Hey guys, welcome to Shama.tv. You know, I always talk about ROI in social media marketing and new media marketing, and it always comes back to ROI. Well, you know, this past week I’ve spoken to some organizations and I’ve realized that they aren’t even to the point to really discuss ROI (“Return on Investment”). They were at a whole different acronym which I called RUI, and I think a lot of businesses, non-profits, and organizations fall under this category. I’d love to hear your thoughts on what you think about it.
But to me, RUI is “Resistance, Understanding, and Integration,” and I realize that this is the process most people go through every single time that anything new comes out. You know, when web sites came out, when Email came out, and now it’s social media, you’re seeing this. Before you can talk to people about ROI, you really have to talk to them about RUI and figure out where they are, because the first thing people feel is resistance. It’s a new idea. They’re not sure. They’re resisting it. And I’ve noticed this but, you know, as people who are very accustomed to doing [things the] way they’ve always done things; you see the resistance level is higher, so there is resistance.
Then there’s understanding. So they understand what social media can do for them. They understand the mindset. And then there is integration where they actually start making it part of what they’re doing, whether it’s their marketing activities, [or] their daily life, and once they understand RUI, once they’ve been through that process, then you can talk to them about ROI. So, I’d be interested to hear what you guys think about this concept.
May 26th, 2009 at 1:31 pm
RUI. Love it. I think we are just beginning to climb into the integration section within the PR and marketing industry. For those of us who are constantly pitching this…I think our jobs are going to get easier if we start approaching this process as Shama outlines here.
May 26th, 2009 at 7:50 pm
Wow, cool, will use it for my proposal presentation on social media marketing this afternoon. Thanks Sharma
May 27th, 2009 at 9:51 am
Great! Neat, succinct, smart concept. Bet RUI is the next social media buzzword!!
May 27th, 2009 at 4:06 pm
Resistance, understanding, integration. Makes a lot of sense. You could do a whole speech on this topic, or maybe you are. So often the top people in an organziation resist anything that is not their idea. The whole art comes in getting that individual to understand how social media will work for them. Once they are able to grasp how social media will work for their product and organization, then the words “No Brainer” comes out of their mouth and of course it then becomes their idea;-) So much fun! Keep up the unique ideas they are a breath of fresh air
May 28th, 2009 at 2:27 pm
Thank you for the very nice videos of yours.
May 29th, 2009 at 5:57 am
You’ve given a name to the thing that’s been holding my local non-profit back. RUI.
Resistance shows up in comments like, “we’ve always done it this way, why do it any differently?” (regarding starting an online community on ning), “we don’t jump on every bandwagon out there” (regarding twitter and facebook), “great, more things to learn. I just got used to emailing” (regarding facebook fan pages)
I agree with Sandie Barrie re:top people resisting ideas that are not their own. In every organization, there are always a few key people whose opinions are weighted more heavily than others. Bringing the key people onboard makes it easier to win the whole board or committee’s approval on things like social media integration.
Now I think I can work from a fresh angle to help the organization get more into the social media stream. Thanks!
May 29th, 2009 at 1:18 pm
This is a great concept and makes so much sense. We see this so much with new technology every time there is a change. Putting a name to it makes it easier to talk about and deal with. Thanks for a great video clip.
May 29th, 2009 at 5:45 pm
Hi Sleenie,
Glad you enjoyed it. Yes, RUI is a new name for an old challenge!
May 29th, 2009 at 5:58 pm
Hi Napoleon,
You got it! = )
May 29th, 2009 at 11:22 pm
Dear All,
After returning from my proposal presentation, I still got my customer having rejection when i explain about RUI. Their respond is, “ya, it happens to all new strategy implementation”. So guys, help me out here. How do I convince them better?
June 1st, 2009 at 4:31 pm
Hilson, do you understand exactly why your proposal is being rejected? When you listen to them what is it they want that you are not supplying? More than once I have been successful with a proposal by reducing the original intent and doing a pilot first. Is this something where you could do something for a short period to demonstrate what you have to offer?
June 5th, 2009 at 3:44 pm
Hi everyone,
I am an internet marketing consultant and I specialize in targeted lead generation for online and offline companies. Of course the online companies are very open and responsive to my lead generation strategies (including social media marketing and aggressive SEO & lead gen. strategies). But the offline businesses, who are the ones who desperately need to start marketing online to get leads to their offline businesses tend to be the ones who are hesitant, afraid and just don’t understand the benefits of online marketing.
Therefore my first consultation includes a very simplified step by step explanation with graphics, case studies, 3rd party proof (usually articles from well known news sources) and MOST IMPORTANTLY I am very well prepared to squash any possible concerns and negative comments.
I have found this strategy works the best.
April 22nd, 2010 at 1:35 pm
Hey Shama,
I have glued on your website since the last 3 hours and have been watching all the videos.It just so amazing to watch all of them and the kind of insights you are providing here.
Such nice content is amazing.Looking forward for more!