If you’re at all familiar with social media platforms, you know that 2020 saw headline after headline about their impact on our day-to-day lives. Anyone based in the United States knows that Facebook and Twitter had a huge impact on our election cycle and their global use increased significantly due to COVID-19, which kept many of us at home (and bored). 

It’s not uncommon to hear of a new social media network that promises to be the next big thing. Just look at the meteoric rise of TikTok in 2020 and it’s easy to see that there’s plenty of demand for a new medium. 

Enter: Clubhouse. This new network allows for a human connection in a way that has been previously missing from other channels: voice. It allows users to enter “rooms” and simply listen to what the host is talking about. You can be a fly on the wall, or you can raise your hand to ask a question, all without anyone seeing your face. This has never been done before on social media – the voice always came with a video accompaniment (like on TikTok, YouTube, and even Facebook). Since the platform is still so new (and currently only available on iOS as of January 2021), Clubhouse currently has about 2 million active weekly users (there are 83 million weekly active users on Twitter, for comparison sake). 

This new way of interacting could potentially have a huge impact on the future of webinars and in-person events. At least for the foreseeable future, where in-person events are few and far between, a platform like Clubhouse has the potential to work the same way breakout sessions worked at conferences: meet new people, share ideas, and collaborate in real-time. The inflection of voice that Clubhouse enables meaningful, one-to-one conversations, as opposed to brands posting something and waiting to see if anyone cares enough to respond. 

Personally, I spent an hour listening to a presentation from Social Media Examiner during my daily walk when I normally would have spent that time listening to a podcast. Hearing a presentation, in addition to the Q&A from attendees, made me feel like I was actually able to collaborate with my peers in real-time. The discussion was around how marketers can use Clubhouse in addition to the other social networks they’re currently using. I’m not embarrassed to admit that I busted out a notebook and took actual pen to paper notes like I was back in college as soon as I got home. I loved every minute of it. 

If you’re unsure about how Clubhouse can contribute to your existing social strategy, keep these points in mind. 

1. Create cross-channel collaboration. If you’re presenting a topic or creating a conversation on Clubhouse, offer to share the notes to a Facebook or LinkedIn group so your community knows that you’re hosting an event on another platform, but also that they can still benefit from the content you’re sharing. 
2. Create a Facebook or LinkedIn event to promote your room on Clubhouse. If you’re going to use the new network to share your thoughts and ideas, invite your existing network to join you during your talk on Clubhouse. Now’s a great time to define your holistic social strategy before introducing a new platform. Use Clubhouse as a springboard to hone your messaging and community-building programs. 
3. Leverage thought-leaders already using the Clubhouse platform. The best way to get familiar with a new social network is to see how others are using it. Follow rooms and people you find interesting and then get a sense of how they’re engaging with their audiences. With a large variety of topics to listen-in on, there’s something for everyone. Meet new people and gain new audience exposure while the platform is still young. 

Since Clubhouse hasn’t been around long enough to have a defined set of influencers, this is the best time to join the network to see how you can get the most value out of it. If you enjoy listening to podcasts or are the kind of person who loves having the TV or radio on in the background while you work, try joining rooms that have topics you’re interested in until you’re ready to dive in and join the conversation. 

If you’re curious about how Clubhouse can fit in with your current social media strategy, read more about Strategic Social Planning and how to tactically apply it to your organization. 

Author: Patricia Diaz

Patricia Diaz is an experienced B2B marketer with over fourteen years of applied experience in SaaS marketing. Patricia specializes in webinar production, content creation, social media marketing, and lead generation. Patricia is a certified Social Media Strategist and is currently on the NISM advisory board.