Listening is the New Marketing When It Comes to Social Media

03/02/2009

With the surge of Internet’s social networks like MySpace and Facebook, blogs, wikis, forums and video sites like YouTube, anyone who wishes to share their opinion about anything can find a social media outlet that will allow them to state their case. Marketers have become a segment of the population that is paying heed to the public by tapping into these social resources as part of their marketing strategies and tools. In other words, listening is the new speaking.

The web has become so participatory with social media that these opinions are hard to ignore. These are the people who buy the products, test-drive the new cars, wear the latest fashions and eat the most popular foods. These are the voices that marketers are listening to.

Consumer-generated content has also become the rage of John Q. Public as he/she will scan the web and query search engines to locate any information on topics of interest to them. Not everyone is well-versed on sources and locating accurate information; therefore, social-networks allow people to locate real-life information on real-life concerns.

While most people might believe that their voice falls on deaf ears; think again. Marketing firms across the world have tapped into this virtual world to find out exactly what people like, hate, want, love, and need. They’re using this information to help them deliver products and services. In the past, marketing has influenced consumer attitude and behavior; but the tables are turning and consumers now have the power to dictate marketing behaviors and trends.

This social media revolution has created a new service: Online Reputation Management. This has become a focal point for many marketers due to consumer participation.

The three metrics involved in Online Reputation Management, as reported by Practical eCommerce Insights for Online Merchants, are:

• Share of Voice - This measurement looks at how much and to what degree people are talking about your business. In the case of businesses that are not surrounded by chatter, positive or negative, the theory is that is does not bode well if no one is talking about you.

• Tone of Voice - Commonly referred to as “sentiment analysis,” Tone of voice focuses on whether the banter is positive or negative. Sentiment analysis allows a business to tap into the social media and reward, repair or rebut, depending on the commentary. Tone of Voice can make or break a business, especially in search engine utilization. If a company’s bad publicity shows up at the top of the search page, even before the company’s web site, there is likely going to be a marked change in popularity and eventually the bottom line sales. However, through the use of the social media and other venues, these problems can be addressed. With a social media marketing blitz, bad publicity can be repaired and this web activity can also drive the negative post from the first page.

•Trends over Time - As with everything, success takes time. The concept behind Trends over Time is to monitor the first two metrics over time to see how your marketing is fairing.

For more insight visit Internet Marketing Services