Rock stars become famous but
physicists typically work in obscurity. However, Stephen Hawking, a physicist
and cosmologist, is a celebrity. He’s a fellow of the Royal Society of Arts in
the United Kingdom and he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in
2009. One of his books, A Brief History of Time, was on The Sunday Times
best-seller list for 237 weeks—a record that still stands.
When it comes to social
networking and social media marketing,
what can you learn from this extremely accomplished scientist?
§ Become an expert and be
recognized as an expert. In his field, Hawking is recognized as the expert on space and
physics. He is currently Director of Research at the Centre for Theoretical
Cosmology in the Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics at
the University of Cambridge. When NASA held its 50th anniversary celebration in
2008, Hawking gave the keynote speech. As part of your social media strategy for weddings,
incorporate tactics that position you and your wedding company as the expert.
§ Speak and travel. Hawking is almost 100%
paralysed; he has ALS (Lou Gehrig’s disease). Not only can he not move, but he
can only speak with the assistance of a specially programmed computer that
offers a synthesized voice. Yet despite these difficulties, he travels widely
in order to give speeches. It’s an old school tactic but speaking in front of
brides remains an effective way to reinforce your social media
presence.
§ Overcome all obstacles. Despite his debilitating
ALS, Hawking leads an extremely productive life. In addition to speaking, he
appears on television, writes, has a family life (he’s written several books
with his daughter Lucy), and continues his extensive research. So there’s
absolutely no excuse for anyone to feel they are not executing a social media
marketing strategy because they have hurdles in the way. Hawking is living
proof that we can all deal with any obstacles. Part of overcoming a hurdle is outsourcing, if you can't do it yourself...just overcome and conquer.
§ Be published. Hawking’s books include
The Nature of Space and Time, the aforementioned A Brief History of Time, and
The Grand Design. Publishing a book (or books) remains one of the most powerful
and potent social media weapons. As an added bonus, the content can be
repurposed for other marketing uses. And if you’re not a writer or you don’t
have the time to write a book – or, like Hawking, you’re paralysed and you have
to write using a special device – you can collaborate or hire a writer. Hawking
has worked with co-authors on many of his books. If your book isn’t quite
ready, then start a wedding blog on the subject that you're an expert in (what your field is).
§ Get on screen. Hawking is quietly a
media star. He has played himself in many television shows including Star Trek:
The Next Generation. And yes—he’s been on The Simpsons and there’s even a
Stephen Hawking action figure. While you might not have an action figure made
of you and your animated doppelganger might not be designed by Matt Groening,
you can still “appear” on TV by filming short videos and posting them on your
website, blog and video sharing sites like YouTube.
If you’re a physicist and
you’re interested in space and time, then you’ll find Stephen Hawking’s work vital. But if you’re
“just” a wedding business owner striving to expand your social media marketing reach,
then Hawking could provide plenty of inspiration to help your brand reach the
stars.
What do you plan to do with this information? We want to know!
