The Social Executive: How to Master Social Media and Why its Good for Business

CHAPTER 14 Executive Ecosystem: curate, automate, bring it together

Now everything is up and running it’s time to create an Executive Ecosystem. As you bring the different networks together they will leverage off one another, really cranking up your influence.

It’s also time to take a breath.

We’ll use the Buffer automation you started when you set up Twitter, which will allow you to post across international time zones and extend your reach while not being there personally. The beauty of this system is you can dive into your networks randomly or on a schedule, depending on your personality.

Executives have notoriously packed schedules. Buffer helps you fit social into a busy life, although I would add that I think you should check social first, before email or other channels. When I get swamped with work and writing deadlines and am short of time, I temporarily withdraw from some of the excellent and engaged communities I belong to in Google Plus that require thoughtful (read more time-intense) responses. I also don’t open my inbox, but I do check my Twitter feed. People I know understand this so they reach me there.

Creating an Executive Ecosystem is like getting all the divisions of your organisation at the same table. As with any great team this generates synergy.

Some social media influences (who I respect) are against any form of automation, believing that when you post you should be there to respond immediately. I understand this point of view but it’s not always practical; ...