by Bruce Newman

   This article was originally published in The Productivity Institute (PI) Newsletter

Social media is constantly evolving.  With over 400 million Facebook users alone, it has rapidly become the most common activity on the Internet.  Yet, many companies are either unaware or have decided to ignore the two-sided nature and power of social media.

People are greatly influenced by what they hear from other people.  For example, if I want to buy a new car and several people I know tell me that they have had a terrible experience with the type of car I am considering, they will influence my decision and my thought process even if I decided to go ahead and purchase that particular car.

We can readily extend this scenario into the social media realm.  Now, when I tell the world about the car I am thinking of buying, literally thousands of people can weigh-in on their experience – or purported experience and in all likelihood influence my decision.  And that’s the power of social media – for better or worse. 

People are readily influenced by what they read about in social media.  A recent survey reported that 68% of people can be influenced by what they read online.  Furthermore, if they read something negative about a product or service they are considering, 53% of the readers will look into a competitor’s offering.  A second study found that 67% of Facebook fans and 51% of Twitter followers were influenced by comments made from other users on those respective platforms.  It is therefore important for companies to quickly respond to negative – or positive - comments on social media.  It doesn’t matter if they are realistic or not, a prompt response is important.

Prior to the Internet, when a customer had a problem with a product, he or she would just complain to the company or its assigned representatives – few other people, if any, were made aware of the problem.  That is no longer the case.  If someone has a problem with a product and tweets about it, the whole world can rapidly become aware of it.

Fortunately, social media also provides the means of rapidly responding to people’s comments and complaints.  Many large companies have set up teams that constantly search blogs and social media looking for some reference to their company.  One such company, Starbucks for example, has been known to issue coupons for free drinks for people who have tweeted with a problem or complaint.  This is not to say that social media can be used to rectify a problem, only that it can provide a (hopefully) friendly interface through which companies can rapidly and more inexpensively interact with their customers.

In preparation for a recent talk, I looked up a major computer company’s fan page to see what people were discussing and how that company was handling it.  Given its positive reputation and technical savvy, I was stunned to read the comments on the page almost unanimously panning its products.  In fact, one person even wrote, “Hey, don’t you want to do something about all of these negative comments?  Do you think anyone is going to buy one of your machines after reading this?”   (The company’s surprisingly latent reaction was to merely remove the fan page.)

Customer service can greatly enhance or detract from a company’s reputation.  Fast and helpful customer service will enhance the customer experience.  Considering the extremely high cost of customer acquisition and that existing customers will spend over seven times as much as a new customer, monitoring social media and creating an effective online customer service response – even for a small company, can greatly enhance a company’s reputation and sales.

Bruce Newman is the Vice President at The Productivity Institute, LLC, a leader in locating, evaluating and matching the specific areas of expertise of consultants to the needs of its clients.  An expert on social media, Bruce constantly writes and gives talks on many facets of social media including branding, social media strategies and policy.  He has also developed several social media courses, services and products including: Social Media Policy, Social Media Starter Pack, and Maintenance and Management (available through the PI website or by clicking here). In addition, Bruce is the editor of the Productivity Institute Newsletter, a free content-is-king newsletter and thought leader.  Follow him on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and the Productivity Institute blog.

by Katie Mead

   This article was originally published in The Productivity Institute (PI) Newsletter

Walking into a crowded room full of professional people you don’t know can be stressful; it can even be terrifying.  However, networking is an essential tool for the successful business person, and though phone and email exchanges are invaluable, there’s nothing like the face-to-face meeting to make a real connection. 

So, unless you’re naturally extroverted or come from a solid performance background, you might be interested in a few tips to ensure that great first impression so crucial for forging profitable, sustainable, long-term partnerships to help build your business and make sure it continues to thrive.

1. Dress the part 
It may seem insignificant, but a first impression starts here.  What is your business?  Who is your target market?  What connections are you looking to make?  If you own a funky skateboard shop your ‘business casual’ might be different than that of the partner in a successful accounting firm.  Just remember that people will probably make assumptions about you and your business practices based on the image you project – your clothes are a part of the total package.  If you look sloppy, does it mean your business habits might be sloppy also?

2. Jokes: avoid them 
Although a couple of witty off-the-cuff comments might inject some levity into an otherwise awkward situation, you’ll want to be very careful.  Humour is subjective and if you launch into your stand-up routine, however well-intended, you may risk offending your new acquaintance.  Being known as charming and funny is great, but no one wants to be branded obnoxious.  Keep away from controversial topics, keep your comments on the conservative side and pick up on body language cues – this will reduce the likeliness of a major gaffe.

3. Use the person’s name
Not only will this help with memorization, it will indicate to your listener that you consider them important enough to pay attention to what they’ve said.  This will help personalize the conversation and will show that you are engaged by what the other person is saying.  And the next time you see them, when you’re able to remember their name, this will really impress them.

4. Cultivate excellent listening skills 
This doesn’t have to be complicated: as the other person talks, let them know subtly that you are paying attention.  Compliant head nods and comments like, “I see what you mean” are good ways to do this, and if you require any clarification don’t be afraid to ask questions.  Let the other person be the centre of the conversation.  If you monopolize the conversation, you risk being perceived as a selfish person. 

Instead of talking incessantly about yourself, make sure to ask questions of the other person and really listen to what they have to say.  While being polite, you will learn much more about the other person, better situating yourself to be of service to them in a business capacity.  Be an active listener and never interrupt anyone who’s talking to you.  Not only is this rude, but it will definitely work against a good first impression.

All of this, combined with an open smile, clear speech, and a good, firm handshake will definitely help your chances of making a great first impression.  The last ingredient is experience.  These tips will help, but the best thing you can do for your business is to conquer your reluctance and just get out there. 

Each time you enter the room and each time you approach a total stranger, the exercise will get easier – take advantage of the networking opportunities available to you and hone those skills.  Presumably your business excellence will keep them coming back.  But you’ve got to meet prospective clients in the first place.    
   
Katie Mead is the co-founder of Springboard Consulting, Katie is a passionate about good communication.  From a diverse background in the fine arts, she has developed a proven track record of success working in both the for-profit and non-profit sectors. Her particular areas of expertise include marketing, grant writing, non-profit resource building and management, fundraising, and the design and launch of various keynote projects and events.  Katie can be reached at:  katie@springboardconsulting.ca

by Raj Kadam

   This article was published in The Productivity Institute (PI) Newsletter

Marketers have gotten wiser during the turbulent economy. They know that they need to demonstrate their value the same way that the sales department does, or else their budgets, and possibly their jobs, will be far less secure. The CMO position has been known to have the shortest expected tenure of any in the C-suite. 

The challenge is no longer merely acquiring the data but being able to fully understand it and take the appropriate action because of it.  

Out of the rabbit-hole

We can talk all day about the importance of analytics and measurement, but the real question is whether or not you’re measuring the right things for the right reasons.

The best measurement efforts start with clear goals. You need to have a framework that identifies exactly what you’re trying to measure.  Here are a couple questions you should ask yourself to help focus in on what you should really be measuring:

Why do you have a social media function at your company?

• Customer Service?
• Marketing/PR?
• SEO?
• Product development/support?
• Grassroots marketing?
• Sales?

What social sites/platforms are most relevant to your community/customers?

Who are you trying to reach with your program?  Customers? Influencers? 

Once you are clear on why you’re doing this in the first place, then you can start thinking about what metrics and analytics matter most to you.  You do not want to spend your time looking at metrics that are good indicators of how well an influencer relations program is going when your program is all about customer service. 

Here are some examples of readily available analytics that tie back to specific intents of a social media program.  Some of them apply to many different types of programs, but the point is to start thinking about which ones are most relevant to your specific program. 

• Engagement - If you are using social media to drive sales, and your product requires true engagement, multiple conversations and a strong relationship to get someone to a purchasing decision, then you should be paying attention to data that indicates high engagement. 
• Traffic - If you’re a big brand and creating a lot of chatter across the web, do you know the traffic levels of the sites where you are going out and engaging?  Your efforts should be focused on finding the stuff that is driving the most results for your business. If you’re a major brand, chances are there is more ROI for you when you focus your efforts on higher-traffic sites.
• Sentiment - How do people feel about your product or service?  For some brands, social media is a lot like a real-time focus group.  Sentiment should be incredibly important to you if you have chosen to strategically use social media as a way to inform your product development priorities.  If people are generally positive or negative about a product or new feature, there should be a feedback loop to the development team.
• Viral Analysis - What is going viral for your product or brand and why? Sorry, tag clouds don’t count. You want to see what kinds of trends are emerging for your product or service in real time, and you should have a good sense of WHY they managed to go spread so far, so fast. This should be a measurement priority for businesses that know word-of-mouth and grassroots marketing is a big driver of sales for their products.
• Influencer Tracking – Are you a relatively new company, or an entirely new type of product?  If you’re targeting early adopters and influencers for credibility, then you should know at any given moment who your biggest influencers are, what they’re saying and where they are talking about you.

Many of these metrics will apply to several types of social media programs, but the trick is to have the discipline to determine which analytics are critical to YOUR social media program, and use them accordingly to take action.

The success of any marketing campaign is dependent upon many factors.  In determining its success and how to proceed, the data that is collected and its relevance must be carefully assessed.  Being able to accurately compile and completely understand the data that is collected may be the difference between a successful company and one that ultimately, may fail.

Raj Kadam is the CEO and Co-founder of Viralheat Inc., a social media analytics firm focused on delivering detailed social media analytics to major brands and agencies world-wide. You can find more information about the service at http://www.viralheat.com and via email at info@viralheat.com.