SPAM-A-LOT: It’s going to get worse…

Posted by Kevin Spidel on Aug 6th, 2009 | Comments

… before it gets better. We are talking about social spam on Twitter.  Other social networks suffer from this problem as well, however recent changes to Twitter this last month has made the issue worse. We feel the worst is yet to come.

This last month, Twitter launched its new front page / logon screen. This gave us insight into their revenue model, which includes trending data and analytics. Many companies  understand that their brands need to be in this space, but they don’t understand how to use social networks.

The proven models are about volume and numbers, not about engagement or advocacy on the social web. Therefore are many semantic bots that have been created and are now spaming the Twitterverse with hashtags and links. Volume, not authenticity, is the focus.

Businesses understand Pay-Per-Clicks and numbers more than they understand brand equity, authentic fellowship and brand advocates on the social web. We at Activating Word of Mouth use a metric that measures a brand’s Social Web Impact. This measures how influential your following is and how authentic.

The reality is, that brands still focus on volume and not engagement. Thus, new strategies like pay-per-tweet and celebrity endorsements are moving forward. This type of marketing will inevitably trend high on the twitter feeds and consequently land on the front page.

Is this good? (more…)

Engage With You Online Network…Offline

Posted by Jennifer Kindred on Jul 29th, 2009 | Comments

Online communities are a fantastic way to meet new people…geography knows no bounds on the Internet.  We may talk about meeting new people from another continent on Facebook or Twitter but ironically we often gravitate to local peeps…even on the Internet.  I love finding people who live in my community to talk to online, we swap stories about the weather, restaurants, and events.

Not surprisingly, online connections end up meeting offline.  Ever heard of a Tweetup?  They are happening all around you, where Twitter folks from the same city meet up (usually at a bar), have a few drinks and converse in more than 140 characters.  In Phoenix, we have Tweetups all over the Valley on Friday nights and then converge on a central location to enjoy Phoenix Friday Nights.

For companies and organizations, creating online communities is the first step to developing a reliable fan base.  Sponsoring offline events such as Tweetups, is a great way to give back to your online fans and encourage them to continue talking about your cause or brand.  For example, Activating WOM assisted in organizing China Mist Tea’s first Tweetup here in Scottsdale, AZ.  The Tweetup was at China Mist’s office, which includes their factory.  Tea tastings, factory tour, great swag, and fabulous company were the highlights of this Tweetup.

The key to a successful offline event is having….fun!  Offline events need to be more than getting people in a room but be creative, socialable and diverse.  Tweetups are great but should be mixed up with other offline activities.  Activating WOM is working with China Mist Tea, Bashas, and Arizona Diamondbacks to organize a Tweet-Hunt.  Similar to a scavenger hunt, the objective of Tweet-Hunt is for participants to create video and/or pictures while performing each offline task.  The first person to successfully post media of all tasks onto Twitter wins the prize.  The winner of China Mist’s Tweet-Hunt will get a pair of club house tickets to an Arizona Diamond Backs game.

Whether you are an individual looking to meet Twitter peeps in your area or a business/organization that wants to interact and give back to your fans; offline engagement is a great way to interact with your network. We are always excited to hear what our readers think…have you attended a Tweetup event?  What kind of event?  Did you have fun?  What was the most creative offline meetup/event that you have participated in?

Meeting people online is a great way to begin a conversation…continue the interaction offline in a fun, socialble, safe environment!

It Comes Down to Numbers

Posted by Jennifer Kindred on Jul 17th, 2009 | Comments

Any marketer knows that messaging is about numbers.  Where you message and how you get that message out takes strategy.  The “where” part of the marketing equation depends on several factors such as geography, product, and consumer demographics.  The “how” is all about what medium you use to get that message out to consumers.  We focus on social web marketing but understand that, like other mediums, this may not be ideal for all companies and products.  However, companies and organizations who do not consider social media in their marketing tool box are making a grave mistake. 

Activating WOM is 100% about marketing on the social web…why?  Because we know that the social web is growing and that where consumers congregate to carry out conversation is where companies and organizations need to be!  Twitter and Facebook are growing at ridiculously fast rates.  According to Nielsen and reported by Mashable, Twitter grew a massive 1,928 percent in the US from June ’08 to June ’09, now reaching a total of 21 million monthly unique visitors.  While Facebook leads all social networking sites with 87.3 million unique visitors in June.

What does this mean?  Well it all comes down to numbers. You can not lightly glance over those numbers above. If you are a company and not thinking about social media as an addition to your marketing plan then you are living under a rock.  If you are an advocacy group and not strategizing about how to get your message out through the social web then you are missing out on your biggest megaphone.

We all know that people use the Internet to communicate and find information, the social web is just another part of this communication.  Denial, fear, and ignorance of these tools will do nothing but allow your business or organization to lose a competitive edge.  At Activating WOM we understand that social media is new to lots of people and want to help businesses and organizations figure out how to integrate the social web into their marketing strategies.

A recession is no time to embrace fear but a time to think creatively and get your message out to a large audiences for the least amount of capital.  Social media can do this and so much more…don’t wait to get on board, engage the social web today.

In Order to Succeed You Must Get Out of the Bubble

Posted by Kevin Spidel on Jul 7th, 2009 | Comments

Many businesses look to other businesses in their market and/or geographic area for ideas. In social media we find this is a double edged sword. We recently wrote about the Perils and Rewards of Being First in the market. This was in response to many conversations with prospective clients wanting to understand more about social media but not really wanting to make that dive into resourcing out part of their marketing budget toward Word of Mouth marketing on the social web.

We at ActivatingWOM have been traveling a lot. We are still amazed that geographic markets drive the decision to jump into the social web. When we are talking to clients in the Bay area, where social media applications, networks, etc are born every day, the dialogue is about new analytics and how to maximize new networks before the main stream takes advantage of these tools. In LA it is about how to define your social presence as it relates to fans of various talents and how engagement is measured. In DC it is about identifying policy trends in conversations and identify influencers of various policy discussions.

In Arizona, people are will watching and learning. Few companies are willing to jump out of their bubble and take the social media plunge. Even the various markets mentioned above are still in a bubble. They rarely look at how practices in these various markets can help with their web presence.

I come from an extensive political background. I saw the “bubble effect” often. In various campaigns you tend to surround yourself with like minded individuals who further strengthen your ideals but tend to disconnect you with others outside your bubble. I often challenged organizations and candidates to get out of their bubble. Washington tends to be so deep in the beltway bubble that they hire pollsters after pollsters to get the pulse of the American public.

On the social web, everything is available. Case study after case study is available. What relevance does it have to your industry? No one else in your industry is really resourcing out this work you say? It is time to get out of your bubble. In a previous post we demonstrated various companies’ success on the social web.

If you are a company that has never used Twitter or often laugh at discussions around social media, I have a test for you. Go to http://search.twitter.com and type in a few words related to your product and or services. I guarantee you that there are conversations happening around your services and or products. From Tea to Athletes we manage a wide range of clients who at one time thought the social web was not for them. This simple tests showcases that there are potential customers and/or fans out there. If they are already talking about you, why are you not engaging?

It is time to get out of the bubble, and make the jump. Don’t let bubble vision keep you from success.

Another Social Media Win – 12seconds Video Contest

Posted by Kevin Spidel on Jun 19th, 2009 | Comments

By Kevin Spidel

World renowned photographer Jose Villa offered a scholarship to his photography workshops in Tuscany, Italy to the winner of his 12Seconds competition.

12Seconds.TV is one of the most popular video messaging sites on the web and also good friends of the ActivatingWOM team.

The video contest received over 4700 votes. Online word of mouth actions such as ReTweets, submissions, and advertising of each artists’ submission drove new views to Jose’s website and piqued interests of many who had not previously known about his workshops.

Jose also created a twitter account and actively engaged in conversations: http://twitter.com/ItalyWorkshop

The submitted videos demonstrated artistic talents from around the world and exposed artists’ works to the social web. The bonus was that by using 12seconds.tv the contest was interactive with the artist, kept the attention span of new viewers, and was entertaining.

Here are the top picks: http://josevilla.bigfolioblog.com/weblog/post/110789

And the winner:

shiz-what? on 12seconds.tv

By engaging his online audience to produce their own content about his workshops, Jose not only won over new fans, but received more creditable word of mouth advertising than if he had worked through traditional firms, which would have required a large budget for less return.

This is authentic word of mouth marketing on the web. It is a social media win!

On the Social Web, Respect – Not Numbers, Matter

Posted by Kevin Spidel on Jun 17th, 2009 | Comments

By Kevin Spidel

People often look at the number of followers/fans of others’ online networks as a way to evaluate the network’s influence.  In the beginning…numbers mattered on the social web; however, we have evolved and are now entering a social web Renaissance where the number of engaged followers matter.  Engagement is measured by followers’/fans’ responses to your content.

On social network sites such as YouTube and Flickr, where the content is the central piece of the conversation, view counts are still relevant.  Yet, with networks like Facebook and Twitter (the two largest growing networks) the central content focus is the conversation.

So those of you reading this blog who are not already faithful followers of our writings, we will once again reiterate the importance of authentic conversations on the social web.  Since social networks revolve around conversation, authentic engagement is a must! The culture of Twitter and Facebook is very open and welcoming; however, if you begin even the slightest spam, repeating, mass messaging technique versus real engagement, these networks are very unforgiving. Users can block your content with a click of a button; forever shutting you out of their content stream. You have one chance to capture social network users in a positive manner, so make a positive splash on the social web and engage authentically.

How?

Social network users are real people, real potential customers or fans of you. They are online to connect to like minded folks.  Brands do not engage, people do!  Remember that you are an individual who is talking about a brand.  Be human first.

In the latest blog post from Social Media Marketing UK they talk about the social web replacing corporate CRM software because of the authentic real and accessible value of the social web: (link here.)

What impact will this have on you and your company?

If you approach social web engagement as a numbers game, you will fail.  If you approach it as building your name identification and engaging into a larger community, you will win. Don’t focus on the numbers. Why, you ask?  Here is an example of authentic respect on the social web versus quantity of fans.  Let’s take a look at the ever so popular actor Aston Kutcher’s influence on Twitter.

As of 6/16/2009 he has 2,212,447 followers; one of the largest, if not the largest, following on Twitter.  Is that influential? Possibly…but let’s really look at the numbers.

•    In the last 24 hours Ashton had 300 ReTweets (Fans who replicated what he was saying verbatim) – That is approximately .013% of his network.

•    His last TwitPic (photo posted live from his mobile device to Twitter) received 44,235 views. That is approximately 1.9% of his network.

Sure the numbers are there, but is he an influencer to his network?  We argue no.  He is not engaging in even 3% of his network.  The value of having over 2 million followers is diminished if less than 5% of those followers do not actually engage and respond to your content.

From an athlete’s sponsor or a brand associated with a personality do these numbers (eyes) matter as much as the interactions of those who listen, ReTweet and evangelize content from a strong network? No.

Sponsors, brands, and those who want to really impact the social web care about strength in the network. This is something you can’t fake.  You can’t buy billboards and ask folks to “follow you on Twitter” as Ashton did and expect quality network.  You must engage naturally and earn your network’s respect. We are here to help coach you in that process.

Below is an example of a strong network.  Let’s stay within the celeb world since we picked on Ashton’s network and take a look at actress Alyssa Milano.

Alyssa_Milano has 89,225 followers but is an active Twitterer.

•    She has over 350 ReTweets in the last 24 hours that is approximately .39% of her network.

Although she has significantly less followers then Ashton; she has nearly the same return on ReTweets.

Imagine if her numbers were double and she still actively engaged on Twitter in her naturally authentic way.  Her influence level would be double Ashton’s with far less followship.

Let’s take a look at her last twitpics:

•    One received 5,362 views, which is approximately 6% of her network.
•     The other received 4,782 views, which is approximately 5.35% of her network.

The best part about these two photographs is that they were taken by her fans, of her fans, wearing HER jeans in a place she loves to spend time (a baseball park.) She merely ReTweeted what her fans did and earned them nearly 10 thousand in views. This is true engagement!

Photos here: http://twitter.com/Alyssa_Milano/status/2171411248
http://twitter.com/Alyssa_Milano/status/2171383587

What is the difference between these two celebs?  Alyssa is actively engaging in conversations with her fans rather then using Twitter as a megaphone.

On the social web, it is about respect and authenticity of your networks… not numbers.

Your Customers Are Talking About You – Why Aren’t You Talking To them?

Posted by Kevin Spidel on Jun 12th, 2009 | Comments

By Jennifer Kindred

Last week Kevin and I spent several days in the Bay Area.  The trip was a professional and personal success for both of us; we met and interacted with amazing people all over the Bay Area, particularly in Santa Cruz.  I could go on and on about our trip, but then would miss the point of this blog entry, which is utilizing the social web in our everyday lives.
On our last day in San Francisco we had a meeting with a potential client who suggested we go to lunch and that I pick the place.  Hmmm, I’m a Chicago gal, not so familiar with San Francisco, so my first instinct was to go to Yelp.com.  Yelp is a great resource for reviews of almost anything, including restaurants.  The site not only gives you information about the restaurant but provides reviews from people who have eaten at the restaurant.  This is word of mouth in its purest form on the web.

I thought about the power the reviewers had over a restaurant’s business and my choice.  I personally do not put 100% stock in other people’s opinions but in a world of infinite choices, others opinions do provide guide posts.  Quite honestly, I am much more apt to bypass a restaurant if there are several bad reviews on a site like yelp.

Sites like Yelp are a PR agencies worst nightmare…no control over the reviews.  However, that is because traditional and Web 2 types do not understand how to engage and use both good and bad reviews that are found on the social web.  Bad reviews are often the most valuable pieces of information that a business such as a restaurant can find.  If a restaurant contacted the reviewer and engaged in real conversation about the bad review and then offered to compensate them for having a bad experience at their restaurant; the restaurant would have just taken a negative impression and turned into a positive interaction with a customer.

Word of mouth marketing gives power to the consumer but also allows the business to find out exactly how their product/service is being perceived and consumed.  A major part of Activating WOM  is to track semantic conversations about our client’s service/product.  In a world full of choices make sure you are engaging your customers in a meaningful way.

The next time you are in a new city and rely on the social web to navigate restaurant choices, remember to provide meaningful reviews about your experiences.  Empower yourself through Web 3!

Activating WOM the WRONG Way: Celebrity Edition

Posted by Kevin Spidel on Jun 7th, 2009 | Comments

By Kevin Spidel

We are up in the Bay area this week discussing the big differences between traditional PR and Social Media Consultation versus Activating Word of Mouth. We are surprised to find how many CEO’s and Public Relations firms are still not understanding that Word of Mouth authentic engagement can be managed within a social network. They feel it is strictly organic. Organic conversation growth is a big part of WOM, but having organic growth and detailed strategy is not mutually exclusive.

One topic that keeps coming up is celebrities using Twitter and Facebook. Access is now more convenient for their fans to create conversation with celebrities they love. This is exactly what traditional PR agencies fear, turning their clients loose on the web with no filter.

On June 5^th Shaq caused some drama in the athletic world that then  activated word of mouth on the social web. At first glance it just seems like a simple spat among two high-profile athletes. Shaq posted an unusual series of taunts and insults tweets about Howard, while the Orland Magic star has been quiet since losing to the L.A. Lakers on Thursday.

This prompted coverage in the New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/06/sports/06leading.html?_r=1

This is the wrong way to activate word of mouth and becomes costly to the individual athletes who now need a PR firm to clean up their social web faux pas. Further social media mistakes might prevent others from effectively using Twitter and engaging their fans for fear of similar things happening.

This is where strategic word of mouth is needed. Before an athlete makes the jump onto the social web there needs to be a plan, coaching, and the ability rapidly respond with support should something go awry.

Here is some of AWOM secret sauce to manage celebrities’ social media web presences:

• Step one: Evaluate the digital footprint of the athlete
• Step two: Determine what role each social network will play in impacting that digital footprint
• Step three: Coach the individual about authentic engagement without compromising the plan
• Step four: Engage

Online Social Networks are NOT Going Away

Posted by Kevin Spidel on Jun 5th, 2009 | Comments

By Jennifer Kindred

Our recent blogs have focused on the importance of authentic conversations when engaging folks on social networks.  We feel that we have driven this point home, if you haven’t gotten it by now…please read our last 4 blog posts.  This blog is about the type of business that can really benefit from social networking, mainly small businesses.
The New York Times recently published an article about small businesses utilizing social networks as a key part of their marketing plans.  According to the article over 260,000 North American businesses currently use social networking to promote their businesses; social networks are free and provide a large community of consumers.
The article points out businesses that have been successful at marketing through social networks.  These success stories all have similar themes consisting of companies seeking social community users interested in their product/cause and engaging them through conversations and online incentives.  These well thought out plans yielded great results for activist organizations and small businesses.  However, too often small businesses simply splash and spam online communities and do not execute sound strategies before introducing their business to social networks.
Unfortunately, these businesses do not find value in social networks and fail to continue utilizing them in their marketing strategies.  This is like having a bad experience with an automobile and then claiming that the whole idea of horseless carriages (aka cars) is bad and the disgruntled company invests in buggies.  Not only did the company lose money in buggies but would have been the laughing stock of the 20th century.
New technologies, communication methods, and marketing strategies should be embraced by small businesses.  For a small business to give up on social networking is like the company who have up on automobiles and bet on the buggy…the business will lose.  We encourage small businesses to jump into the social networking frenzy, but also to educate themselves on how to correctly engage in online communities.
Educate and initiate, don’t be afraid to take the next plunge into online communications.