Welcome to the Kleber & Associates blog! Here’s the latest on Brands Digging Deeper for Success
What does online content and social media participation mean if you’re not measuring it? Sure, it gets your name out there, you may notice the number of your followers and fans increase, but as a brand marketing its services or products, what’s it really producing?
For consumers, social media is the medium through which information is gathered. These networking sites are used for expression and for opinions… especially when it comes to certain products or brands. Companies are influenced by what customers are saying on social networking sites and can therefore expand their businesses by establishing a larger customer base, providing information and offers of interest to them.
How are brands able to determine if the use of social media is actually benefiting business? According to the article “Social Media Marketing on the Rise, but Companies Failing to Gauge its Value,” if brands aren’t successfully (and regularly) monitoring their ROI, the benefits of social media become unclear. Monitoring and measuring social activity can determine what catches a customer’s eye and what doesn’t. A certain product may generate more views than another, and regularly monitoring this activity can be greatly beneficial. Tracking social network activity allows for companies to better understand what their customers are looking for. Companies are able to see what type of customer base they are attracting and can subsequently make proper adjustments to expand that customer base. Social networking allows for “chatter” among customers, which may benefit a company in the sense that buzz is being created about its brand. The ability to gather this type of information allows for companies to improve upon their business strategies which will ultimately lead to profit.
As customers voice their opinions using social media, brands can – and should – listen and engage in order to improve and strengthen their business strategies. When customers are spreading the word about a certain brand, companies have a much greater chance of creating more business opportunities for themselves simply through engagement. Companies are constantly thinking of ways to promote their brands. When “The Roommate” came out in theatres, ads with a picture of the lead actress Leighton Meister were placed across various destinations in the U.S. The ad stated “Roommate Wanted. Must be willing to share…everything. Killer personality a plus.” The ad also displayed a phone number which lead to a voicemail from Leighton Meister expressing the need for a roommate. This ad is an example of how companies are digging deeper in creating unique and clever ways to promote their brands. This ad also allows for Sony to calculate the number of people who actually called the phone number. Yogli Mogli, a popular frozen yogurt eatery, comes up with clever ideas to keep its customers coming back. By simply “liking” their Facebook page on a specific date, fans can enjoy free frozen yogurt. By promoting these different ideas on social networking sites, companies see what gets their customers in the door and buying their products. Adidas has also come up with a clever concept by creating the Facebook shoe. The shoe displays the network’s logo and the slogan “Facebook is a social utility that connects you with the people around you.” Brands are taking greater risks to see what will create a reaction.
Social networking allow for companies to branch out their ideas and see what their customers think. Creating clever ads, promoting contests, sharing videos/pictures are some ways that companies use social networking to keep their customers engaged. While social networking gets the word out there, being able to monitor activity allows for a more accurate representation of who your customers are, what they are saying and how you can strengthen your business.
