Should Brands Outsource Their Community Management? Think No Further. YES and Here’s Why

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Although this question may be debatable, here are three reasons why Community Management of your social media channels in the marketing mix would be better off  if managed by experts outside of your organization.  In the long run, it would be more effective and efficient to outsource your community management.

1. Community managers (and their agencies) live and breathe social media

If your job is not living and breathing social media 24/7,  chances are you are not able to keep up with what’s happening on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Pinterest, etc.  While adding the odd tweet and keeping an eye on Facebook comments might be manageable, you might not have time to do a great deal more.

Creating content calendars that ensure that every post is optimized to create the maximum impact and ensuring that your Twitter account follows all the key influentials in your market may be enough to fill your day.

Also ask yourself if you are keeping up with the latest Facebook competition rules? Or working out how the Twitter API changes could impact your brand’s output? And what about other platforms – should you be focusing on Google+ this year or Pinterest?

Community managers will be up-to-date on all platforms, what they can offer and how they can potentially work best for your brand. It is their job after all. Why not let the experts worry about the finer details?

2. Community managers can offer a fresh perspective

Sometimes working on one specific thing or brand can make things jaded after a while. Outsourcing your social media efforts will invite a fresh perspective to the table and stimulate discussion around the brand and how to make it stand out in the fast-changing social media sphere.

Your community manager will have worked on or read about other branded online campaigns. They know what has worked in the past, what could work in the future, and what could potentially be a social media disaster.

They will also be able to advise on and devise the social media strategy that is essential to ensure your brand flourishes online and offline.

3. Community managers are enthusiastic about what they do and will be backed up by a team

If you divide the community management duties between individuals in your company, chances are the actual management of the online entities end up falling through the cracks as other tasks take precedence.

Also, unless proper guidelines are set, your brand’s social voice and tone could end up being fragmented across the social media entities.

An agency can provide the important neutrality good community management requires and will have a team set to ensure your community management is kept consistent regardless of summer holidays or staff turnover. They have also actively pursued this career, so will be eager to do it well.

Finally let’s not forget one very important thing. If you outsource your community management then you can be assured that your Facebook pages will always be updated and that someone is responding to questions on Twitter and other social networks in a timely and coordinated manner.

Your brand won’t be joining the thousands of others whose Facebook and Twitter accounts lay dormant and are an embarrassment to the company and the staff that were supposed to populate them.

The Value of Word-of-Mouth in Consumer Buying Behavior

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Word-of-Mouth (WOM) is the primary factor behind 20% to 50% of all purchasing decisions. Its influence is greatest when consumers are buying a product for the first time or when products are relatively expensive (factors that tend to make people conduct more research, seek more opinions, and deliberate longer than they otherwise would).  And its influence will probably grow because the digital revolution has amplified and accelerated its reach to the point where word of mouth is no longer an act of intimate, one-on-one communication. Today, it also operates on a one-to-many basis:  that is, product reviews are posted online and opinions disseminated through social networks. Some customers even create Web sites or blogs to praise or punish brands.

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Very interrelated to WOM is customer loyalty.  Although the need to provide an after-sales experience that inspires loyalty and therefore repeat purchases isn’t new, not all loyalty is equal in today’s increasingly competitive, complex world. There are 2 types of loyalty:  Active loyalists, who not only stick with it but also recommend it; Passive loyalists, who choose to stick to the brand either because of complacency or confusion caused by too many choices,  and stay with a brand without being committed to it.  Despite their claims of loyalty, passive consumers are open to messages from competitors who give them a reason to switch.    

Some key concepts related to WOM

3 Main Classifications:

Experiential

WOM is the most common and powerful form, typically accounting for 50% to 80% of word-of-mouth activity in any given product category. It results from a consumer’s direct experience with a product or service, largely when that experience deviates from what’s expected. (Consumers rarely complain about or praise a company when they receive what they expect.) Complaints when airlines lose luggage are a classic example of experiential WOM, which adversely affects brand sentiment and, ultimately, equity, reducing both receptiveness to traditional marketing and the effect of positive WOM from other sources. Positive WOM, on the other hand, can generate a tailwind for a product or service.

Consequential

Marketing activities also can trigger WOM. The most common is what we call consequential WOM, which occurs when consumers directly exposed to traditional marketing campaigns pass on messages about them or brands they publicize. The impact of those messages on consumers is often stronger than the direct effect of advertisements, because marketing campaigns that trigger positive WOM have comparatively higher campaign reach and influence. Marketers need to consider both the direct and the pass-on effects of WOM when determining the message and media mix that maximizes the return on their investments.

Intentional

A less common form of WOM is intentional—for example, when marketers use celebrity endorsements to trigger positive buzz for product launches. Few companies invest in generating intentional WOM, partly because its effects are difficult to measure and because many marketers are unsure if they can successfully execute intentional WOM campaigns.

Measuring Word-of-Mouth Equity

A starting point has been to count the number of recommendations and dissuasions for a given product. There’s an appealing power and simplicity to this approach, but also a challenge: it’s difficult for marketers to account for variability in the power of different kinds of WOM messages. After all, a consumer is significantly more likely to buy a product as a result of a recommendation made by a family member than by a stranger. These two kinds of recommendations constitute a single message, yet the difference in their impact on the receiver’s behavior is immense. In fact, our research shows that a high-impact recommendation, from a trusted friend conveying a relevant message, for example, is up to 50X more likely to trigger a purchase than is a low-impact recommendation.

Loyalty Platforms and Social Loyalty Platforms

The growth of online social media networks such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Instagram, Youtube has made online word of mouth a channel for businesses to acquire customers.  Offering your customers membership to loyalty rewards club can incentivize your customers to spread positive reviews and experiences about your product.    For the first time ever, merchants can have their loyal customers share their activity on Facebook to bring in new customers. The cloud based loyalty platform saves merchants IT costs versus existing desktop server solutions.  Sign up today to learn how Social Loyalty can save you 88% on new customer acquisition cost. Visit SocialLoyaltyApps.com to learn more.

 

 

Basic Tips For A Successful Lead Follow-up

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For companies looking to drive business online, lots of time and money is invested in lead generation. But what do you do when the leads start flowing in?

Though leads follow up may sometimes look daunting, successfully following up on a lead and starting the process that will take it to a sale doesn't have to be a trying and disappointing process.

Here are seven tips for following up on leads effectively.

1. Strike while the iron is hot.

In many cases, a lead is an asset that depreciates in value very, very quickly. Thus, it's worth trying to respond to qualified leads as soon as humanly possible.  This is because your response time will often determine whether you close a sale or lose a sale you could have easily closed.

2. Read the lead.

COMMON SENSE: it's important to read a lead so that you know who you're dealing with and what your opportunity may be.  But the FACT: this doesn't always happen.

To avoid looking unprepared or taking things for granted, it is a tremendous help to create a checklist that your inbound marketers should use as part of the lead follow-up process.

3. Have the right (and preferably same) person respond and follow through from the get go to establish rapport.

To make the most of a lead, ensure that the person best capable of following up on it is the same person who responds. While new prospects may necessarily have to deal with several people throughout the sales cycle, it is often desirable to ensure that their first point of contact is someone they can start to build a rapport, if not a relationship, with.

4. Don't be afraid to pick up the phone

Thanks to technology, phone calls are more and more infrequent for many individuals, especially to younger members of the workforce. However, the phone is still a powerful sales tool and,  if your lead contains a phone number, make a habit of picking up the phone and dialing it.

5. Get on the same page

When speaking with a prospect, walk before you run. Even if your lead came with a lot of detail, it's important to confirm that you have a good understanding of what the prospect needs and haven't made any assumptions that could unnecessarily limit your opportunity, or ruin it altogether.

6. Set expectations and timeframes

In every aspect of sales and business cycles, expectations are everything and it's never too early to set them. If an initial conversation with a lead confirms that there's an opportunity, take control. Once you're on the same page with the customer and understand his/her needs, you should at a minimum lay out what you think the sales cycle will look like. This includes proposing dates for key milestones.

7. Always respond

Not all leads are created equal. Some, unfortunately, are less-than-desirable for a variety of reasons. Nevertheless, assuming that the individual who submitted the lead is a real person, a response should always be provided no matter what. Not only can this help maintain your reputation in the marketplace, it also ensures that you will be remembered  for future opportunities that may be a better fit.

The Power of Storytelling is Authenticity

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Stories are authentic human experiences. Stories can also build relationships, and bring people closer together.  Stories connect us to each other.  Whether we are aware of it or not, stories have a huge impact on who we are, the way we learn, and the way we teach. A good story can capture the attention of a huge audience, and really cement a point that you are trying to make. Stories leap frog the technology and bring us to the core of experience.

There are several psychological reasons why stories are so powerful.    

  • Humans are narrative creatures by nature.  And stories have always been a primal form of communication.  They connect us to a self larger than us and to universal truths. They bring us back to ancient traditions, legends, archetypes, myths, and symbols.  They also transcend generations.
  • Stories are about human connection and relatedness. They engage us through emotions of joys, laughter, sadness, hardships and passions. Stories allow us to understand ourselves better, to find our commonality with others and overcome differences, to share meaning and purpose in the different aspects of our lives.
  • Stories reveal our thought processes and how we make meanings of life.  Psychologists use different names such as mental schemas, scripts, cognitive mapping, mental models, metaphors, or narratives.  Nevertheless, they all lead to a common purpose — We use stories to explain how things work, how we make decisions, how we justify our decisions, how we persuade others, how we understand and define ourselves, and how we teach human values such as responsibility, commitment, compassion, and the like.
  • Stories can be therapeutic and provide order.  People seek certainty and this is a universal truth.  And narratives offer a structure that is familiar, predictable, and comforting. Within the context of the story, we can withstand intense emotions because we know that resolution follows the conflict. Narratives can provide solutions and a safety net.  In my private practice, I have used stories to help children gain mastery and overcome some of their intense experiences (e.g., separation anxiety, low self-esteem), fears and emotions that can be too overwhelming.
  • Stories can be gateways that tap into our right brain and trigger our imagination. Through imagination, we become participants in the narratives. We can step out of our own shoes, see things differently, and increase our empathy and compassion for others. Through imagination, we think outside the box and harness our creativity that is the foundation of innovation, self-discovery and change.

In the context of social media, organizations, causes, brands or individuals identify and develop a core story.  They create and display authentic meaning and purpose that others can believe in, participate with, and share. Stories are so important today because there is SO much information out there and stories can serve as an effective filtering agent. Good stories will get someone to pay attention without clicking on the next link, changing the channel, or flipping the page. So what makes up a “good and powerful”  story? Most good stories will have the following elements:

  • Must have a Clear message (be engaging with tension or drama to evoke a powerful emotional experience
  • Mush have a Powerful introduction
  • Be Authentic
  • Be Relevant
  • May or may not have a call to action

Why Visuals Are Very Powerful Tools in Social Media Marketing

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Social media marketing is more than just setting up a Facebook account with contact information and a few press releases, then waiting for the masses to “like” you.  It is also more than just tweeting and getting people to sign up and follow you.

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A recent survey by UK marketer Dave Chaffey asked managers to rank the current key challenges of social media marketing. The top results were:

  • Managing reputation
  • Delivering customer service
  • Acquiring new customers
  • Increasing sales from existing customers
  • Increasing engagement with brand
  • Acquiring insights (analytics, ROI, brand preferences)

Small business owners are constantly facing these challenges.  And one of the keys of developing a successful social media strategy is to Focus on Visuals.  Why?

Visuals Equal Value

Visuals are a critical part of any successful marketing program. In the past, the visual part of your identity was a mere static logo. A little color, a little swoosh, and you’re done.  But in today’s social media age where videos and interaction have become an important part of the online presence, visuals take on a whole new territory.

In Universal McCann’s renowned “Wave 5″ report, watching online videos is the top social media activity.  Videos are great because there is a huge demand from users to develop a more social and interactive relationship with brands.  In other words, we must move beyond the simple product or service demonstration.  Interactive visuals are very powerful tools to tell a BRAND STORY.

Take the video of Corning:  A Day Made of Glass.  This video was intended for a small group of the company’s investors. And it carries an incredibly compelling look at the near future based on Corning’s innovative products. And it’s gone very viral. Since it launched on February 7, 2011, it has 19,523,661 views to date.

The phenomenal rise of social media sites like Pinterest and applications like Instagram has demonstrated that people are far more receptive to visual content than they are to written text. Short, sweet and to-the-point copy/text along with an enticing graphic or video generates so much more interaction than a long, written-out paragraph or slew of tweets featuring “How To” articles. And today’s online technology tools make it so much easier for you to share photos and videos from essentially anywhere.

Many small business owners are still gun-shy about getting too personal on social media sites.  However, the truth of the matter is that the personal element is what is going to make your Facebook business page, Twitter account, Pinterest boards and blog STAND-OUT   —- simply because they engage and connect with your customers.

For the most part, the first interaction a person has with your brand is through a social media site. If you do not have a branded presence on these sites, you’re instantly making it harder for new people to do business with you! Why? Because you’re making them work to recognize, remember, or figure out who you are!

With a customized, branded social media design strategy using videos and photos, you create a consistent look and feel for your brand that matches your website, email marketing, and print marketing materials. Creating a consistent brand which includes the look-and-feel for your business through social media will reinforce your credibility, your dependability, and your expert status. It will also make your prospects take notice, and your brand stand out from the crowd.

Some Tips for Creating Successful Visual Content for Your Brand

People are curious of what their peers and online connections are up to.  The reality shows prove that. The same thing holds true for the success of social media sites like Facebook, Pinterest, etc. This is an important mindset to keep when creating your social media presence.  Here are a few ideas on posting interesting, visual content that will still keep things professional without getting too personal:

•    Post Short Videos. Posting 1-2 minute informative videos once or twice a week is always a great way to get people stay interested, engaged and feel connected.  Videos are powerful ways of evoking human reactions and emotions.

•    “Share” photos/videos from other businesses you are connected with. Give recognition to businesses you connect with by sharing their photos and videos.  This shows you like their content.  And this breeds good karma.  Down the line, they’ll reciprocate the nice gesture and give YOUR profile some exposure or testimonial, as well.  Now, that’s free advertising.

•    Take snapshots of your everyday life and community.  On your way to work or doing an errand, snap a photo of a funny sign and upload it to Facebook.  Did you recently win an award or celebrate a happy occasion? Instead of just announcing it, take a photo of it and tweet it. People want to know what you’re up to each day in your business. There’s nothing wrong with taking a few photos each week and sharing them with your online community.  There’s nothing with sharing some warm, fuzzy feelings.

•    Infographics.  These are interesting images that people create that showcase facts about a particular topic in a visual, intriguing way. It is a great tool to use for highlighting valuable, up-to-date information to your network.  People like that.  It keeps them in the loop, so to speak.