Is the future of positive social approval changing?

Almost two years ago, I have written about the development on Twitter that positive comments are not rated in a way they should (in my eyes). Those days I asked the question if the RT (Retweet) becomes a killer for the positive blog comment. Many people tapped my shoulder virtually and agreed with my observation.

In some way the RT “button” is similar to Facebook’s LIKE button. It is a given opportunity to automize a process of agreement. And I am asking myself if Facebook’s LIKE button -launched one year ago- has the same “negative influence” on our positive comment on reviews in the future. Although it was meant to give its members an easy way to show approval for products, services, content and thoughts. I am coming back to these thoughts as I stumbled upon an interesting local study.

According to a recent study released by CityGrid Media, conducted by Harris interactive, that did some research on Web properties focused on local merchants, consumers prefer the “Like” button to writing a positive review for a local business. The study polled 1,006 adults in the U.S. over the phone between March 16 and 20.

OK, this is restricted to local only. But do we doubt that there is a difference in the regional and global attitude and behavior of humans? Especially as 52% of respondents said they visited more than two websites before visiting a local business, and Google plus Facebook were the most popular first sites those people accessed.

The study states that 20% of respondents say they show support for local businesses by clicking the “Like” button for that business on Facebook versus 13% who write reviews. The offline way is still the most successful method according to the study. The verbal way of telling a friend was the most popular method (75%). Not surprising as most of the consumers are still more listening than telling.

However this is just a local research, I asking myself if this s a good development, for us, for retailers, for brands and for the Social Web in general. Bearing in mind how much our written reaction on products and services influences our buying behavior, I think, it is not good if only the negative comments get (negative) credits while positive comments and reviews just find the automated, lazy “push a button” credit – no sentiment, no conversational reward, no tapping on the shoulder virtually…

How do you see this development?

News Update – Best of the Day

Is Social Media a sales tool for retailers? A study by Forrester Research and GSI Commerce says Social Media has almost no influence on online purchasing behavior. The survey shows that social media rarely leads directly to purchases online — less than 2% of orders were the result of shoppers coming from a social network. The question is what the ideology of Social Media is for companies… and there are examples like Threadless that can deny such studies. If retailers see it more like listen-to-act approach, pre-selling, sensitising and serving their consumers, then they will be successful in also selling through Social Media.

C-Level is engaging in Social Media! A recent study by Useful Social Media – State of Corporate Social Media 2011 – gives us some compelling charts that describe the trend how the C-Level increasingly gets into Social Media.

Although the European managers are still not completely behind the Social Media vision, the following chart suggests that it won’t be long until European senior C-Levels understand the advantages of Social Media.

How does the future of shopping look like? Mobile will definitely play a massive role for the consumer 2.0, or 3.0?! Where can I get the best bargains? Which company or retailer has the product I want in stock – now and not in 5 days? Sumi Das explores the “ultimate personal shoppers” of tomorrow.

Web 3.0 – Let’s find a new title…

Many web evangelists are sharing their views about the future of the next web these days. What will The Web 3.0 be, and how will it be named? For years people have foreseen The Semantic Web. Some might say, it is The Mobile Web, and know how to illustrate the opportunities (i.e. Augmented Reality) in their video.

Others deny this theory and state it is The Spatial Web.

“What tend to define Web 3.0 as not semantic, but rather the extension of the Web 1.0 (content) and Web 2.0 (Social Graph) into the spatial domain. Web 3.0 web content and social nodes are both tagged with spatial relationships and able to form social relationships based on current location. (…) We at the Web 3.0 Lab thing that by adding more spatial dimensions you will get improved semantic understanding. Much of our social understanding is spatial. Reasoning that some people hope to get out of triplestores we think will emerge out of geo-tagging of information. Spatial arrangements of data will drive interesting conclusions about how that data relates to the real world, how it is used, and therefore what it means.”

And if we listen to the conversation of Dennis Crowley, co-founder of Foursquare, and Robert Scoble, at this year’s Web 2.0 conference, then the power of location-based data will be connecting the dots of user behaviour for future business and customer service strategies. Dennis envisions the future of Foursquare in “listening for what’s going on around you (…) You’re walking down the street and normally you eat lunch, but you haven’t yet. And Foursquare will tell you that you’re close to a sandwich place you read about in the New York Times three weeks ago. And that’s what you want to try.”

Thinking about the development of location-based technology the Web seems to move away from being The Global Web to The Local Web.

In the end, some proclaim Web 3.0 will be The Contextual Web.

“It is a robust procedural grid that understands us, and responds appropriately given the user’s current context.”

Spot On!
Isn’t it funny how we all try to invent our own Web 3.0 stamp as web specialists? And I could imagine different other namings or titles. The Authentic Web. The Realtime Web. The Live Web. And be sure, I will find some explanations for all of the above named. In the end, the Web is about people. People invented and continue to drive the Web – from Web 1.0 to Web 2.0 to Web 3.0 – now more conversational, engaging and transactional than ever before. So, why not name it The People’s Web or The Human(ity) Web?

You decide. What title seems most appropriate for you? Come on, let’s discuss…

News Update – Best of the Day

Some day sago, I have written about the changing atmosphere since social media monitoring companies are moving into the CRM sector. Andrew Hunt discusses the issue if “Sales is killing Social Media?” and explains how B2B sales is changing from both sides: Customer are at least “spectators” according to a Forrester study. The question is when companies are changing their sales process to a “listen and engage” model for the old “speak and push” format, where he refers to an interesting insight from OgilvyOne about the future of selling.

A recent Penn State research claims that updates on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and other real-time content sites could be worth more than 30 million USD a day, or nearly 10.9 billion dollars a year, to advertisers. The study was based on separating duplicate searches from unique search terms. Then, the research determined the value of the real-time search terms by using Google Adwords Traffic Estimator.

Start the day with a smile and don’t invest in the wrong portfolio… Nice commercial from Invesco.

News Update – Best of the Day

A recent Deloitte survey states that 74% of Americans believe higher prices could slow their spending in the months ahead. Deloitte’s study also revealed that mobile and social connections are helping shoppers make savvier buying decisions. Interesting is also the finding about social and mobile influence. 32% said stores are running out of merchandise faster, and shoppers appear to be turning to their mobile phones to locate product inventory and seek guidance in the shopping process. People with web-enabled smartphones (32%), more than 43% said they have used it specifically in a store to assist in their shopping. Furthermore, 40% consumers surveyed interact with retailers through social networking sites to find out about promotions, browse products, or review recommendations.

PS: If you want to see how the future of shopping online could merge sales and customer service, check out his video by 3LiveShop.

What is the future of work? Jocelyn K. Glei suggest that it is play and he finds some logic and thought-provoking explanation why. He bases his findings on “Social pressure, competition, time pressure, novelty… these mechanics are pretty powerful universally”. And an interesting article from NY Times…

It is always interesting to listen to what futurist say about the future of mobile. Dr. James Canton discusses in a one-on-one interview with One+ Editor in Chief David Basler at DigitalNow 2011 the affects of mobile on the meetings and events industry.

5 stairways to “Why should we use Twitter…?”

This is one of the question, I still get asked frequently by many friends, fans and business decision makers in webinars or seminars: “Why should I (or we) use Twitter?”

The answer is so simple, so obvious, so broad. Just as broad as the opportunities and chances that are opening up when people listen to Twitter.

Twitter is like a stairway to a modern social personality which is self-defining, enlightening and inspirational…

I listen so we are…
I follow so we can rate and like…
I get followed so we show interest in lives…
I learn so we see peoples’ latest thoughts, visions and ideas…
I share so we keep people connected as a never running dry fountain of inspiration…

This is why I use Twitter and why you, your company and your employees might do so as well. And why I manage my Twitter account myself, and don’t let anyone else manage it – no matter if private or business. Or as Twitter says in their new video… “Follow Your Interests. Discover Your World. Twitter”.

Social Media Monitoring is becoming mature, SocialCRM it’s future…

It seems to be the right time of the year. At the end of a quarter, companies are buying companies. Just look at how ebay grabed GSI Commerce yesterday. Suddenly the former number two in the retail industry is becoming a competitor for Amazon.

However, even more interesting for me was how quick the Social Media Monitoring (SMM) industry is becoming mature these days. The evolution started last year when the Attensity Group acquired Biz360…

At a time when marketers realized the importance of social media monitoring but still have their internal issues with the listening and analysis technology, Social Media Monitoring will become a boost of awareness by the deals that happened this week. In one week we have two mergers… Meltwater, a social media monitoring provider, buys the Social CRM company named JitterJam. And today Salesforce, one of the leading CRM technology companies acquires Radian6, one of the top Social Media Monitoring providers which will give the “new” companies the opportunity to become a leading supplier of SocialCRM in the future.

Alterian‘s James Eiloart, SVP Sales and Marketing Europe, gave me their feeback on the merger of their main competitor in the Social Media Monitoring arena…

“The purchase of Radian6 by Salesforce.com endorses the importance of the Social Media Monitoring market which we invested in 2 years ago when we acquired SM2/Techrigy, bringing this capability to mainstream marketers and highlighting these tools as something which all organisations need to embrace. However we also recognise it’s not just about the tools or access to tools, it is about having the skills to use them at the micro level, and also being able to use social media data at a macro level, in context of the broader marketing picture. This is why we acquired Intrepid last year who bring the Social Media Monitoring insight services and also consulting to help our partners and clients really use Social Media Monitoring to generate real value across the organisation.”

The micro and macro level will probably become the next challenge for marketers and business leaders. Identifying important communities and social influencers, or analyzing Social Media does only make sense if marketers understand how to answer the Social Media ROI question. And this is a question of understanding the value of conversations. Businesses are build upon these pillars and their ground will be the evolution and execution of SocialCRM which will speed up as a business topic now that these mergers are done.

Spot On!
Social Media Monitoring has become mature… and goes out to get married. Just some weeks ago, Gartner VP Michael Maoz predicted SocialCRM is taking holidays, the social media industry makes an interesting move towards aligning the best of breed from social media and CRM technology. The importance of the social media monitoring tools for the SocialCRM development becomes clear when listening to Forrester analyst William Bandt. He shows some real interesting examples of companies already making use of SocialCRM by showing the value for sales and marketing teams on targeting, acquisition, retention, insight and collaboration with customers.

Salestainability – a phrase or a challenge?

No, the word did obviously not exist before… Or can a phrase come to live with Google not knowing about, nor finding it with their intelligent algorythm? If Google has not indexed one website with the phrase yet, can I claim the phrase as my innovation? Anyway… So, I just created the word today. Horray…

How did I come across it? Let me tell you how I thought about sales and sustainability…

In my eyes the word salestainability defines the future of a successful long-term strategy in business – especially in our social web world… Salestainability. The merger of sales and sustainability could become the formula for clever and intelligent business for the next generation C-level. For those managers who aim to get the balance right between the desire to use social web efficiency and to credit their own customer base for loyalty and advocacy.

Last week, I thought about the challenge for business decision makers to align their web-strategy with new opportunities that social media and social networks offer. And quite frankly, I can imagine that marketers might become kind of “greedy” when thinking about the latest studies. When Deloitte and ExactTarget find that customers are mainly following brands because they want to get benefits, coupons or discounts, nobody would be surprised, if brands are sending rather than understanding.

The social web tends to offer many opportunities to do conversation with our customers without “spaming” them. If customer become Facebook’s Fanpages they declare their open mind to brand activity, and are not only “Likes”, or brand advocates. If people accept Dell’s promotions and let the IT vendor generate 5 Mio. US dollars via Twitter accounts, we need to re-think our sales business and integrate it into our web-strategy to leverage the sales approach to the next level of SocialCRM if they are capable of doing it. And if customers respond to Groupons location-based promotions, they follow the studies results and motivate brands and companies to reach out to them.

Some might pick it up and use their old email tactics – often unpersonalized, uncustomized, unhuman… Feedback might not be valued the way it deserves to be recognized. Companies will start pushing promotions out to them. Why not, if they ask for it? Why not, on a daily basis? Why not challenge their current capabilities at high frequency, harness their brand feedback and hand out permanent sales offers? Why not…? Another study might tell them why…

So far, so good…

Sales is the key driver for business. Business can’t live without push, promotion and placement. Upsale is upscale. No gain, much pain. Companies love to take the money from their customers but do they really care about sustainability? But how can a company in a world of quarterly reporting, balanced scorecards and budget pressure pay attention and give credit to sustainability?

The value of sustainability in business from an executive management point of view was just highlighted in the study “Sustainability: The ‘Embracers’ Seize Advantage” from MIT Sloan Management Review and The Boston Consulting Group. Managers who take the sustainability approach as a key strategic metric to their business will improve brand reputation, claims the study. And most companies are “looking towards a world where sustainability is becoming a mainstream, if not required, part of the business strategy”. Thus, having an essential impact on their sales and web-strategy…

Salestainability is where the worlds of sales and sustainability face the competition to understand which customers are the best ones and how to embrace, hug them and treat them. Who are the best…?

Those who don’t follow/fan/like and still get emails, newsletters and direct mail and don’t unsubscribe?
Those who like the brand on Facebook and do conversation around a brand but don’t buy…?
Those who buy through Groupon, take cheap offers and are one-stop shoppers, never seen again?
Those who follow and listen through Twitter for bargains and rate them with a RT or share it?

Who knows the answer? The answer might be: Find the right salestainability!

Spot On!
Salestainability is not a phrase, it is a challenge. Salestainability is getting the balance right between “want” and “wish”, and thinking about diversification and respect. It is an external strategic business attitude towards training the customer on the social web capabilities around a company and brand. Internally, it is about not exhausting the business immanent SocialCRM tactics. Letting the customers breath and take their own decisions without being pushed too hard, without getting under pressure – with the approach of willing to find and give the personal touch from and to the customer. With the pleasure for social shopping leasure.

That’s what I would define as the future salesforce. That’s what I would call… salestainability!

What do you think of salestainability, it’s definition and it’s future outlook for a business that creates a powerful and still customer-centric strategy?

Do we have to talk about “conversation”…?

It’s the basis of humans living together. It’s the essence of people getting in touch with each other…, and finally doing business together. It builds the fundament of collaboration, of cooperation. It’s the breath of the age of social. What is “it”…? Well, it’s not rocket-science. And still it seems to be the never-ending challenge for companies, for brands, and especially for people who are running the business. It is… conversation.

“Often I wish people understood the word “Conversation” – To start a successful collaboration we must learn to lose fear of networking.”

Do managers really have to talk about “conversations”?
Yes, we do! Don’t you agree? And we all know why. We are getting sad about the way managers (don’t) encourage themselves to engage in conversations. How often do managers not respond to a written letter? How often did they not pick up your phone? How often have they not replied to emails? How often not shown any reaction to Facebook, Twitter and the likes?

Hello managers – wake up! There is somebody trying to have a conversation with you? You cannot argue what somebody wants before having listened to them, can you?! Ignoring is so easy and it happens so often. You can do better. You can participate. And your words have significance when you take part in a conversation.

How will traditional managers get new inspiration? How will they generate new connections? Yes, conversation is the answer…

Do brands really have to discover how to do conversations?
Yes, they do! They need to figure out what they want to be: person or economic construct. Active or passive conversationalists? Motivator or creator? Former sender or modern vendor? Brands might build a consitent dialogue but only value their opinion, playing according to their rules. Listening is where relevance brings brands back in the driver’s seat, and not making them sit still and beg that the driver (who ever that consumer is) knows the way towards to the targets.

Productivity, creativity, innovation, thought-leadership and ROI counts for brands. This M&M philosophy often goes straight against lose conversation. Brands have been shaped and formed around formal structures (organisations and meetings), planned grouping (= not Groupon but agendas), lead work-flows (step-by-step approach). In earlier years, conversations came with a coffee break, some biscuits, a cigarette on the floor. Conversation today comes with an email, a tweet, or a status update on LinkedIn at your desk. And they appear different in character and tonality, “the conversation mode is changing” as Eric Schmidt called it at the DLD11 in his augmented humanity speech.

How will brands find innovation in the future? How will brands get response to products and services? Yes, conversation is the answer…

Do companies really have to reinvent the human dialogue?
Yes, they do! Companies are made from (and made by) people. People always had not enough time in their lives. Conversations cost time. Time builds trust and drive efficiency. Email took us time, too. We had to learn how to communicate online. Not now anymore. We know how it works. It is just a different platform or technology every crucial department of your business will be using in the future, called Facebook, Twitter, Groupon, Quora or blogs. They will control our marketing efficiency, our sales opportunities, our upscale, our revenue sheets. And we won’t even know, when we don’t embrace and value the conversation on the social web.

Power to “processes, people, potential and possibilities” means opening up our mindset to a new way of conversation. A way that shows the value of starting the talk. A way that shows clients how companies rate their review, input and sharing of brand messages and product conversations. Customer just want to get the feeling that it is not a maschine out there they are buying from. They want to see the personal human touch that makes mistakes, laughs about themselves and answers when getting questions.

How will companies renew their strategy, their tactics, their visions…? How will companies build products that their customers want? Yes, conversation is the answer…

Spot On!
Conversations are the basis of your future business-strategy, as well as your web-strategy. This is nothing new, you knew it before. Companies have them multiple times every day. Brand can get engaged in them every minute on a day in the future. And you even more. Every minute you can have the chance to have conversations today. The only difference is that conversation is also happening online – not on the phone, not via fax, not via mail, not on the floor, or in meetings. You just have to embrace conversations… it is that easy.

Study – Listening to Social Media? Brands: Not really…!

Sometimes the marketing scenary sounds unreal and bizarr… and still so realistic. Marketing budgets for Social Media and digital marketing increase but marketers admit that they don’t really listen to the conversations, and 70% don’t even have a deeper understanding of what is happening around their brands on the social web. This is the outcome of the latest study by Alterian called “How Engaged Is Your Brand?”. The survey asked 1,500 marketers, agencies, marketing services providers (MSP), and systems integrators (SI) between October to December 2010.

The study reports that 75% of marketers expect their Social Media and digital marketing budgets to grow. However, almost one-third of the responding marketers (31.4%) state that they have little or no understanding about social media conversations around their brands. Interestingly enough most of the marketers don’t even track and measure Social Media conversations properly. 38.6% say they just use a few ad-hoc tools to do so.

It seems to be a service or agency business in the eyes of marketing departments: 44% of agencies reply they report regularly to their client management about Social Media conversations, compared to 27% of marketers. If marketers see their brand at risk, 57% are taking action, 13% haven’t taken action and even 7% are seeing major issues, but have no plan how to react. 22,7% don’t see their brand at risk.

The study highlights also some other important content web-business strategy questions. In terms of email management it becomes clear that personalization is a key topic where marketers improve their tactics. Alterian focusses their questions on segmentation (which is one of their main services) and finds that 43% deliver specific email to each audience. Nevertheless, only 13% deliver emails on individual customer level engagement in real-time depths. The websites still lack attention in terms of personalization. Just 11% of marketers make a website experience a personalized visit. 55% still concentrate on pushing campaigns to generate website activity, and 34% use their company website as a corporate brochure.

Obviously, most marketers have anylytical limitations – be it because they don’t know how to connect analytics and campaign strategy (28%) or as they have basic analytical skills (29%). Other problems are often based on the gap between marketing and IT. Marketers quoted as reasons implementation issues (21%), budget (17%), prioritization (15%), and marketing tool selection (13%).

Spot On!
The marketing industry continues their way from mass communication to work towards a true personalized engagement with customers. Social Media is in the centre of attention at the moment. Clients get more influence on brands and how they interact with them. Social Media should always be seen in the context of all business and brand acitivies, although many brands at the moment seem to loose the focus on all their marketing activities. However, it appears to me that companies and brands forget about the importance of the website and how it might effect a purchase decision. Personalization is only happening on a low level but Alterian is already seeing a new age called “individualization”.

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