Interactive Agencies Rise As Go-To Resource for All Things Social

Social media hasn’t fully been claimed yet by the typical communications channels, including advertising, public relations and marketing. Consultants and agencies continue to compete to be known as the go-to resource for all things social media. While each has its strengths, one resource, which in the past remained in the background as the silent developer, has risen in the ranks as the true social media owner – Interactive agencies.

It’s a well known fact that Facebook and Twitter are primary internet destinations for many consumers. Facebook itself just recently announced that it has reached 500 million global users. With millions of consumers spending their online time within these networks, delivering content and engagement tools is a hot topic for brand marketers. Creating a strong differentiator among competing brands may be the key to success or failure.

Interactive agencies just might have a background in design and development to create those engagement tools and vehicles for content, in addition to including the strategy usually offered by traditional agencies. A recent Forrester report confirms this assumption as it points to the changing roles of agencies as they adapt a broader set of services for clients. For example, you want to have a presence on Facebook as well as create viral buzz to grow the community. While a traditional communications consultant or agency might be able to map out how to do this, most don’t have the capabilities to design, develop and promote the campaign. An interactive agency can design, build and promote the page, customize the HTML on the tabs and create a widget that is sharable amongst friends- all while monitoring online conversations and swiftly adjusting the strategy based on consistently measured results.

A great interactive agency rises above the noise by insisting on a creative partnership with its clients, and is constantly cultivating new ways that they can take advantage of online technology to better reach their customers.  Some traditional communication consultants and agencies do offer interactive solutions for design and development, but offering tools and technology is not enough. Strategy is no longer only for agencies or consultants; it’s everywhere –especially the interactive space.