relationship Development with Social Media centric Resources and Outlets

Our clients may desire assistance in development relationships with social media centric resources and outlets. SMD has the resources and expertise to assist the client with this objective. Assignments will be developed with work orders that specify the parameters and objectives for developing and managing relationships with social media centric resources and outlets.

k.   Social Media Creation, Maintenance and Management

Whether it be managing your organizations profiles throughout social networks or creating and managing your organizations blog SMD has the breadth and depth of resources to assist your entry and success into the emerging social media space. Services include:

1. Managing profiles
2. Creating internal and external blogs and microblogs
3. Creation and distribution of your content throughout the social web and to major media outlets i.e. WSJ, BW and Forbes
4. Production of a Live and on demand social media video news show customized for your organization, its markets and customers
5. Monitoring and reporting the market sentiment of your organization and the relevant conversations that impact your brand equity

Communications

SMD representatives will be available to provide assistance and consultation on engagement issues, progress, and constraints which are of concern to the client. A periodic communications process and related protocols will be established during the planning phases of the initial engagement.

This Scope of Services document shall function as a guideline of the services to be chosen by the client and delivered by assigned resource from SMD.

The social web is an art and science defined at the intersection of human relations and technological matrices that are rapidly changing in dynamics, in reach and richness.

Understanding the related issues and their impact on any organizations defined strategic initiatives is a requirement in order to insure that said initiatives adapt to the ebb and flow of the emerging human matrix.  As such it is important that the leadership of any organization and its primary resource pools understand that the social web is not a thing. Rather, it is a movement.

If your interested in doing things right and doing the right things then Social Media Directions has the knowledge and the resources to effectively support your efforts.