Training Day: SCORE 390

SOCIAL MEDIA AND THE

NEW FACE OF MARKETING

Social Media are online tools, sites and destinations of the new Web 2.0 internet environment that include:

WHAT IS SOCIAL MEDIA?

Tools…• Faceboo

k• Twitter• LinkedIn• YouTube• Digg

• WordPress

That facilitate:• Conversation• Engagement• Participation• High and

immediate feedback

• Publishing

93% of Americas believe companies should have a social media presence. – Cone Marketing

91% say consumer reviews are the #1 aid to buying decisions - JC Williams Group

87% trust a friend’s recommendation over a critic’s review – Marketing Sherpa

1 WOM conversation has the impact of 200 TV ads – Buzz Agent

SOCIAL MEDIA BY THE NUMBERS

90% + of online users begin their purchasing process in search engines.

83% have watched video clips73% of active users have read a blog57% have joined a social network55% have uploaded photos

Source: April 2008 17,000 respondents from 29 countries, defining active users as those using the internet at least every other day.-Universal McCann’s Comparative Study on Social Media Trends

NUMBERS CONTINUED-ACTIVE ONLINE USERS

It’s free (except for time to learn/create/maintain).It levels the media playing field for the “little

guys”Allows a business to have a direct “conversation”

with their customers. Allows direct and immediate feedback from customers See opportunities to better serve your customers (Dell)

No barriers to entry (other than knowledge and acceptance).

Allows immediate connects with minimal transaction costs with thousands or millions of people.

Improve search engine optimization (SEO).

THE BENEFITS FOR BUSINESS OF SOCIAL MEDIA

Create a buzz Measure sales conversions through analytics.

Facebook and Google analytics. Analytics can tell you how many people visited you site and

where they came from and how long they stayed. Measure customer feedback and response, i.e. the “like”

button You can see how many fans you have, how often they visit

you and what they respond to.Highly Scalable

You can do one speech (YouTube), one how-to (blog), one article (blog or wall post) or Q&A (twitter and Facebook) and transmit it to millions for free.

BENEFITS CONT.

Social media empowers your customers—whether you like it or not. Through reviews Through WOM Through blogs Through status updates

Status update example: “Thanks American Airlines for losing my bags and making me wait for ten hours in the terminal.”

United Airlines Breaks Guitars: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5YGc4zOqozo

THE NEW CUSTOMER POWER

The strategy for successful social marketing is about:

1. Identifying your ideal customer,

2. Recognizing their need

3. Communicating how you, or your product, satisfies that need.

Integral to creating a great experience.Think of your SM presence as a product in

itself and integrate it into your sales process.

OVERALL STRATEGY

Think about social media marketing less as a commercial and more as a conversation you would have at a networking event.

When at a networking event everyone knows why you are there but everyone hates the uninteresting guy that just wants to talk about his own business.

Apply the 80/20 rule and be of value to your audience:80% provides independent value to the customer

20% self-promotion that is still valuable

SMM-A CONVERSATION, NOT A COMMERCIAL

MUST have a quality website as a home base for your customers.

Provides an outlet to gain more information about your company and brand. Mission Product design, appearance, cost Points of differentiation Location

Provide an important venue for a call to action like: Sales Events New product launch

The website can serve as the point of convergence for your social media marketing eff orts.

WEBSITE-THE NEW STOREFRONT

Indirect Marketing:Marketing that is not primarily intended to solicit an immediate purchase. Brand building Creating a following via content

Direct marketing: Solicits an immediate purchase

Promotional offersUse both. Social media is long-term, indirect marketing to build a following, then direct marketing to generate sales.

DIRECT VS. INDIRECT MARKETING

Online marketing: Using social media Blogs Facebook, Twitter YouTube videos Industry groups and forums

Offl ine: Traditional techniques Face-to-face networking—e.g. Rotary, LinkAnnapolis Seminars and workshops—how-to seminars at West

Marine Print advertising Face-to-face sales Networking events

Use both integrated into your sales process.

ONLINE VS. OFFLINE

Pull Marketing: generated by consumers who actively seek out or ask

for information about products and servicesPush Marketing:

generated by businesses that push messages and information out to customers with the intent of generating interest in the customer.

Best to use both.

PULL VS. PUSH MARKETING

In the new age of customer-focused marketing the four C’s are:

ContentContextConnectionCommunity

THE NEW FOUR C’S OF MARKETING

The Referral Engine, John Jantsch

ContentEducates or provides utility to the customer.Focus not on selling but on providing valuable content to your customer.

ContextMake information relevant to your customer.Create something of value that will allow you to “touch” your customers on a daily or weekly basis.

FOUR C’S CONTINUED

ConnectionSolve simple problems that your customers may have in a way they can understand and get behind.

Use both online and offl ine techniques Community

Communities once defined by geography, now defined by ideas and interests.

Create a community around your business Make your customers proud to be your customers

FOUR C’S CONTINUED

By providing great content and building a following for your business you:Increase your online exposure for the purpose of

SEO. The more content you have on the web the more likely your business

will pop up for key word searches.

Keep you and your business in front of the customer, i.e. increase touch points. So when you have promotions, events, new

products or press releases you can publicize them for “free”.

Establish you or your business as the industry leader or expert Be the must-have for your product or service.

Increase your communication with customers. Find out what they like and, more importantly, what they don’t like.

THE IDEA BEHIND SOCIAL MEDIA

Attention

Educate

Qualify

Close

Comment on blogsLink back to your FB page

or blog

Encourage people to “like” your

page.

Update page with valuable

content

Provide links to relevant content

Update your page with your own insights

Encourage people to

contribute to your page.

“Sneak in” self-

promotion.

Create an event or promotion

Invite your best

fans/customers

Provide an action for your customers to

take.

Update with your own content

Provide action for

customers. (email me)

Follow up with

customers

SOCIAL MEDIA PROCESS

Drive people to your SM

Provide valuable content

Create or join a community of followers

Drive to site, store or event

Convert to sales

Know

Like

Trust

Try

Buy

Repeat

IDEAL CUSTOMER LIFE CYCLE

The Referral Engine, John Jantsch

Each step in the process should lead the customer to the next step in your sales process with a call to action.

Example: You get a print ad for a pizza place in your mailbox with an offer. At the bottom of the ad it says, “like us on Facebook at facebook.com/joepizza to keep up to date on great deals.”

LIFE CYCLE CONTINUED

First impression of your companyNeed clear brand message conveying

your point of diff erentiation. Finding your “purple” is more important than ever. you are not just competing geographically, you are

competing world-wide.Creating a following and community:

Facebook ads Daily Candy: Daily updates on new products. Posting on someone else’s blog, linking back to your

media (Facebook, your blog, etc.)

KNOW

Once the customer knows your company they will need a venue to: like it, follow it and refer others to it.

Does your website, Facebook page, YouTube videos and other social media send the same message?

Is that message seamlessly communicated throughout your brand, including your physical store and business cards?

LIKE

The customer needs to trust your companyThird party reviews online: both good and bad.

Comments on your Facebook page or Google.Provide useful content beyond self-promotion.Make sure brand message is focused and consistent.

With the content you provide, follow the 80/20 rule.

TRUST

Give your customer the opportunity to “try” or experience your product.

This could be: Trial offers that lower the risk or cost of trying your

product. A YouTube video that gives your customer the

experience of your product. Example: YouTube out-of-the-box reviews of the new iPhone.

Great photos on your website or FB page that demonstrate the value of your product.

A seminar or workshop that showcases your skills and shows that you are the industry expert. Webinars YouTube, How-to videos Blogs

TRY

The whole point of all this is to actually convert to sales, not to have a huge following on twitter.

Provide a clear path for your customers to access your product Link your Facebook page to your website where

customers can purchase your product. Your “social face” should have your brand name in it

so people can find your website or store.Use the following you have built up to

promote your product But remember the 80/20 rule.

BUY

Once the customer knows, likes, trusts, tries and actually buys your product the hardest part is done.

You now need to keep up with that customer and make them a champion for your company. Ask them to write a review. If they are not already, bring them into your social

network. Send them personal Facebook messages thanking

them for your business or send periodic public wall posts thanking your customers.

Urge them to refer other friends to your Facebook page or website.

Offer discounts for those who refer other people.Example: Dropbox.com

REPEAT

Inventory your assets: What do you do better than anyone else and what assets do you

have that your customers would find valuable?

Research: Find out what media people who care about your product are using.

Blogs Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn Web searches and reviews, yelp

Talk to customers or potential customers to better understand them.

Segment your market: Demographic Behavioral

With the new social web you can segment customers based on what media they use and how they interact with your business and product and others.

Identify and target your ideal customer: Who would find your greatest assets the most valuable and how will

you reach them?

DEVELOPING YOUR STRATEGY

Social Media Tools

Content Creation• WordPress• Blogger• YouTube• iTunes

(podcasts)• Online

Webinars• Yelp• CitySearch• Prezi

Content Sharing• Twitter• Digg• StumbleUpon• Yahoo! Buzz• SlideShare

Connection Making• Facebook• LinkedIn• Foursquare• Google+

Community Building• Google Groups• Facebook

Groups• LinkedIn

Groups• Industry/

Interest forums

Once you are ready to jump in to SMM here is a checklist of ways to start: Create a website for your business.

Intuit’s website service or hire a freelancer Start a business blog:

www.wordpress.org Start commenting on blogs related to your business:

www.blogsearch.google.com Start a twitter profi le:

www.Twitter.com Start a Facebook profi le:

www.Facebook.com Start a Facebook page:

www.Facebook.com/pages

11 WAYS TO JUMP INTO SOCIAL MEDIA

Start a Facebook group.Start a LinkedIn profi le:

www.Linkedin.com Start a LinkedIn group:

www.Learn.linkedin.com/groups Start a YouTube channel:

www.youtube.com/create_account?next=%2fchannels Get your business online for reviews

www.Yelp.com www.foursquare.com

11 WAYS CONT.

Create a process map of how you plan on acquiring, keeping and converting fans to happy customers.

Include costs of money and time and conversion rates for each step in the process.

Track your performance with Analytics

MAP OUT YOUR PROCESS

STAPLE YOURSELF TO AN ORDER

Once you have your ideal customer identified and your SMM strategy “staple” yourself to an order to better understand how your customer experiences your company. You can do this yourself or have a friend do it and look

over their shoulder.How easy is it for your customer to find your

company?What messages and images do they see first?How easy is it to purchase your product or

contact you for more information?What content are they hit with the most and

what message does that content send?

CASE EXAMPLE

Candles Off MainSells candles through brick-and-mortar and online sales.

TOP HIT ON “CANDLES, ANNAPOLIS” GOOGLE SEARCH

EASY TO USE WEBSITE

EASY TO BECOME A PART OF THE NETWORK

CREATIVE WALL POST TO START A CONVERSATION

http://www.youtube.com/candlesoff main

YOUTUBE CHANNEL WITH CANDLE REVIEWS

Top hit on Google (search: “candles, Annapolis)

Top 20 Facebook fan pages in Inc. Magazine

Nearly 3,000 Facebook fans.Uses most SM tools effectively.Reports some 80% of sales comes from social media and web efforts.

RESULTS

The Referral Engine John Jantsch

30-Minute Social Media Marketing: Step-by-step Techniques to Spread the Word About Your Business Susan Gunelius

RESCOURCES