I’m watching the goldfish named Lucky my daughter won without permission at the school carnival that outlived his cousin and was rescued after sliding down the garbage disposal and now lives in the makeshift aquarium/flower vase sitting on my kitchen table. In spite of all these odds, Lucky lives.

Here’s what’s fascinating aside from all that – 30 minutes ago I sprinkled food flakes on top of the water. Fish still doesn’t know there’s food within easy access.

Is there an analogy here? Let’s use our creativity to find one…a goldfish is an analogy for _______ (please fill in the blanks). I’ll start…

The goldfish ensnared in a make-shift home is captive, flitting and fleeing from top to bottom and in circles seeking food and freedom. A small-to-medium-sized business (SMB) disengaged from social media is akin to the ensnared goldfish.

Social media has spawned new channels to distribute messaging, elevate branding, secure positioning. When social media food is sprinkled throughout the SMB’s integrated marketing program and systematically consumed via a top-down strategy, the ecosystem is in balance.

If an SMB is confused about social media actually being gourmet eats, the pathway to marketing public relations and social media is complex; engagement may fail.

SMBs should consider social media a strategic necessity, expect failure as the growth path is achieved through trial and error, then reap the benefits with a dessert morsel at the top.

How about you? Any tidbits to share?