Joining The Social Media Conversation

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SOCIAL MEDIA

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exlending ther gegtaphta

into a broader community, creating a distinct paint o! drfferentiaribrrkiufn the larger

ow to organisations that are --estn,-red by oo`icv declslo e:fecI.'Yely resporio and pro,ect iheir brand Social tried it for so-called Web 2.0 applications) such as Twitter, Skype, Facebock. YouTube. blogs. wikis, gS5!really 5rmpfe

syndicat,ors) and aggregation of content, stacal networks. photo of videoshannq Sites, Google searches, or web-enabled mobile.

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ANN BARTLETT-BRAGG

phones, are empowering consLime rs--geographicatly dispersed.

but cannetted ;)y technology-ta gather nformatton, make It 15 vrefutable that technology has had a profound impact on the business envronmenz over toe past decade. Vahetheryou r

business is a multi-nat onal organisation, an SME or a home-based micro business, shoal media is the buzzword from boarcrooms to kltchet s,'?ei, not sirce the i.i,rodutlion of the printing press has there been an intervenbart that has potential to revolutionise the nature of business. It is estimated that there are currently 475 million internet users.

worldwide aged between. 115 and 54. Of these, 5 1 miIlion are Australian. 5ncial media provides businesses with the opportunity to connect directly with their Customers (and suppliers), while

ChpiC£5 and decisions, and interact with many people without the boundaries imposed by tradrtional business modern. Why has social mettle become so popular? The underlying concepts attr:buted to The rapid uptake of Social media appticatocrs such as Twitter, am. Ease of use (anyone can sign up for free and start participating within minutes)

Creation of networks (you can quickly and easily connect, share and communicate with others) Ab-Ilty to partiooate ir a variety of ways (you can rate, review. comment. write or 5irep:y mead or uratchi Sacral media supports corlversa;lons and Interactions between peap!e, while building a personalised social network that creates

connections and altow5 shared experiences arid shamed knowledge

CAM 5 'UDY

A fundamental concept when considering integrating social media Rusllan Kogan is using Twitter to communicate directly and indirectly

into your overall business strategy is that The information <$ not

(in full view of an online audience) to joumafisrs and [pnsumers. He regularly sweets w#llle eirr the road between Sydney and China, where he visits the manufacturers pf consumer electronics products wthirh he

important in itself-it is the relabanShil) with other people with

sells online.

Twitter forms just one-but very important-onlinetool Kogan Technologies uses to camrnunicate with its customers anti relevant media. The company also operates a blog and an enewsletter service as part of an integrated online marketing effort.

A key approach to Ruslan's efforts to market his company through Twitter is to keep Tweets short, sharp and relevant to the audience, K4gan Technologies has a staff of ill.

Follow RusIan on Twitter 'ruslankogan 38

shared interests.

Recent reSearc) has identified a fundamental sh''t in the be^aviouis of ccr..stimprs, knit: we raSearch products, how we share opiisions, late and review products and the influence v.ord of rnoutfr rnai keting i5 ilading on purchasi-g

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decisions.

A report released by Universal McCann in September 2008 caller, LA/her did vfe start trus ring strangers? says."T-ne

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SOCIAL MEDIA

HAS THERE BEEN AN INTERVENTION THAT HAS POTENTIAL TO REVOLUTIONISE THE NATURE OF BUSINESS"

ERSATION N."

result ss an influence economy that is forcing everyone -n the public realm including the owners. of products and brands to become rrflre Transparent, open, canver5dt+or.al, and honest. They have to rethink the voay that inIluerlce is dislr!buted and the role of theii marketing CUM municatlons n an information landscape which is nowadays dictated by consumers.

There are a number of local Australian examples currently in play, with yet to be deiermmed outcomes. By the trifle a story appears in local media. its already gamed s!gn!f=cant attent!an in the social media landscape!

The ease of use has enabled the rise of mass influence channels where

consumers share their experiences A Current case study still playing out across ae,-9C.to

and voice the.r opinions, while others make comrnents, rate and _Tevlew your products and services. The-kn en complaint sent directly to the manufacturer'has been superseded by social

media landscape a than of the The Motrin Moms. BdCkia1h against an advertising video on their website spread acrrtss hundreds of blog posts, Twitter streams, a dedicated Far.ehook group, YoCrTube, and the traditional rned:a

within two days, it was almost unstoppable The advert.semerit was pulled, the manufacturers apoloq!sed, but the Moms aren't stopping yet and it will remain to be seen how the SCCnarro Continues and how it Concludes. Fallow thn story here:

media platfrsmns with a wider-and international audrenCe

The sp`ia: media landscape requires a new, more to fec ils7rial apuroacti Shat

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CASE STUDY

D WHAT OPPORTUNITIES DO SOCIAL MEDIA PRESENT FOR BUSINESSES?

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SOCIAL MEDIA

G TIPS FOR IMPLEMENTATION

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Patxfdppte *Ad Iist.n to understand

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Babysitter.com.au Li an anline rommunity that ivnnects parents direttIV with baboitters and nannies. The site launched in beta in Tune 2008 dnd ownei Ann MoIar1 started using Twitter in Qctobe' when she was tipped off about it by a US-based friend. At titst I noticed there realty weren't that many averaga Australians using itr" She 5ayS"ir. the beginning, most of my followers ai ,d the people I was following vended to be overseas. I found that in the US especially there were a lot of women entrepreneurs using Twitter, and for me ants my rna,itc'.-that was fascinating.

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"A5 a player in conversational marketing, if you don i up it wisely as a business, It will fail for you. At Rabysittei die'=rtgry we are using Twitter to build brand recngnition, raise awareness about our In log and website, and of course to network with other related companies both in Australia and overseas. it's ail excit vi :; s'uffl Follow Ann on Twitter 9Pbabysitterdirec

allows a less controlled, open and transparenr pratform to engage

with your customers and a wwder audience- Your target market can be encouraged to discuss and share their thoughts openly, while' h,:s:nasses can h'comr part of ti=sn cnneersat-crns :hro,.gr ?idyl .men ric and no

withal do you already know about your customers? Find out ,1 ,li 5
springing up evtry'.vherp, and ail generatiron5 are now actieely participating Wl'.a, you "eed to know is w s re lcey are! Build a radar, not simply Google analytic. 5oc,al media n}C"irori':q Can ue set :.p by subscribing to Various cl lanilels tr' Fuuular sites .w-.era your -us':}rr.ers are already participating. Use keywords or brand names to search for and subscribe to these activates. Remember, it'S not lust abut clicks and has, its the nature of the C4nversation5 that are occurring,

so simple analytics are not gang to provide yo;, with enough information to understand your Cs tom cat' behaviours.

If we accept the premise that social media is creating a fundamental triift in the nature of engagement with your

customers, then if your business strategta5 are to recognise this, the challenge will be how to embrace the new techr,pigicel developments and embed online cornmuniearion ar-d Interact'on to015 to empower y.rr customers and create art enscheC business with a social media landscape.

-Anne 8arflef r-bra is Managing Lin=ctpr of sCiet software consuirancy Heddshift fywN. hcacfshdt.cO r i AvstraWa, which offars practical advice on how business owners cap ernpioy sodai media roots.

CASE STUDY

ASSISTANCE

Understdi-d:ria the online beha.'ours of your target market is just the beginning! If you are serious about participating in the spcral

media landscape, then you need to develop clear objectives and a strategy that recognises the ailocelion of re5ou'ces, pdrficularly

your time Starting a community, tof example, teen expecting lots of actwity while you sit back and watch will be doorned for failure You can't be expected to know every^.hinq, so working with soClai media consultancies who can guide you with strategy development and implementc;irsn plans he wary is strongly of the social mela who doe; not regularly use sonal media

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