Who owns social media? Is it marketing, customer service, public relations? Looking at a recent study conducted by the Pivot Conference, the top four departments where social media is currently run are as follows: 1. Marketing 2. Public Relations 3. Sales 4. Customer Service Perhaps, it’s the wrong question to ask however. It’s not unlike asking who owns email. But, here’s another question and as we think about it, let’s broaden our perspective as the answer may not appear immediately….
The Great Brand Dilution
For decades brands basked in the glory of control, control over consumers’ perceptions, impressions and ultimately decisions and ensuing experiences. Or better said, business leaders enjoyed a semblance of control. While businesses concentrated resources on distancing the connections between customers, influencers and representatives, a new democracy was materializing. This movement would inevitably render these faceless actions not only defunct, but also perilous. Fueled by the socialization of media, content and connections served as the foundation for this new democracy and…
The Most Influential Consumers Online are on Twitter
Twitter is a human seismograph and it represents a transformative channel where everyday people possess the ability to affect actions. The cloud of collective consciousness that houses our thoughts, experiences, and conversations is also a data trove for experts to measure and mine serendipitous and organized behavior and events. Twitter is less of a social network in its design and operation and more of a series of interconnected social nicheworks. It brings together disparately connected personalities linked through friendship, admiration,…
Almost Half of Small Businesses Find Customers in Social Networks
In social media, is there truth to the proverb, “seek and ye shall find?” As our experience in new media matures, learning what it is we wish to seek and also accomplish is at the forefront of rapid evolution. Converting questions into objectives is how we grow and succeed. While the opportunities within social media in general are sweeping, one such possibility that’s largely untapped in business social networking is the ability to find customers and prospects as well as…
The Last Mile: The Socialization of Business
I’m working on developing ideas that originated when writing Engage. It didn’t make the deadline, but wanted to share them here with you for your review and also to seek your feedback… Everything begins with a shift in perspective from viewing stakeholders as a separate entity, “us vs. them,” to a singular view of “us ” as this enlivens a new era of community-focused marketing and engagement. Social media introduces a new problem of sorts, one where the answer is…
In Social Media, Engagement Has Its Rewards
One of the most sought after answers in Social Media is whether or not engagement in social networks such as Twitter or Facebook directly correlates to customer acquisition, retention, and advocacy. Before we can earn customers however, we have to recognize that at any given time, there are also prospects. And, prospects require information and confidence in order to make decisions, in your favor of course. The answer to our question lies in social engagement. Prospects are not only searching…
SCRM and SRM: Potay-to, Potah-to When Done Right
This is Part Two of Two in a series exploring the promise and potential of Social CRM and SRM. In Part One, we reviewed the importance of sCRM as well as introduced the concepts of Social Relationship Management (SRM) to look beyond customers in Social Media. Originally intended for inclusion in Engage!, Paul Greenberg contributed his view of sCRM and SRM to continue the discussion… There is little doubt that customers are ruling the roost right now — to a…
Social CRM is Just the Beginning: Looking Beyond Customers
In Engage!, I review the important catalysts and methodologies defining the new era of Social CRM or sCRM. In the discussion, I also introduce the idea of SRM (social relationship management), a concept that may at first blush, seemingly appear to introduce yet another acronym or perhaps challenge the promise of sCRM. However, its only intention is to spur thinking beyond the literal frameworks of traditional customer relationship management, whether it’s social or one-way. Much of this chapter was cut…
Social Media in Small Business is Anything But Small
In celebration of National Small Business Week… For entrepreneurs, business owners, investors, and consultants, one of the most exciting prospects of social media, lies in the ability to dramatically amplify your visibility and value proposition among existing and potential stakeholders. Social Media finally places small, local and emerging businesses in the spotlight in ways that up until this point, were largely unattainable. New Media is rapidly shifting the landscape of how people find and share information and much of it…
Engage: A Video Introduction
Engage helps businesses and brands build, cultivate, and measure success in the new web and it is now available online and hopefully in a book store near you. Please consider reading the book and if you find it helpful, please also help me share it with those who are looking to learn about social media and how it can help them in their work. This book and all that’s in it, was written with passion and dedication over the last…
