Category: Social Media

Social Media: Career Track or Job Duty?

Social media has become an indispensable marketing tool for most organizations. But, the need to create and maintain a social media presence brings up a practical matter that must be faced: Who will manage it? Is social media a specialization like public relations or sales that requires hiring dedicated staff? Or, should social media marketing efforts be viewed simply as a new task that is to be performed as part of a marketer’s daily duties? Results from a survey conducted by Ragan and NASDAQ OMX Corporate Solutions indicates the latter is the current practice today.

From an organization chart standpoint, social media has not arrived as a dedicated sub-function within the marketing area. Nearly two-thirds of respondents (65%) said that social media was an add-on job task; only 27% of respondents indicated that their organization had a dedicated team to manage social media efforts. The term “team” is used loosely as 82% of respondents said their dedicated social media teams consisted of 1-3 people.

Survey findings debunked a myth about social media marketing: Let interns handle social media given their familiarity and experience with Facebook, Twitter, and other social networks frequented by young people. Only 25% of respondents said interns helped with social media communications. Among firms that utilize interns in social media marketing, 78% of them involve interns with Facebook and 69% have interns involved with their Twitter account. The large percentage of organizations not involving interns with social media is surprising, and not because college students should be used because of their social media experience. Rather, how will social media marketing talent be developed if aspiring marketers are not afforded learning opportunities?

A final takeaway from the survey to consider is the desired education and skills for employees involved with social media. Communications and public relations were the majors deemed most desirable when respondents were asked about education background. Writing skills was cited by 18% of respondents as the most important factor in hiring social media employees. Higher education institutions should take note. Social media marketing classes and programs are popping up with increasing frequency. It is challenging to develop curriculum around a field that is changing so rapidly on one hand, but on the other hand there are fundamentals like effective writing and presentation that should be the foundation of social media education.

Will social media become a specialized field within the marketing profession, or will it be treated as just another way businesses communicate with their target markets? Of course, factors like firm size and available resources will influence whether dedicated social media teams become more commonplace or whether those teams will actually be a committee of employees tasked with taking care of social media communications. There are advantages to each approach, and an organization can successfully manage social media using either a dedicated team or through its existing marketing and communications personnel. The key is for communications to remain true to your brand regardless of the approach used.

Center for Media Research – “Social Media Just an ‘Add-On’ Job Description”

Instagram Terms of Service: Stupid or Strategic?

For people who subscribe to the belief that there is no such thing as bad publicity, they should be thrilled at the exposure photo sharing social network Instagram has received this week. On Monday, Instagram posted changes to its Terms of Service scheduled to take effect January 16. One item that raised the ire of many Instagram users was language that said “To help us deliver interesting paid or sponsored content or promotions, you agree that a business or other entity may pay us to display your user name, likeness, photos (along with any associated metadata), and/or actions you take, in connection with paid or sponsored content or promotions, without any compensation to you.”

The rights extended in this language meant Instagram had latitude to include users’ photos in advertisements. Another aspect of the revised TOS agreement is an extensive sharing of user data between Instagram and Facebook, which acquired Instagram for $1 billion earlier this year.

User feedback was swift and furious. Instagram boasts more than 100 million users, ranging from teens to professional photographers to celebrities. Upset users voiced their displeasure by deleting their accounts (or saying they will by January 16). There has even be talk of an organized effort to encourage users to drop their Instagram service. The company was listening to the intense backlash, and on Tuesday Instagram co-founder Kevin Systrom said that the language concerning image use in ads would be dropped from the new TOS because “we do not have plans for anything like this.”

Assuming there really were no plans for integrating users’ photos into advertising, then why would Instagram go down the path of writing it into the TOS agreement? Management would have to be either very arrogant or extremely out of touch with social media users’ reactions to changes in TOS agreements that impact privacy, as we have seen most notably from Instagram’s parent, Facebook. On more than one occasion, Facebook has had to backpedal on changes to its service that were perceived as threats to users’ privacy.

If stupidity is not to blame for the changes in Instagram’s TOS and resulting backlash, then perhaps it can be chalked up to strategy. Facebook has been adept at pushing the envelope on information sharing. When it has crossed a perceived line, Facebook has backed off enough to satisfy the majority of people with concerns. And, such responses can be positioned as showing empathy to users’ concerns and being customer oriented. It seems that Instagram was testing the waters. A quick, ferocious backlash had to be expected. In that case, a swift response of “we’re sorry” and a pledge to not make the most controversial of the proposed changes would be in order… which is exactly what Instagram did.

It could be argued that the strategy behind the proposed change to TOS was to determine the limits to which user data can be shared and used for commercial gain without alienating the very people that have made Instagram a social media success story. If users pushed back against some, but not all, of the changes, then the end result would still be broader rights for Instagram. The challenge remains for Instagram how to monetize its wildly popular service now that the trial balloon of users’ photos in ads has been shot down.

Putting the "Social" in Social Media

A brand is more than a name and logo. It has an image and a personality, just like a human. As marketers, we must figure out how to transform our inanimate brands into interesting, interactive beings. Our task has been made easier by the emergence of social media as a channel for interacting with customers and other people. But, we must remember that social media is only a channel, a means of connecting us with an audience.

In a recent blog post “Social Can’t Succeed without Experiential,” Buddy Media Chief Creative Officer Bryan Boettger brings out the point that brands need to be real, not just live. Yes, social media gives us “live” engagement with people, but as long as we are interacting from behind a keyboard the authentic nature of a brand may remain hidden. Boettger uses the presidential debates to make his point, saying they are live but not very real as the candidates are busy posturing and reciting talking points. In contrast, coverage of the recent event in which Red Bull was associated with Felix Baumgartner’s jump from the edge of space gave an unscripted, real glimpse into this extraordinary feat and the sponsor.

We crave control in brand communications – need to manage image, tick off brand proof points – there is no room for unscripted interaction with stakeholders, it seems. Such a mindset places image over authenticity. Boettger contends that there is no substitute for brand experiences. Reliance on digital experiences is like projecting a fake persona. An image can be created that no one gets to know or understand if all communication is carefully guarded.

Event and experiential marketing can complement social media by giving people a channel for tactile interaction with your brand. Being “social” requires putting ourselves in situations sometimes in which we do not have complete control. It reveals our core personality. Be real, and allow your brand to be real. Be prepared to put the “social” in social media.

    Struggles to Serve the Social Customer

    Social media’s marketing influence extends beyond advertising, public relations, and promotions. The voice given to customers via social networks demands that businesses be equipped to deliver customer service online. Whether it is responding to customer complaints, answering questions, or acknowledging praise, the interactivity of social network sites creates a natural channel for responding to customers’ needs. How well marketers are doing with social customer service is unclear.

    A recent survey  reported by Social Media Today found that 7 out of 10 businesses said they use social media in their customer service efforts. Of those businesses, 87% have experienced a positive impact from social customer service. Those numbers might suggest a shift toward social media as a key channel for managing customer relations, but other findings from the survey run counter to that notion. Social customer service accounts for less than 5% of all customer issues handled by 4 in 10 companies.

    One explanation for the relatively light usage of social media to resolve customer issues is that many businesses do not have a social customer service strategy. Evidence of this weakness in how social media is being used for customer service includes:

    • 38% of companies have no formal process for using social media channels for customer service purposes
    • 6% do not personalize responses when interacting with customers via social media
    • 6% monitor questions asked but do not answer them

    Customer service is challenging when a business does not know what customers are thinking or feeling. Social media alleviates that challenge by creating a direct communication channel with customers. However, the capabilities of social media as a customer service resource cannot be realized if a strategy is not put into place that specifies which social network sites to monitor, who is responsible for monitoring, how will customer service issues be resolved, and what level of empowerment will social customer service personnel have to satisfy customers.

    An unintended consequence of social media could be alienating customers because of inadequate response or worse yet, no response at all. If you are going to use social media in your business, be prepared to listen and ready to respond when the conversation puts the ball in your court. You would not let the telephone go unanswered when calls come in; “calls” made via social channels must be acknowledged and answered, too.

    Marketing Charts – “Most Businesses Claim Positive Impact from Social Customer Service”

    I Like You… Even Though You Don’t Listen to Me

    Facebook was once like a breath of fresh air because it was a space in which people could gather without intrusion from advertisers and others vying for our attention and dollars. Of course, that has changed as have our feelings about the co-mingling of social interactions and commerce. A study by market research company Lab42 found that 87% of Facebook users like brands – a statistic that hardly suggests anti-consumerism sentiments.

    In fact, many Facebook users have positive attitudes toward businesses using Facebook for marketing purposes. Among the findings from the Lab42 study:

    • 82% said Facebook is a good place to interact with brands
    • 50% said that a brand’s Facebook page was more useful than the brand’s website
    • 69% said they liked a brand on Facebook because of a friend liked the brand, too

    If you are a business owner or marketer, you have to love these numbers! It is evident that brands not only can co-exist with Facebook users, but they can be a “friend” in their own right by interacting with fans and building relationships. Or can they? The sobering news from the Lab42 study was that only 35% of the persons who said Facebook was a good place to interact with brands believe that brands actually listen to them.

    The remedy to this problem is simple and difficult at the same time. The simple remedy is “listen!” It is our nature to desire to feel valued by others, and being ignored is a sure-fire way to feel devalued. Brands should not establish a presence on Facebook or any other social network site unless it is prepared to commit resources to listen. Therein lies the difficulty of solving this problem. Who is going to listen? How much will it cost? What resources will be committed? How will performance be measured? These questions can be stumbling blocks to making a commitment to true engagement via social media.

    People who like brands on Facebook show the love (or at least the like); it is up to marketers to reciprocate. Begin by listening to the people who are talking to you and about you.

    Center for Media Research – “Like It or Leave It”

    Moe’s Knows Three Key Ingredients of Social Media Marketing

    Social media is a potentially powerful marketing tool that can build brands and grow businesses. “Potentially” is the key word – harnessing the capabilities of social media has proven difficult for many brands. Also, dynamics of social media consumption (user-driven, highly interactive communication) differ dramatically from traditional marketing communication conducted via mass media advertising. Applying old-school marketing thinking does not usually turn out well in social media marketing.

    One brand that appears to get social media and is working it effectively to build customer relationships and grow sales is Moe’s Southwest Grill. The restaurant chain as deftly integrated social media campaigns and mobile marketing into its existing platform. Moe’s has used a variety of tactics to engage customers and drive sales. Examples include:

    • A check-in program in which customers posting Facebook or Foursquare check-ins earned “chips” toward earning prizes
    • A Twitter campaign in support of its annual Free Queso Day promotion
    • A Facebook contest “Raise the Salsa Bar” in which 700 people submitted salsa recipes, one of which will be offered in Moe’s locations nationwide next year
    • Mobile advertising in support of Free Queso Day, targeting mobile users within five miles of Moe’s locations on the day of the event
    • Ordering through Moe’s mobile app

    Moe’s social media strategy is effective because the company understands three keys to social media marketing success:

    1. Give people a voice by inviting them to participate – Submitting salsa recipes as well as having Facebook fans vote on the 10 finalists
    2. Reward people for their engagement – The mobile check-in program and spreading the word about Free Queso Day through Twitter hashtags and Facebook posts are ways to give something back to customers and encourage them to bring more business your way
    3. Measure performance using metrics relevant to the business – Likes and followers do not translate into dollars; Design social media campaigns so that their impact is traceable. Moe’s measured activity (e.g., the number of mobile check-ins and number of tweets) and outcomes (an increase of 18% in net profit was realized for the Free Queso Day promotion).

    Social media is not a stand-alone activity that is separate from other marketing tactics, nor is it separate from overall business strategy. Evaluate your social media strategy to determine if the elements of invite, reward, and measure are in place.

    Marketing Daily – “Moe’s Southwest Grill: Hot on Social, Mobile”

    Social Media: A Staple of Retail Advertising?

    Consumers are accustomed to retail advertising consisting of heavy doses of newspaper inserts, mail circulars, and other mass delivered one-way messages. The traditional model will soon be a distant memory if predictions arising from a recent study come to pass. A survey of grocery marketers conducted by Valassis found that the traditional reliance on print media as an advertising channel will be declining dramatically in the next five years. Today, three-fourths of grocery executives use print media for marketing purposes. In five years, the number dwindles to 17 percent. In contrast, the proportion of grocery marketers saying that they will use social media as a marketing channel will rise from 12 percent to 65 percent during the same period.

    Skeptics might interpret these findings as grocery marketers perhaps being too euphoric about social media. However, it seems that bullishness on social media marketing may be based on impact rather than hype. A new study by Ryan Partnership on retailers’ social media activity found that connecting with shoppers via social media is not just cool, it has observable payoffs. Among the study’s findings on how social media impacts shopper behavior were:

    •  44% of shoppers surveyed indicated that a retailer’s social media update influenced a purchase
    • 36% said following a retailer on social media led to trying a product
    • 18% said they tried a brand because their friends like or follow the brand

    Social media alone is not changing advertising; how we consume information has created a need for new communication approaches to reach and engage audiences. It would be understandable if some advertisers resisted a shift away from traditional media to rely more on social channels. After all, “traditional” means that it is customary practice, it is the way it has been done in the past. But, consumers are not hanging on to the past – they are using the tools of the day to acquire and share information. So, marketers may long for the good ol’ days, but we must align our practices with consumer behavior.    

    The Upside of Killing off Marketing

    Another day, another provocative title for a blog post that stirred the passions of marketers across the globe. The most recent button-pusher was Bill Lee, marketing consultant and author, who boldly declared in a Harvard Business Review blog post that “Marketing is Dead.” If you work in marketing, teach marketing, or otherwise have any connection to the profession, such a proclamation gets your attention. The title and accompanying article stimulated discussion ranging from Mr. Lee is correct to Mr. Lee is pathetic, and many opinions in between.

    The heart of Mr. Lee’s position is that traditional marketing – advertising, public relations, branding, and corporate communications – is outdated in today’s social media environment. One-way communication has been overtaken by an emphasis on community building around a brand, its advocates, customers, and the general public. Groundswell from product users and fans has supplanted marketer-controlled messages as the driver of choice to build brand credibility.

    Now back to the praise and bashing of Bill Lee – opinions about Mr. Lee’s position varied, but there is a benefit arising from his pronouncement that “marketing is dead,” even though I disagree with the statement taken literally. Marketers need the smelling salts of provocation that are delivered in a piece like the one written by Bill Lee. It is useful to be reminded that we operate in a very dynamic environment and that the role of traditional marketing certainly has changed. While advertising still plays a role in building a brand, it complements community-building efforts. The challenge for marketers is to find the balance in the respective roles played by traditional marketing and social media in nurturing customer relationships.

    Marketing is far from dead, but it has undergone a radical makeover in recent years. Just as people experiment with different hairstyles, fashions, and hobbies to shape their identity, marketers must be open to redefining how brands and relationships are built. Social media is not a fad; specific platforms might come and go (e.g., MySpace) but user-driven communications are here to stay.

    Build Trust to Build a Following

    I see many similarities in social media marketing of 2012 with Internet marketing circa 2000. At the heart of the similarities is a notion among many businesses that they need to have a presence because that is where their customers are. Another similarity I have observed is that many marketers do not have a clue what to do once they get there. “Let’s set up a Facebook page” may be a great idea, but why should anyone other than employees and relatives follow your business? To build a following, you must first build trust with people so that they believe your brand is worth following and justifies their implied endorsement.

    A study conducted earlier this year by About.com found that consumers expect transparency from businesses on social media. People want access to user reviews and comments, including ones that do not reflect positively on the company or product. In terms of content, social media marketing should reduce emphasis on sales-oriented messaging. People are not interested in social networking sites becoming one more place where they are bombarded with “buy now” messages. “Like” trumps buy as the desired audience response.

    Among findings in the About.com survey concerning liked content:

    • 33% said seeing a like or recommendation from a friend built their trust in a brand
    • 25% said the number of likes a piece of content received influenced brand trust

     Use social media content to build trust, and the sales will follow. The verbs of social media marketing are:

    • Listening
    • Sharing
    • Telling
    • Selling

    Manage your social media sites as a place for customers and others to gather around your brand, not as an alternative to paid mass media for delivering sales messages. Do not ignore selling opportunities presented by social media, but those opportunities have to be earned by gaining the trust of your following.

    eMarketer – “To Build Trust, Reviews are the Key”

    A Tipping Point for Social Media Marketing Education

    Malcolm Gladwell’s book The Tipping Point is one of my favorites. It examines how ideas, practices, and products gain traction and acceptance. The catalyst to adoption is a tipping point, a trend or development that “tips” behavior. When I first read the book I thought to myself that it would be great to witness a tipping point and recognize it as such. I had such an experience last Friday when a blog post written by a recent college graduate became the tipping point for advancing social media marketing as a distinct sub-discipline in marketing education.

    Cathryn Sloane, a recent University of Iowa graduate, suggested in a post on the blog NextGen Journal that every social media manager should be under 25. Her premise was that people her age have grown up using social media and because of their familiarity with Facebook, Twitter, and other sites from an early age they are best equipped to work in the social media industry. Sloane’s position is summarized by saying:

    “No one else will ever be able to have as clear an understanding of these services, no matter how much they may think they do.”
    Reaction to Sloane’s post from the marketing community was swift, generally negative, and in some cases, vicious. Critics dismissed the post as ill-informed and showing a lack of understanding how social media is used for business purposes. Some people painted with a broader brush, saying that Ms. Sloane’s view was representative of a sense of entitlement held by many Millennials. Of course, much of the castigation of Ms. Sloane was coming from the over-25 crowd she suggested was less qualified to work in social media.
    Add me to the list of over-25s that disagreed with Ms. Sloane’s take that people her age are best qualified to be social media managers. I see where she is coming from, but using similar logic I would make a great general manager for the Atlanta Braves because I watched a lot of Braves games on WTBS in my high school and college years. Despite my differing opinion, I see a positive arising from the flames thrown Ms. Sloane’s way. Her view of what it takes to work in social media marketing brings out the need to develop curriculum to prepare future social media managers. 
    Like most cutting-edge business practices, academia lags behind industry when it comes to social media marketing. The time has come to give social media its rightful place alongside other marketing platforms studied in business school: Advertising, public relations, professional selling, and direct marketing. Academics must collaborate with the professional community to identify the skill sets needed to train social media marketers. Sloane’s post and the immense response it elicited are evidence of the need to integrate social media in the marketing curriculum.