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Joseph gives a quick heads up on social media reach and impact

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Posted By Benn

graph showing interaction vs proximity

interaction vs proximity graph

Brands are no longer able pitch the credentials of their products to the current social media generation. Push is almost out, but pull is sky rocketing in. Buyers and consumers want trusted and real information from people like themselves and know where to go, to get it. They need it stamped as trustworthy and good for usage (with extra features) not by any company that dreamed up the slogan at a coffee shop meeting, but by the members of a social network that they can see, interact with, and most importantly something that they chose to join. They all have an appetite for the real interaction that generate buzz in which they are a part of. Facebook’s 350 million user posts and its shared 3.5 Billion different content per week, is what these consumers want.

Talk about a lot of possible brand awareness and brand management. People know the members of their social media networks and trust what they have to say. They can access all this information quickly and easily to help them learn about the product, and step into a shop knowing more about the goods compared to the shopkeeper himself.

Social media is about investing in relationships that create more economic value than they cost. It is about engaging with the people who decide whether to buy or not buy what you are selling, like it or dislike it, recommend it or trash it, and even to mould it or to throw it out the window.

A great (and very fun) way to show the power of social media marketing is to enter “(BRAND NAME) sucks” into Google. Put into consideration the fact that around 80% of the information read on the Internet today is not read on the site that it was originally published, but through social media, the word is spread to different websites, blogs, forums and networks. It is no longer just a fad for kids or a way to spread the word about your fart app; social media is evolving as a powerful and a fast paced low-cost, high-reward tool for making the sales, turning profits and taking home the big prize.  The price tag is appealing and it is no holds barred.

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  • http://www.attwaters.co.uk Simon Bullough

    Whilst all of the above is a valid argument it is predicated on the assumption that the ‘hive mind’ is always right. I have read a lot about the oppotunities of social networking for businesses trying to raise brand awareness but what I don’t see too much of is what to do when it all goes wrong – when your product or brand is bad mouthed unfairly. What used to be the old adage that a staisfied customer tells 3 people, a disatisfied customer 10 has become 100s? 1000s? thus meaning that misunderstanding or genuine mistake that was containable in the past can quickly snowball. I believe there can be a real issue with ‘quality’ of advice being based on who shouts the loudest/posts the most. Therefore I would take issue with the assertion that any SN can send us into a shop ‘knowing more than the shopkeeper’, heard more maybe, drowned more in noise certainly, but collective opinion should never replace actual knowledge.

    Or then again maybe it’s my age (north of 40) and I just don’t ‘get’ the children of the revolution.

  • http://www.neoco.com Joseph

    Bad press is not always a bad thing, the turn of events for Paris Hilton made her to be a very successful business woman and a household name by starring her own TV shows, appearing in movies and launching her own brands. This created buzz and with the curiosity of today’s consumers, they almost always get into the mix and put that brand in the back of their mind, bad mouthing never sticks. Brand Awareness achieved.

    The message that about who shouts the loudest is not really the way to do it, rather than 100 messages per hour with no essence or thought, why not a message with lots of presence and quality, which people will remember? Do you recall “just do it”? Agencies like Neoco really look into the demographics, psychographics and every other variable to make sure the messages being sent are for the targeted audience and see have a lingering effect. Check out Topman for example, we did the extensive research on their audience and our campaigns prove to be very successful.

    What is your favourite brand? Go on Facebook, look at their page, read the conversations involved and follow the links to the different websites regarding the information. This is all part of Social Media; it’s a Pull to bring you to the product. By the time you have eased your curiosity about the item that may have caught your attention, you could jump out of your seat and straight into the shops knowing what you want and need to know. The shopkeeper does not do an extensive research on the single product. While the shopkeeper knows what it does, you already know how it ticks.

    This is all based on my opinion though. And north of 40? Isn’t that the new, more fun version of the mid twenties? ;p

  • http://neoco.com they call me Benn

    Thanks for the comment Simon. There is a lot of coverage out there regarding what to do when your brand is bad-mouthed unfairly. I’m a founding member of Word of Mouth UK [http://womuk.net/] and a few months ago we hosted a ‘Leaders’ session at Ogilvy in Canary Wharf. Our key speaker was Emanuel Rosen [http://www.emanuel-rosen.com/] (who was also promoting the revision of his international bestseller Buzz) and he gave some great insight on consumer behaviour here, even quoting Amazon readers who had rated a product with 1 star and a bad review before the product had even been released – and in their own words based purely on what they had heard! I suggest checking out that book.

    Your thoughts on knowledge vs noise are correct and we agree with them. That is why a key part of Neoco activity is working with those who have the knowledge – and often giving them the voice. It’s also important to act fast for the reason you state – stopping the momentum from building behind the false cause. To make sure I give a balanced response I should also mention our team includes PR specialists who will also recommend when you should not act or respond.

    Hope that helps. Let me know if you want a copy of the Buzz book as we have a few here in the office.

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