All you need to do is burn the boats!

I was recently presenting strategies for social networking to an executive team at a software company and someone asked this question. "Couldn't we just do a couple of these things...won't that be enough?" Now I should qualify that up to this point in my presentation I had only covered very elementary steps to implementing a corporate social strategy so I was concerned that he was feeling overwhelmed so early on the process or perhaps apathetic (I couldn't really tell which). My greater concern was several others in the meeting where nodding in agreement and I could see that the growing consensus was "lets make a list of a couple action items and get the hell out of here"

I remembered that a good friend of mine (Bob E) had recently mentioned that most companies he had encountered were in social networking for a penny not a pound. Many enterprises just want to be able to report back to the board that they are active in the space or that they are testing channels or that they have a Twitter presense. This lack of commitment reminded me of the story of Cortez who went into battle back in 1519 and once on the beach instructed his men to Burn the Boats! because if we are to survive we will use our opponents boats to return home. 

Now that's motivation!!! that's commitment!!! and that's what companies need to do to be successful when they make a change of this magnitude Burn the damm boats!!! For every company those boats are different things, culture, naysayers, antiquated thinking, fear, lack of information or strategy. Whatever it is just find it, and burn it and when your done reach down in your pocket skip over the pennies and find that pound because that's what it takes to change how your company does business.

Just to be sure my rant about commitment isn't taken out of context I do believe in a methodical and consistent approach to social networking. You don't have to be on every platform and chase every trend but in the end the commitment to the culture and direction has to be there.

 Interesting speech on commitment and the Cortez story