2013 - Page 2 of 43 - Corporate Eye

December 18, 2013

Brand Engagement and Customer Care in Social Media

The Sprout Social Index: Engagement and Customer Care report analyzes brand responsiveness, industry responsiveness, channel growth, and consumer behavior to identify how well brands are meeting consumer expectations for social media engagement and customer service. Unfortunately, the report reveals that as more and more consumers turn to Twitter and Facebook to communicate with brands when they need answers to questions and solutions to problems, brand performance is declining both in terms of response rate and response time.

The problem for brands is volume. The Sprout Social Index reports that messages sent to brands on Twitter and Facebook that require a response or attention has increased by 175% in the past year. On a per message fan basis, the Sprout Social Index reports that Twitter users are more engaged with brands than Facebook users. On average, brands receive 60 messages per 1,000 followers each month on Twitter versus 39 messages per 1,000 fans per month on Facebook. This is most likely due to the more open nature of Twitter where users can share content without being friends with another user (or brand) or following another user (or brand).

Consumer Expectations for Brands Have Changed

Regardless of the tool, consumers are turning to social media for customer service, sales support, and more. As such, they’re expectations for acceptable brand response rates and times are changing, but brands are falling behind. According to the report, average social media response time across all industries dropped from 10.9 hours to 11.3 hours between the third quarter of 2012 and the third quarter of 2013. During the same time period, response rates on both Facebook and Twitter dropped below 20% overall. Justyn Howard, Sprout Social CEO, explains why this matters to brands:

“A 20% response rate to messages requiring attention means that four out of five consumer inquiries go unanswered. This would not be tolerated in traditional channels like phone and email and is not a sustainable practice.”

Brand Reputation Hinges on Effective Social Care

This isn’t just a customer service issue, because social media is public-facing. Today, it’s a strategic brand imperative to increase budgets, manpower, training, performance analyses, and investments in appropriate tools to ensure social media content and interactions represent your brand in a manner that consistently supports your brand promise.

The Sprout Social Index offers seven suggestions for brands to improve their social performance, including:

Staff for experience: Don’t put interns in charge of your most public and visible channel (behind in-person).
Build for responsiveness: Your social team should have the right skills, training, information and authority to respond quickly and appropriately.

Follow the link at the beginning of this article to view all of the data in the report as well as the full tips to provide better social customer care to support your brand. If you haven’t done it already, make 2014 the year where you prioritize brand engagement and customer care in social media.

Image: William Hook

December 17, 2013

Using Pinterest in your Video Marketing Campaign

I invited Joe Cox to discuss Pinterest and video marketing. Pinterest is becoming ever more significant as a referral tool; would including it in your video marketing campaign work for you?

The Rise of a Real Heavyweight

As the fastest growing social network on the planet and the second largest driver of traffic to publishers after Facebook, Pinterest has become impossible to ignore from a marketing perspective. Pinterest now refers more traffic than Twitter, Reddit, LinkedIn and Google+ combined, with the last two of these respectively showing a drop and stagnation in referral traffic to publishers.

Marketers know all too well how the social media landscape can change in the blink of an eye and Pinterest is a perfect example of these constantly shifting sands.

Ever since Pinterest lifted their ban on commercial and business accounts, there has been a steady growth in brand promotion on the social network, with many companies’ Pinterest pages acting as a virtual shopfronts, driving sales far more effectively than their Facebook equivalent. There is also increasing evidence that Pinterest can have a strong impact on Google SERPS but more on SEO a bit later.

The commercial potential isn’t just limited to B2C sales either, it is an effective platform for businesses to communicate with other businesses as well, creating powerful networks of inter-connected companies (think of a wedding photographer repinning images of flower arrangements from a local florist). In the same vein Pinterest can also be used to facilitate effective corporate comms, helping to connect departments, shareholders and stakeholders by allowing them, for example, to instantly track and comment on the progress of a product or project.

It’s not just about the Pictures

Pinterest’s focus on imagery has allowed brand marketers to spread images of their products in innovative and often brilliant ways. With all this focus on imagery it’s easy to forget the power of Pinterest to promote video content and drive traffic to your site or YouTube channel.

So what are the best ways to get traffic heading your way using video on Pinterest? Well, like most social networks, the most important thing to understand is that you generally only get out as much as you put in. Pinning your own videos will only get you noticed if you create entertaining, engaging content that isn’t too long.

Remember that the videos you post show your personality; whilst this is true of an individual it is equally true of a company or business. Make sure you curate other people’s content and engage with the movers and shakers in your field, as well as those that may make people sit up and take notice. Building connections on social networks requires a degree of reciprocity, so share other people’s content and you might find them sharing yours.

To SEO or not to SEO

Backlinks from Pinterest are no follow but source links aren’t which means every image you pin, and then subsequently gets repinned, can influence your SEO.

Whilst it’s important to point out here that Pinterest still needs to be viewed as a social network and not an SEO tool, it’s something that every marketer would be wise to bear in mind.

There is a lot of debate on the net as to the SEO potential of Pinterest but it’s unlikely that social networks of any type will lend themselves to the practice of link building. Sharing and interaction are key to marketing success here; posting hundreds of videos and images will only serve to tick people off and make you a social network pariah.

Some Sound Advice

If you want your video content to be repinned and your fan base to burgeon it’s important to get the basics right first. Writing a short description for your video is often rushed or simply overlooked as window dressing, but it’s important to put some serious thought into this. A keyword rich description with hashtags will serve you well from an SEO perspective, as well as performing the perfunctory yet essential task of informing your audience.

Another excellent tip is to add the word ‘video’ to your pin or board titles. This will help people who are searching in the video category by flagging your content as actual video content.

Once you have lured the casual video browser in, it’s important to wow them with a brilliant thumbnail image. Creating a sense of intrigue and impact here is extremely important if you want people to actually hit that play button and watch your content. You can get really imaginative here.

Critically Acclaimed Video

All these techniques are worthless though unless you are creating brilliant and watchable video content. No well written description in the world is going to save your video from abject rejection if your content isn’t up to scratch.

Creating imaginative and compelling video that people will want to share while still promoting your brand is a delicate balancing act and outside the scope of this article, but it’s worth mentioning a couple of pointers.

Including annotations inviting your audience to ‘Pin Me’ in the outro to your video is easy to do and could pay dividends. Along with a ‘Pin It’ button and a ‘Pin This’ annotation, this will serve to encourage the viewer to share the content and get your content repinned.

Keep your videos short. It might seem like a no-brainer but it’s all too easy to get caught up in the production process, which can lead to artistic expression getting in the way of impact. Pinterest lovers tend to browse and are therefore prone to switch off quickly if they’re not engaged in the first ten seconds. So remember; keep it fresh, keep it punchy and keep it lean.

Thanks, Joe!

Joe Cox is a blogger for Bristol based video production company, Hurricane Media, who have been producing successful video marketing campaigns across many diverse industry sectors since 2005.

December 14, 2013

Santa’s Brand Book 2013 – Time for a Brand Refresh

Even Santa could use a brand refresh from time to time, and the British agency Quietroom has taken the reindeer by the horns and created the 2013 Santa Brand Book. It’s a must-see for marketers and brand managers who need a laugh during the hectic holiday season.

The Santa Brand Book is filled with humor and over-the-top branding and marketing messaging. It begins with the following brand value proposition:

“*Santa* is a Concept, not an idea. It’s an Emotion, not a feeling. It’s both Yesterday and Today. And it’s Tomorrow as well. *Santa* winds infinite Possibilities around finite Limitations to evoke the essence of invention and the Odour of Nostalgia. It has the complexity of Simpleness and the Simplicity of complexiveness. It begins with the Hiss of Power and ends with the Ah of Surprise.”

How many brand statements have you read that are filled with buzz words but are completely meaningless, like brand *Santa*?

Next, the Santa Brand Book explains the brand promise:

X = excellence
M = measurability
A = accountability
S = snow

There is nothing like creating an acronym to state the obvious. How many times have you seen this in brand identity guides?

And the answer to the question, “Why *Santa*?” should not be missed:

* – the introductory asterisk reminds customers of a snowflake alighting on the eyelash of a fawn.
SAN – the first three letters represent South and North. We are headquartered in the North, but our reach is global.
N – the N also symbolizes nitrogen, the most abundant atmospheric element, calling to mind the abundance of gifts we distribute.
TA – the final two letters are the (abbreviated) thanks of the world’s children.
* – the terminating asterisk points customers to the polar star, and hence the birth of dreams.

Equally amusing is the description of how to live the brand- “Snap it. Clap it. Wrap it.”

Be sure to check out the “Mandatory Venn Diagrams”, the brand assets schematic, the “Curve of Credulity”, the external communications requirements, the brand color palette, and the meaning of Pantone 032C red. Each is filled with tongue-in-cheek humor that seasoned marketers will understand and love.

Of course, the 2013 Santa Brand Book is meant to be funny, but it actually delivers an important message. When you create a brand and brand identity guidelines, make sure they actually mean something to all stakeholders (e.g., consumers, employees, investors, and so on). Anyone can put together a jargon-filled document complete with charts and diagrams, but strip all of that fancy (and distracting) wrapping away and what’s left? It’s that remaining substance which truly matters to your brand, its identity, and its success.

Image: Roby Mikic

December 11, 2013

B2B Technology Buyers Prefer Blogs and White Papers for Pre-Sales Decision-Making

The Eccolo Media B2B Technology Content Survey reveals that small business, mid-market, and enterprise technology decision makers prefer to read blogs and white papers during the pre-sales cycle. While the study reveals a number of nuances between small and large business decision makers, there are also noteworthy differences between the content consumption preferences and behaviors of technical purchase influencers versus decision makers.

For example, mid-market company technology buyers are more likely to receive vendor content via Facebook than LinkedIn while enterprise buyers are more likely to consume vendor content via LinkedIn. Furthermore, small business buyers don’t believe that post-sale vendor content is as important as large company buyers do. Overall, technology buyers who want to receive ongoing vendor content prefer white papers (98%), case studies (66%), and technology guides (37%).

However, content preferences (presented in 16 categories, including blogs, white papers, case studies, videos, brochures, data sheets, podcasts, infographics, email newsletters, and more) vary based not only on business size but also on roles (purchase influencer vs. decision-maker) and where the buy is in the sales cycle (pre-sales vs final sales process). For example, decision-makers consume more vendor content in 15 of 16 different types of content than influencers. Eccolo Media highlights the following findings from its survey:

Small Business: Influencers rely primarily on infographics and video during the pre-sales process while decision-makers rely mostly on blogs. During the final sales process, decision makers rely primarily on technology guides.
Mid-Market: Influencers consume all types of content equally and at greater rates than decision-makers during the pre-sales process. Decision-makers also consume all types of content equally during the pre-sales process. During the final sales process, influencers rely on technology guides.
Enterprise: Influencers and decision-makers rely mostly on blogs and white papers during the pre-sales process. During the final sales process, decision-makers rely on technology guides and infographics.

Not only does the individual’s role and the company’s place in the sales cycle effect how technology buyers use content but the level of interactivity of that content can also impact purchase decisions. Two-thirds of respondents to the survey indicated that they will interact with content to get more information from vendors and they very often click on links in content to get more information. However, mid-market and enterprise survey respondents were more likely to click on links in vendor content (63%) than small business respondents (43%). When asked why they don’t click on links in vendor content, respondents said it was because they weren’t sure where the links would take them (37%) or whether the link content would be relevant to them (36%).

Content marketing can play an important role in building relationships and trust before, during, and after a sale is made. Technology buyers want access to useful and relevant content in a variety of forms. With these research results in mind, create a B2B content marketing strategy that is highly targeted by segmenting your audiences by role and placement in the sales cycle to continue moving them through the cycle to making a purchase or repurchasing. The type of content you send and when you send it can make a significant difference to your sales success.

Image: Ariel da Silva Parreira

December 10, 2013

Online Advertising Traffic Fraud Best Practices Released by IAB

Online advertising has been plagued with bad press in recent years with traffic fraud and click fraud being some of the most talked about problems for online advertisers. This month, The Internet Advertising Bureau’s (IAB’s) Traffic of Good Intent Task Force released a new report titled “Traffic Fraud: Best Practices for Reducing Risk to Exposure.” The report explains the various types of traffic fraud as well as best practices to reduce traffic fraud for advertisers and ad buyers, for publishers, and for ad networks.

In a press release, the IAB Traffic of Good Intent Task Force is calling for all advertisers, ad buyers, networks, and publishers to work together to stop online advertising traffic fraud. Not only is it illegal, but it’s also costing advertisers a lot of money. Gavin O’Malley of MediaPost reports that Steve Sullivan, vice president of advertising technology at IAB, believes traffic fraud equates to a minimum to $6 billion to $7 billion wasted per year.

Fighting Online Advertising Traffic Fraud

To help brand advertisers fight traffic fraud, the IAB created the following questions to ask publishers. While it’s unlikely that small publishers will have all of the requested information, advertisers should speak up and demand that larger publishers provide it.

Do you have your audience measured by verifiable third party systems?
Do you have a clean record with third-party brand safety reports?
How do you determine which impressions are exposed to real humans?
How do you assure that ads are served as reported, and that URLS are visible to the advertiser?
How do you determine whether ads are auto-initiated or user-initiated?
Do you provide protection from malware?
Are impressions generated by malware redirecting to a site?

Far-Reaching Negative Effects of Online Advertising Traffic Fraud

Not only does online advertising traffic fraud mean wasted budget dollars for brand advertisers, but it also means skewed tracking data. Accurately analyzing the performance of online ads that have been compromised by click fraud is impossible, but most often, the advertiser doesn’t even know that the performance data should be questioned. Ultimately, future marketing strategies, tactics, and ad buys will be created based on this inaccurate data, which means the negative effects of online advertising traffic fraud are far-reaching and can last for a very long time.

You can visit the IAB website to view the complete traffic fraud report as well Digital Simplified, the IAB’s short overview of what online advertising traffic fraud is and why all stakeholders should take action to stop it.

Image: Foxumon

December 6, 2013

Secrets to Tapping into Your Brand Advocates

Whenever I write a book or speak about branding, I emphasize the importance of building a band of brand advocates. These are your vocal brand loyalists. They want to talk about your brand and can give you more word-of-mouth marketing than your budget could ever buy. Brand advocates can come from a variety of audiences—your employees, your customers, industry experts, and any other stakeholder you can think of. However, not all brand loyalists are equal when it comes to brand advocacy. That’s where tapping into your band of brand advocates gets more challenging.

Thanks to social media, it’s easier than ever to find your brand advocates. Your first step should always be to find out where your target audience (in this case, your brand advocates) already spend time online. Join the conversation, but don’t self-promote. Brand advocacy is tied closely to the emotional connection that consumers feel with brands they love. Your job is to build a relationship that fosters the emotional connection to your brand. In time, you can share marketing messages (minimally) and even ask your brand advocates to help you spread those messages. However, you need to tread carefully so you don’t damage the relationship. Always make sure your audience feels valued rather than like a promotional conduit.

Craig Rosenberg of TOPO shared some more great secrets for tapping into your brand advocates with Derek Singleton of The B2B Marketing Mentor that should help you find the right people and boost participation. First, he identifies three types of people who should be at the top of your search list: socially active customers, peer problem solvers, and your best customers (the customers whose names you give to prospective customers who ask for references). To find them, monitor your social media communities and conversations as well as online brand mentions. You can also conduct online surveys to track customer satisfaction and identify particularly happy customers.

To encourage participation, Rosenberg suggests that you start with a small group of 25 to 50 advocates and limit how often you ask them to promote or share something for you. You should also diversify what you ask them to do. Make it easy and enjoyable for them to participate so it becomes a habit for them.

Finally, Rosenberg reminds marketers that it is absolutely essential to recognize your advocates. His company’s research data suggests that monetary rewards are not effective because they attract people who are looking for a deal rather than true brand advocates. Instead, he suggests that you reward your advocates with personal thank you notes, exclusive access or sneak peaks at products and services, badges or awards that recognize advocates as experts in their fields, or special invitations to meet with key company representatives, such as your CEO.

Your brand advocates are out there. They’re already talking about your brand and with a bit of encouragement and recognition, they’d be happy to talk about it even more. You just have to find them and foster the relationship. Thanks to the social web, it’s a task that has never been easier. What are you waiting for?

Image: Sigurd Decroos

Using Pinterest in your Video Marketing Campaign