Download - Beyond Social Media: Ad Club 11/08

Beyond Social Media: from tools to trust ERIC WEAVER AD CLUB NOVEMBER 2008

Since our last chat…  On average, one in four of you has a new employer.  Bloggers are regularly cited in the media.   Facebook (124MM users) has surpassed MySpace

(114MM)  Brands have taken to social sites

  Starbucks, Dove, AllState, Virgin America, Comcast, H&R Block

  The Obama campaign has proven that social networking has incredible power.

Forrester’s Technographic Model

IN THE LAST YEAR: "Fewer non-participants,"creators the same, and "far more spectators

So what was initially a way to connect with friends and others with shared interests...

…has become much more impactful.

LAST YEAR:"seventh-highest Google result for “Comcast” was a sleeping technician

THIS YEAR: customer service via Twitter

LAST YEAR

THIS YEAR:"soliciting operational ideas

THIS YEAR:"online community for social good

So I should be advertising on social sites…?

Let’s look at consumers.   Attention-deficit   Fragmented by niche

interests   Feeling time-starved

  Girl Scouts merit badge   Cell phone in the john

  Distrustful of advertising   Spoiled by customization and

media options   “Snack-media” consumers

Power has shifted.   SEARCH lets consumers

find people, products, information and media of interest & relevance

  EXPRESSION through blogs, podcasts, opinion sites, online communities

  SHARING items of value or interest – globally   Items they (we) love…. and

hate THE REALITY: To get what they want, consumers

generally don’t need marketing, advertising or PR. !

“Working toward his goal, he was confronted by a daunting array of skyscrapers, interstitials, video pre-rolls

and pop-unders.”

This means the days of

“controlled voice” are over.

OLD SKOOL: the Pyramid of Influence

Opinion-Forming Elite

NEW SKOOL: a Sphere of Cross-Talk

With so many voices, who do you believe?

People turn to peers for recommendations

They also do this when:   Risk is higher   More choices to review and filter   They have less time to research

Social endorsement trumps marketing

60% believe what “a person like me” says about an organization (up from 51% in 2007)

LEAST CREDIBLE: corporate or product advertising (22% of ages 25-34)… hey, that’s us! SOURCE: 2008 Edelman Trust Barometer

Endorsement isn’t just influential. "It’s widely shared.

56% of those aged 35-64 and 63% aged 25-34 were “likely to share their opinions and experiences about companies they trust or distrust on the web.”*

*SOURCE: 2008 Edelman Trust Barometer

Ultimately, social endorsement drives trust.

78% of those surveyed

aged 35-64 and 83% aged 25-34 were “likely to trust what they have seen, read or heard about a company if someone they know has already mentioned it to them.”*


And trust drives preference.

88% of opinion elites choose to buy from companies they trust. 85% refuse to buy from companies they distrust.*


The boFom line: Trust drives transac.ons.

Build trust through Social Marketing.

The use of peer-to-peer engagement, dialogue and connective tools to help your offering be found, be relevant, be authentic and be promoted.

1. Be found.  Optimize presence and content for search  Place it in many relevant venues, fully tagged and

described (“social media breadcrumbs”)   Podcasts on Utterz, videos on YouTube, bookmarks

on Delicious, valuable updates on Twitter

 Join multiple communities - wherever your brand makes sense

 Be in the end zone

2. Be relevant.  Listen and engage  Participate only in communities where your

offering would be of direct value  Join as a person and member, not as an

advertiser  Avoid the urge to push message

3. Be authentic.  Avoid glitz and high production values  Demonstrate transparency and honesty  Update frequently with less-than-perfect

content, rather than less frequently with highly vetted material

4. Be promoted.  Make content easily shared  Provide content or functionality with true value

rather than self-interest  Don’t fight time starvation: keep content short

and sweet.

Which tools to use? BLOGGING

  Product manager insights   CEO media/investor relations

MICROBLOGGING (Twitter)   Special offers   Event buzz

VIDEO (one-off virals or recurring podcasts)   Product how-to’s   Personality pieces   Company storytelling   Humor

WIDGETS   Content distribution/sharing

AUDIO (podcasts)   Company storytelling   Thought leadership

WIKIS   Event planning   Product development   Shared learnings   Distributed work-in-progress

SOCIAL & TOPICAL NETWORKS   Brand awareness   Community/CSR discussion   Community building   Feedback/testing/trials

And a final note: consider your “lens” Boomers/Tweeners   Trained in formalities   Don’t offend anyone   Be the most acceptable to

the largest number of people

  Privacy highly valued   Interested in tech

functionality but often overwhelmed by speed of change

Gen X/Millenials   Formalities ignored   More interested in finding

those with like minds than worrying about turning off others

  Less privacy means more ability to be found

  Digital natives – tech is ubiquitous and easy

Power has shifted.   EMPOWER CUSTOMERS TO BECOME ADVOCATES   EXTEND YOUR BRAND WITHOUT HIGH COST   YOUR CONTENT APPEARS IN MORE PLACES

  Lives on your sites, on enthusiasts’ sites, on cell phones, PSPs

  INCREASE GOOGLE RANKINGS  BE FOUND WHERE YOUR CUSTOMERS WANT TO

GO   LEVERAGE THE EXISTING TRUST BETWEEN

PEOPLE rather than trying to buy it

THANK YOU. facebook.ericweaver.com branddialogue.com twitter.com/weave