Social Media Spotlight - Lee Benecke

Tell us about your history in marketing?:

It has been a long and winding road, one that didn’t start in marketing. I started my career as a music journalist and - at the time - I only had ambitions to be a music journalist. I thought I’d landed my dream job at 19 as I got to interview bands, review live shows, and hear albums way before they reached shelves. I loved it. However, freebies aside, there was very little cash in music journalism so I ended up doing sideline gigs in copywriting, PR and content which led me setting up my own little company called Peepshow PR via MySpace. To do that, I had to learn the ins and outs of this new ‘social’ media and I just fell for it. I loved the community feel, I loved the content opportunities and I loved the technology so I start devoting more time to it and then suddenly social media was THE thing so I graduated MySpace and learnt YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, etc. I was the only person in the room who cared enough about these platforms to learn beyond what you saw as a user so started to build up a specialism in something new and exciting. That is when I realised I was on a path towards marketing as a career.

Once I knew marketing was my new path, I dived right in.

My first role outside journalism was client side and I was the social media guy but also the content guy and the PR guy and so on. I just soaked it up which led to opportunities to learn new skills, set up an internal content studio with colleagues in design, photography and videography and manage agency relationships. However that just showed me agency life and the ability to do what I do for lots of different brands. I wanted in so I went into agency in 2009 and I haven’t looked back since.

I have worked for an ecommerce specialist, a design studio, a digital transformation agency, an independent PR shop and a group agency. I have tasted a lot as either Head of Social or a broader remit that includes influencer, creative, content and digital PR. I have worked for local clients, national clients and global names. It’s been an amazing career and it’s far from over which is the most exciting part. The path continues.

So, you're a senior social media, influencer, and content strategist. What do you love most about doing this?:

Good question! I think the one constant in a 15 year career to-date has been inconsistency. I have never been able to sit still. Choosing a career in digital marketing, especially social media, is like signing up for a course who’s curriculum is constantly changing. New platforms, new algorithms, new functionality, new user behaviour, it never stops. I love that the most I think. It challenges you and it empowers you equally. The lessons I learnt from MySpace are not lost although the platform is. Some of the work I did 1, 5 or 10 years ago even on familiar platforms like Facebook or Twitter was groundbreaking at the time but would seem alien to some people joining the industry today. I am also forced to learn new every day. It’s a unique industry for that fact alone and it’s definitely something I love.

What are your biggest challenges when creating content?:

Where to start?!?: :)

Quality of the idea, the process of production, the life span of content once published, the reaction to content...there are a lot of challenges to producing content but I think the biggest challenge in content is landing on and delivering an idea that is both culturally relevant and 100% authentic to you as a brand. It’s easy to hack culture and just parody what is trending for quick likes.

Equally it’s easy to create content that focuses on you. Unfortunately neither will deliver results and I think that is what a lot of brands and agencies have discovered over the last few years. Getting both is the biggest challenge but also the biggest opportunity in social media marketing today. How you do that? It starts with fundamentally understanding who you are as a brand. Being able to clearly articulate what you stand for or believe in. It also means understanding who your customers are as people not just buyers.

Finally, it’s understanding the full playing field in front of you. That is looking at competitors but also looking at whole categories and understanding the culture around a category to find new ways to create content. There is a fantastic quote in planning that says brands need to “play in the jungle not the zoo” and it’s spot on. Data may fill a chapter but it takes people, plot and more to build a full story.

So, we're at the start of a global pandemic and the whole World is going into lockdown, how do you feel this will affect businesses that use social media to promote their business?:

I said it before but business as usual is dead. Any marketing plans or editorial calendars you have saved need to put down. Everything is new and the way you use social media should be too. Nothing is stopping any brand publishing on social during this pandemic but you just need to be 100% sure that what you’re saying has value in a world currently defined by chaos. Do not speak for the sake of speaking. Add value. Do not become virus specialists or medical scientists if you are an FMCG brand. Just say what needs to be said. Offer help, offer guidance, offer education and offer entertainment. It’s what we all need right now.

How important is social media in the current crisis for business?:

It is crucial. People are being driven online by isolation so you need to be able to play a role in this unprecedented interest in being entertained, informed and educated. For the first time in modern history, the real world cannot do that. Restaurants, pubs, cafes, libraries, shops, all closed. Internet is 100% open for business but - as I said in the last answer - it’s about understanding your role in the chaos. Find it and prosper.

Do you feel businesses should change the way they're marketing right now?:

There are two ways to act - 1) pause: the world is in chaos so no one cares about your brand marketing right now, and 2) push: the world is in chaos so entertain me, educate me, make me think of anything other than Covid-19.

Depending on your business, there may be merits in both but I think there is more value in push at the moment BUT - let’s be clear - push does not mean sell, sell, sell. It also doesn't mean tell me your opinion on Covid-19 as I am seeing from every brand CEO on the planet.

There is no such thing as business as usual at the moment so throw away existing editorial calendars and plan anew.

Firstly, ask yourself: what value can you add to a population forced to stay at home? Can you pivot your business to positively impact the pandemic? LVMH and Brewdog have done that. They have stopped manufacturing luxury perfume and craft ale and now make hand sanitizer. It’s brand marketing but it’s purpose driven. Can you provide education to positively improve lockdown conditions? Joe Wicks has done that. With schools out for the foreseeable, he has created online PE classes for children and millions are tuning in. It’s a relief to parents and waistlines everywhere. Can you provide entertainment to positively impact the pandemic? It certainly wasn’t planned but Disney’s new streaming service has launched during a lockdown. It’s entertainment and it’s so welcome.

Likewise Netflix have launched Netflix Party allowing collaborative watching. It’s relief to so many people. Can you educate, can you entertain, can you inform, can you inspire? All relevant questions to ask when thinking about your role in a crisis.

And once you have your solution. It gets easier. You keep it simple, you keep non-salesy, and you keep it going through the crisis.

So, there are many local businesses which are brick and mortar stores that rely on people walking into their stores. Do you feel they should start using social media to promote their business?:

I’d hope it hasn’t taken a global pandemic for bricks n’ mortar stores to realise they need social media to promote their business. I’d sincerely hope that social has been a part of toolkit for a while. If so, I just think you need to change tack. Your store, your pub, your cafe or restaurant is closed. However your community is not. Engage them. Give them something and remind them you still exist. Give them a reason to miss you, give them a reason to support you and give them a reason to come back once the chaos has lifted.

Are there any tools, or resources you recommend they start using?:

I have always relied on good community/content management tools such as Hootsuite and good social monitoring tools such as Crimson Hexagon as well as the data/tools given natively by the platforms. So yes, there are a ton of tools but most come attached to enterprise licenses and enterprise fees and I don't think businesses will want more bills at the moment. Keep close to your community, keep close to the conversations and be human. If there is ever a perfect time to be human as a brand, it is now.

Where can we find you?:

I am @leebenecke on all the channels. To connect with me professionally, I'd say come to LinkedIn. To chat to me and appreciate my love of GIFs, see me on Twitter.

To see pictures of my kids and #dadlife, I am on Instagram. As you would expect, I am on all the channels in some capacity.