Last year, BP incurred massive damage to its reputation when, as the consequence of an explosion, an unstoppable oil flow contaminated the Gulf of Mexico. BP was totally unprepared to counteract the indignation that was expressed through social media. The scale of this disaster was huge, of course, but a good social media PR plan would have helped to limit the damage as much as possible instead of exacerbating it. Twitterers agitated about the fact that communication by way of Twitter and Facebook was poor to non-existent. One Twitterer even set up a mock BPGlobalPR account in order to make this clear to BP. It got almost 162,000 followers.

BP could have taken an example from other companies, who use social media to limit damage to their reputation.

For example, KLM. In April 2010, KLM discovered the benefits of social media when the ash cloud from a volcanic eruption in Iceland completely disrupted European air traffic. Passengers were stuck at various airports and there was nowhere they could go. But how could KLM keep these passengers informed? Twitter turned out to be the solution and in this way, passengers were continuously kept informed of the latest updates. This was greatly appreciated by stranded travellers. In addition, KLM opened a Q&A page on their Facebook and, in a YouTube video their CEO paid attention to the situation and extended his apologies to passengers for all their inconvenience. Thus KLM was able to show a human side. From that moment as well, social media have come to play a more important role in KLM Policy.

Listening

The beauty of social media is that you can listen to what is being said about your company or brand. This enables you to give a timely response to negative sentiments. If a company makes a mistake, then the sting is usually removed if a company admits it and shows that it is doing everything to make amends for its error.

Communication plan

In order to be prepared for a crisis, a social media communications plan has to be in place. The PR department, for example, could be put in charge of this task. There also need to be procedures for dealing with complaints on social media.

@NS_online Is it true that till 13:00 there will be only 1 sprinter per hour (Rotterdam-Utrecht) and no Intercity trains at all? @junoenbert Indeed there are fewer trains on this route because of a signalling and points failure with diversions via Schiphol

Make sure you have a social media policy

But risk or reputation management begins long before a crisis arises. By maintaining an active presence on social media, by listening and responding to questions, you build up your credit. The creation of positive customer moments – online and offline – for example through Customer Service, Sales and Communities – ensures that your connection with customers is strengthened. As a result, trust in a successful outcome at a time of crisis is enhanced and you’ll probably encounter less damage.

The NS(Dutch Railways) is also a company that has to contend with negative sentiments due to disruptions to service and delays. NS has adapted its social media policy accordingly, and last year, amongst other things, it launched the Twitteraccount @NS_Online to engage in dialogue with travellers, informing them about delays and solutions. It’s a way to work on their online reputation.

The NS(Dutch Railways) is also a company that has to contend with negative sentiments due to disruptions to service and delays. NS has adapted its social media policy accordingly, and last year, amongst other things, it launched the Twitteraccount @NS_Online to engage in dialogue with travellers, informing them about delays and solutions. It’s a way to work on their online reputation.

You can deploy social media to good advantage in times of crisis, but only if you start now:

Social Media as a risk management tool

You can deploy social media to good advantage in times of crisis, but only if you start now:

• Develop a social media strategy, in which you build communities and carry out discussions, before something happens.
• Listen to what is being said about you on social media. There are very many (free) tools for this!
• Develop a social media communication plan for the purpose of risk management.
• Make sure that all your staff are informed about how they can and are allowed to use social media.
• Make social media part of your PR communication generally.

If anything should happen, remember:

Make sure you respond quickly.

• Respond personally, people like to be spoken to by people and not by ‘a company’.
• Offer apologies if there has indeed been an error caused by your company. In general, customers are quite prepared to be understanding if a company shows its human side.
• Always stay authentic, polite and leave room for dialogue.

Experts

A lack of knowledge and the speed at which developments are progressing have led to a plethora of experts, specialists and gurus. There is always someone who knows exactly how you can double the number of Twitter followers. The major problem with these experts is that they know how the various platforms work, but have little or no expertise or experience in operational or marketing strategy.

Using Social Media

Many companies feel compelled to do something with Social Media in light of its turbulent development and the enormous numbers of users involved. However, the question arises, ‘What should I do?’ Often, they open a Twitter or Facebook account and sometimes they start a blog. However, in many cases they do this for the wrong reasons, e.g. because other companies are doing it or because an expert has told them that nowadays they have to in order to keep up.

We see this in our own masterclasses. Large groups of people and companies have come to the realization that ignoring Social Media is no longer an option, but are not exactly sure what to do and more importantly how to do it. There is also a great deal of scepticism due to the large numbers of experts that preach profusely and prominently about Social Media, but are unable to explain what they are, how they should be used and what they will generate in the way of results.

Social Media + Strategy

These experts also forget that Social Media are merely a means to an end as are television, radio, outdoor and print. A means to an end, but not the end itself! They should only ever contribute towards achieving a higher goal, i.e. corporate or marketing objectives.

Objectives

If you want to use Social Media successfully, then it is essential that corporate objectives be examined very closely before proceeding. If a suitable strategy has been developed to achieve these objectives, then the role that marketing plays within the greater context needs to be investigated. A marketing strategy then needs to be developed incorporating these objectives. Only once this has been done, is it time to examine which means are the most suitable for achieving these objectives.

Only once the corporate and marketing objectives are known and a suitable strategy with clear SMART objectives has been formulated is it time to address the marketing mix. If it has been determined that certain Social Media channels are the most effective means by which to achieve these objectives, then a strategy needs to be developed for deploying them in an effective manner. It is also possible that in certain situations the decision is made not to use Social Media. This depends wholly on the objectives.

Social Media – A Means to an End, Not the End Itself!

Examining the use of Social Media in this way ensures that they are used in a constructive fashion. It forces you to think carefully about the role that the various Social Media channels could play in achieving corporate and marketing objectives. This alone is still no guarantee that the use of Social Media will be a success. This is dependent on other factors. It simply ensures that Social Media are implemented as a means to an end, not the end itself!

Gaining Internal Support

It is often easier to sell the use of Social Media internally, if it is being used to achieve corporate and marketing objectives. It is then possible to demonstrate internally what Social Media are intended to achieve and why these channels are the most suitable for achieving a specific goal.

Making Social Media Successful

Of course, anyone implementing Social Media wants it to be successful. Unfortunately, there are no magic formulas that can guarantee success. Differing objectives, target groups, audiences, products, services, etc. all require a different approach. However, this does not mean that basic rules do not exist that can help with integrating Social Media into the marketing mix.

Step-by-Step Plan

Create a logical step-by-step plan for integrating Social Media in a strategic fashion. Determine SMART objectives, analyse online target groups/audiences, e.g. using the Ground Swell method, select the most appropriate channels and determine which media or devices might be the most applicable. Next, create a creative concept, set the wheels in motion and do not forget to monitor the results and adjust course, if necessary. Working in this way creates an environment in which Social Media can actually contribute towards achieving corporate and marketing objectives.

The aim of this article is to explain how Social Media can be successfully integrated into the marketing mix while emphasizing that their use is merely a means to an end, not the end itself. Social Media are merely the means to achieving a higher goal. In one of our following articles, I will elaborate on the Social Media Cycle and the integration of Social Media into the marketing mix.

According to the report, people share information with others based on the relationship that exists between them. Sharing information is nothing new. We have always done so and the motivation to do so can be found in the upper three levels of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, i.e. the need for social contact, esteem and recognition, and self-actualization.

Five Motives for Sharing Information

The study identified five motives as to why people share information online:

• Information may be valuable, entertaining or beneficial to the recipient. People forward useful tips, links to certain products or services, and fun games or competitions if they think that that the recipient will find them useful or amusing. It was found that 94% of sharers considered whether the information would be useful to the recipient before sharing.

• People sharing information want to show who they are and what they stand for. They thereby consciously project an online image. Sharing information therefore forms part of their personal branding.

• Establishing and maintaining relationships. This applies to 78% of people sharing, especially among those with common interests. Seventy-three percent shares information to prevent a relationship from dissipating.

• Self-fulfilment. People sharing information feel appreciated if they receive gratitude and acknowledgement from recipients. Sixty-nine percent feels more engaged with the world by sharing information.

• Involvement in good causes or social dialogues, and the aim to involve others in the discourse.

Six Personas

The study went on to define six personas based on these sharers’ intrinsic motives:

1. Altruists
Altruists share information to help others. They are trustworthy, attentive and helpful. They generally use e-mail to share content.
2.   Careerists
Careerists exchange ideas that contribute towards improving operating processes, products and services. They are intelligent and generally use LinkedIn.
3.   Hipsters
Hipsters share content in order to let others know who they are. They are generally younger people. They are creative and popular. They are looking for exciting experiences. This group uses e-mail less than any of the other personas identified.
4.   Boomerangs
Boomerangs share content to elicit a response from their audiences. Their aim is recognition. They generally use Twitter and Facebook as their preferred means of communication.
5.   Connectors
Connectors look to bring people together within certain subject areas and aim to do what is in the group’s best interest. They are creative, attentive and relaxed. They love making plans with friends and generally use e-mail and Facebook.
6.   Selectives

Selectives share relevant information with specific, selected people. They are astute, precise and attentive. They prefer to share information by e-mail.

Conclusion & Tips

Marketing professionals should take the motives and personas listed above into account when developing their content-sharing strategy. This entails that content should not only attract a person to the brand, but should enable that person to get in touch and stay in touch with others who share the same goals, needs or interests.

Brands and/or companies can achieve this by building communities. These can be established by defining themes that are important to your target group/audience. Provide them with interesting and relevant content based on your knowledge of these groups. This may be in the form of whitepapers or software that provide certain solutions for your B2B customers or a competition in which you need your friends’ help in order to win, e.g. Lay’s Dutch Maak de Smaak campaign ['Create the Taste'], or an amusing video that has the potential to go viral, e.g. Heineken’s sneak preview for its fans of its walking fridge commercial.

Other tips for influencing the spread of information involve creating trust (information is only shared from trusted sources), keeping the message simple, using humour and emphasizing urgency. A clear message in the study’s findings is that e-mail should not be forgotten as a distribution channel. E-mail still plays an important role in sharing information.

Social Media have content-sharing power! Make sure that your brand and your customers profit from this power!

A well thought-through customer contact strategy and associated cross-media marketing can boost an organization’s profitability. The sales process is a subtle art form made up of several steps – entice, enchant, engage and enhance. The E⁴ model illustrates the various phases of the sales process in relation to a customer contact strategy. Social Media – and in turn Earned Media – are important factors for success in this process.

Customer Contact Strategy and the E⁴ Sales Model

A sound customer contact strategy forms the basis for intensifying the relationship with prospects and customers based on frequent interaction throughout the entire customer lifecycle using various media and channels.

This relationship can be strengthened using Social Media where peers influence one another and discuss the brand, product and relevant issues with one another. Establishing a customer contact strategy involves a cross-media strategy, a content plan and community management.

The E⁴ Sales Model describes how to communicate with your target group/audience throughout each phase of the sales process, thus initiating and prolonging the customer lifecycle and increasing customer value.

Earned Media and therefore Social Media form two of the cornerstones of this process.

E¹ – Entice

This phase is critical to attracting new customers. It involves acquainting your target group/audience with your brand, product or service, and deploying the right resources to activate these groups. A unique proposition needs to be developed based on content, not only generic characteristics, e.g. pricing. The target group/audience needs to perceive your brand and product as the best solution to meeting its needs.

Looking at the use of Social Media, we can entice target groups/audiences with communities, forums, social networks and associated campaigns. Attract potential and existing customers to your company by creating communities that allow their members to connect with one another based on relevant themes and interests. Forums can be used to provide answers to questions, thus showcasing your expertise in certain subject areas and establishing trust. Always be genuine and walk your talk!

In the enticement phase, the aim is to attract as many people as possible with your message and to direct them towards your Owned Media, e.g. your community or corporate website. If need be, Paid Media (online and/or offline) can be deployed for this purpose.

A shift will occur from Owned Media to Earned Media while progressing along the sales process and as your community and enthusiastic customer base grows. Your satisfied customers then become your Ambassadors. Their reviews help persuade prospects to opt for your brand as they did. Earned Media is free attention that you receive from your fans, but is far more valuable than any investment made in Paid Media. Focus therefore on Earned Media in your customer contact strategy and facilitate sharing.

Well thought-through Paid Media include social campaigns on social networks. You can profit from the positive influence that customers – who are already familiar with your brand – exert on their networks. This is the social proof effect, i.e. ‘…if it’s good enough for you, it’s good enough for me’. Social advertising is merely one tool in the cross-media marketing toolbox. Other media and mass media, e.g. television, radio and outdoor, are potentially relevant in this phase.

In this phase, ensure that you offer the opportunity to test out the product, e.g. a free online trial – sample, test drive, trial period, etc., and ask for online reviews. Allow people to play with your brand online, e.g. a widget that allows your product to be customized to their personal preferences. Let them share their results with friends and family to get advice and confirmation.

We aim to bind customers and prospects in several ways. Possibilities include communities, but also the use of customer databases. Create a customer profile from your community and record as many of its characteristics as possible in a database so that this can be used as the basis for permission marketing. Encourage registration to your newsletter and entice prospects with interesting content, interactive brochures, free whitepapers, objective comparisons, fun games or handy apps.

Use Social Media to create a sense of your organization, e.g. show how the product is made or let enthusiastic/experienced employees talk about your company on your YouTube channel.

E² – Enchant

Once a prospect has familiarized him/herself with your product and his/her interest has been stimulated, this phase focuses on conversion. This involves targeted one-on-one communications with prospects. Prospects can be enchanted with hard sales arguments, e.g. value for money, fast delivery, etc., and soft sales arguments, e.g. peer reviews and trust, by e-mail, telephone, on websites or in retail outlets.

Existing customer reviews are vital – ensure that you ask for them once they have purchased your products. In this phase, discussions, product information, statements and other forms of interactive information should be actively deployed. Brand rumour should also be encouraged. Social Media play an important role in rapidly spreading rumours and announcements.

Earned Media are so important that it is essential that opportunities be created at various moments in the sale process to allow people to communicate with one another about their purchases. An ideal moment is when a prospect makes a decision to order online. Once the order process has been completed, offer them the opportunity to share their purchase transaction via their social networks. It works! An example of a company that does this is Bol.com.

E³ – Engage

In this phase, it is important to nurture the customer relationship and to prolong the customer lifecycle. Online and offline loyalty programmes, well thought-through customer contact strategies, communities and personal contact play important roles. Keep exceeding customers’ expectations whenever they contact the company, e.g. when asking for advice, calling customer service, placing an order or requesting a repair. Do something extra that they didn’t ask for, but that is fully relevant to their situation.

Set up the database so that contact can be made on special occasions, e.g. a birthday or an addition to the family. Doing so contributes to the positive feeling that customers have for your company and increases the likelihood that they will opt for your brand instead of another on a future occasion. A combination of Social Media and traditional media should also be used.

Continuously engage customers and stimulate activity within the community, e.g. by providing relevant white papers, special offers, extras, useful tips and advice, games, videos, etc. Keep customers up-to-date with direct e-mail and newsletters. A sound content strategy is vital. You can surprise your prospects and customers by presenting your products and services from a different content dimension. Keep it exciting!

Always reward customers for their loyalty. A customer can be put in the community spotlight each month, prize draws can be held among customers or customers can be invited to attend exclusive events. Social Media can also be used to give customers a sneak preview of new product videos ahead of non-customers.

E⁴ – Enhance

This phase involves enhancing customer value, i.e. encouraging customers to spend more on the brand that they have already embraced, e.g. by purchasing the same product more often, add-ons or updates. The likelihood that customers purchase newer versions or updates can be increased by involving then in new product development.

The process of co-creation enhances customer engagement and provides valuable input about what customers really want. Prime examples of this process are NIKEiD and Lego Click. In the cosmetics industry, some brands ask their customers which colour lipstick they would most like to see in next season’s collection. The colour gaining the most votes is then produced.

Paying personal attention to customers and communicating the right message at the right time can encourage customers to make additional purchases. Enhancing customer value in essence involves enticing the customer again and again…

Another positive effect that can arise in this phase is the positive buzz about a product that is generated by loyal customers thereby boosting Earned Media. New prospects can be converted to new customers based on this Earned Media. Costs incurred for Paid Media will decline, i.e. your community contributes towards higher company profitability.

Conclusion

By investing in your current customers, prospects and communities, it is possible to prolong the customer lifecycle and increase customer value. Social Media that are deployed as part of cross-media marketing and a well thought-out customer contact strategy contribute to higher company profitability due to heightened product perception and experience, and social proof.

Paid Media are a means by which to initially attract a larger audience to your community, i.e. your Owned Media. The focus within a growing community and satisfied customer base will shift from Paid Media to Earned Media. The wheels of ever-increasing company profitability have been set in motion!