The Mountaintop Insights, Inspiration and Perspective for Enlightened Marketers

April 5, 2010

Nice Guys Finish First – Natural Selection in Social Media

Filed under: Customer Experience,Customer Loyalty,Human Behavior,Social Experience Design,Social Media — Jeff @ 2:49 pm

Oh the irony.

For centuries, the bad business guy has perceivably won every encounter. He has manipulated and lied and under delivered and gotten away with it every time because we were all kept in the dark. With marketing on their side, we were lured into the spider’s web only to be caught in contracts, given poor service and saddled with products that didnt meet expectations. This was the natural way of things. We were prey, they were predators.

The good guy suffered, sometimes achieved great things, sometimes not. He suffered, not by his own hand, but because we had no trust anymore – a shared fate resulting from the bad guy’s destruction of consumer faith. And really, don’t all companies look and sound the same? Not anymore. Social Media has finally given the nice guys a way to prove themselves; a way to show through listening and action that they are indeed different and worthy like my beloved Starbucks.

I look at it as karmic revenge. Social Media has given nice guys the ultimate tool to win the hearts and minds of customers. It is an evolutionary cycle in the making between companies that only take and companies that give and take equally.

How would Darwin have seen it?

I think that the best example I could find was how Darwin looked at the selection of favourable traits over injurious traits. In new environments such as Social Media, old corporate traits like greed and not listening would be considered injurious; a factor that leads invariably to extinction. Whereas a trait such as listening and reacting (in a reasonable amount of time) is a favourable trait in Social Media; a factor that contributes to dominance in nature and the expansion of the species, or the brand as the case may be.

Is it possible to evolve or take on these favourable traits? Of course, but not many companies today can do it easily, if at all. To those nice guy companies though, Social Media has ushered in the dawning of a new era in business – an era where nice guys finish first.

How big does the apple have to be?

Now all we have to do as customers is wake up and get over our own self-limiting behaviour of being in abusive relationships to realize that there are nice guys out there who want to earn our business and not take advantage of us at every step. A company that will love us and hold us figuratively close.

What is the business equivalent of spooning anyway?

Ferociously,

Jeff – Sensei

March 15, 2010

Focus on the Social Approach, Not the Social Medium

Filed under: General,Human Behavior,Social Experience Design,Social Media — Jeff @ 3:45 pm

One of the things I have been preaching about for the past while is not to focus on the medium, but on the approach in Social Media Environments. I have taken to calling this the Social Experience.

What is Social Experience Design?

Much the same as Customer Experience Design, it is the design of an experience that is specific to being social with your customers in online environments. While it is similar to customer experience which covers much of the enterprise (from marketing to sale to customer service) it is also very unique.

Why? Because Online Social Environments are so unique and very unlike what the majority of companies have experienced before.

How is Social Experience Unique?

Here’s a short list I’ve been working on:

  • It is a 2way conversation – Since when did we want our customers to do anything but listen to us???
  • It is personal ranging from 1-1 conversations to 1-many/many-1
  • It is shared control with your customer or prospect and this makes every Enterprise with control issues very, very uncomfortable.
  • It is about them, not about you. This is the killer, especially in B2B, where we are so used to talking about ourselves and nothing else.

.

The Value of Social Experience Design in the Enterprise.

So if you are able to craft an approach that delivers a positive social experience, you should be able to apply this to ANY social media environment from the big public wastelands like Twitter and Facebook to private customer environments and everything in between.

If your approach is wrong and the experience is indifferent or negative, it won’t matter where you go, you will fail.

The Medium is Going to Evolve

Betting on the medium right now carries a lot of risk for many reasons. Think back to other media that have died, but seemed great at the time such as VHS, CD/DVD, and desktop computers just to name a few.

To put it in the perspective of online media declines, I’ve captured some specifics below:

  • Some Social Media channels are already showing signs of decline such as My Space. When the celebrities and self proclaimed gurus leave Twitter for the next big thing, Twitter will decline rapidly too.
  • Mobile culture is going to be one of the biggest driving forces for change in the next few years, especially in B2B. According to IDC, the shift to mobile is immense and in the immediate with nearly 1 billion mobile workers accessing enterprise systems this year.
  • For B2B and B2C alike, innovations like augmented reality are going to begin to draw more people to the mobile realm. So how long do laptops and traditional websites really have?

.

One thing is clear, the media we use to communicate with our customers (and they to us!) is going to continue to evolve rapidly with our without us. By focusing on the social experience, we create a much more adaptable approach to evolutionary changes in the social medium.

The Tail End of the Horse

I have always believed that marketers latch onto new media channels like Social Media way too late. By the time most companies get caught up to speed on Social Media it will have changed yet again, and guess what, email or something else we GenXers hold dear may have gone the way of the Dodo too.

What we need to do is get in front of the horse and try to see where its going instead of walking behind it and getting shit on our shoes.

Disagree? Agree? Just want to argue the points? Let me know!

Cheers!

Jeff – Sensei

March 13, 2010

Is Your Brand Naturally Predisposed for Success in Social Media?

Filed under: Customer Experience,Social Experience Design,Social Media — Jeff @ 8:49 am

I was in Starbucks this morning (Venti Americano – just milk) and it struck me. As I looked at the environment inside I couldn’t help but see the digital version of this cafe within a twitter or Facebook like setting.

What struck me is how the staff really make the difference here. The staff at this particular location are highly interactive with the customers and this creates a far friendlier atmosphere. The customers got to know each other and the tables come together easily resulting in broad and wonderful discussions with people of all sorts. Their attitude is infectious and it is the same in their Social Media presence.

What Makes Starbucks Naturally Successful?

In my mind, Starbucks has the winning formula for success in Social Media, but they had it before Social Media became hot. They have a social brand. And it isn’t just the cafe setting and the friendly staff. Here are some other social traits they have going for them.

  • Alignment and tremendous real involvement with the Green Movement
  • A social approach to customer service enabling them to connect with almost any customer in an emotional way
  • Affordable quality in all of their products making them huge with GenXers in particular
  • An internal culture that is naturally social and this comes out in how well they are able to connect with the community they are in the customers they serve.

.

So I started following Starbucks on Twitter and it is absolutely fascinating. They have taken what they do so well in their cafe and have very successfully reproduced it on Twitter. Here you have a number of staff tasked with making every single person that comes into the Twitter channel feel good.

So now, I’m going to start looking at other brands that I believe are Naturally Social and see how they are doing in Social Media environments. Is there a set of best practices for example that can be learned from these great companies?

If you know of any that are exemplary of Naturally Social Brands, then please let me know.

Cheers!

Jeff – Sensei

March 12, 2010

Social Territory – Natural Human Patterns in Social Media

Filed under: Customer Experience,Human Behavior,Social Experience Design,Social Media — Jeff @ 3:23 pm

So I have been thinking…

What if we could look at where people go online and how they interact in those places like we understand ranges or territories for mammals? For example, my online range includes:

  • My cave (my blog) where I am safe and feel the most comfortable
  • Places where I hunt for “food” to nourish both personal and business needs. This includes Twitter and Linked In
  • Places where I can be with others of my species; their blogs, focused communities, etc.
  • New areas where I can expand my ability to increase any of the above and does not have too many competitors

This range tends to define who I am online as part of my overall brand.

But it is more than that I think.

For others, their ranges could include places to find mates (various dating sites), better food sources (leads and prospecting) and places to improve their natural capabilities (be that cooking, parenting,  education, shopping, etc).

So How Does This Apply to Business?

Well, maybe looking at customers and understanding their range gives us new insight or better understanding of them – a broad, shallow view rather than narrow and deep. Certainly as Large Enterprises look to understand a customer or prospect they tend to take a very narrow and deep view of that person; focusing only on what is directly relevant to what we want them to buy.

Consider for a minute looking at designing a customer experience – it really is about how that person experiences your brand in the broadest sense of the word – every touch point both direct and indirect. Maybe a territorial perspective gives the possibility of new insight into how they experience your brand? Especially in nebulous environments like Social Media.

I will be exploring this theory more as part of my research and writing for my Book – On Social Media: How Big Business Can Leverage Natural Selection in Social Media to Become a Dominant Species.

March 7, 2010

Social Relationship Strategy for Large Enterprise B2B – Part 1 of 4 on Social Experience Design

Filed under: Demand Generation,Social Experience Design,Social Media — Jeff @ 12:00 pm

For large enterprise, the rationale to get involved in public social media needs to be well thought out before deciding its right for your business and your customers. It should be approached strategically from the outset.

Why Strategy is Critical

The first question you need to ask is “Can Social Media actually do anything for me as a large enterprise serving other businesses?” Its a tough question that needs exploration in regards to who you want to target and will/are these people using Social Media channels now. Here are some points to think about and remember

  • Decision-makers don’t use it. Senior Executives are unlikely to use it at all. They are much more likely to listen to colleagues. IF you have something mobile however, they can be very active.
  • Influencers do use it. Many types of influencers use Social Media but each one has different reasons for it.
    • Middle Management: Typical usage is for personal reasons, but many blend business interests with personal. They are looking to advance in ranks in their companies so any knowledge or interactions that help make them more capable will go over well. Most are GenXers.
    • Thought leaders: These individuals vary the most and will be looking for content and interaction that promotes thought on specific ideas important to them and the businesses they represent. They will be more involved, more vocal on opinions, and asking more questions.
    • Media and analysts: Journalism went online a while ago and many have taken to the new medium of Social Platforms. These people are highly active in using the web to research and to share their findings and opinions. Most of them are very active in the blogging community.
  • Now ask who are you targeting? Where do they live online? What do they want or value from you?
    • What do they want? Needs, issues, drivers.
    • Do you have ideas to share with them that are actually different
    • Do you have an approach that matches Social Media delivery? (Friendly, engaging, balanced, not trying to sell, nor promoting yourself are all good starters)
    • Do you have a spokesperson/team that these people will accept and respect?

.

The Importance of Research

Researching your targets, where they live and what they want is primary to success. Without it, you are basically throwing crap against the wall and hoping something sticks.  The other things you need to consider are:

  • Who are the third party thought leaders in the areas you want to plant your flag in?
  • What is the competition doing in these areas and how can you craft a more meaningful, differentiated approach?

.

The Executional Plan

This is where it all either works or falls apart. This should coordinate 4 very important factors:

  1. People: Who are your people (roles and responsibilities) and who is the target audience
  2. Content: These are your ideas, opinions, thinking, and content on specific areas of interest to your targets
  3. Channels: Everyone thinks Twitter, YouTube and FaceBook, but in my experience, these are secondary (or even useless) compared to blogs, newsletters, and community sites that are just off the radar.
  4. Actions: What are our objectives, how are we going to acheive these objectives, and how does it integrate with everything else we are doing?

Once you have the research done and the strategic plan, you need to coordinate it with other marketing and relationship initiatives. Live events are a powerful medium for connecting the people you have built relationships with online to your people and your brand. After all, events are highly social.

Critical Objectives and What Social Media can Deliver

Do not look at Social Media as a channel that can deliver sales. Look at it as a channel that can deliver relationships that can deliver top of mind presence that leads to sales. The tremendous power of social media is its reach and interaction capability. If you manage expectations back to the Enterprise with this understanding, you can manage your risk for delivering results easily.

Remember, decision-makers are most likely to be influenced by peers or subordinates in their organization or busienss networks. Craft your strategy to reach those people so that your ideas reach the top of the totem pole through people decision-makers trust.

Please feel free to comment, push back or ask questions on this or any other topic. I enjoy every discussion.

Jeff – Sensei

« Newer Posts — Older Posts »

Powered by WordPress