Companies need a strong social media presence to survive and grow — to do so, brands are beginning to capitalize on the value of social media intelligence as a critical element for marketing strategies. A recent Gleanster analysis reported that 85 percent of brand marketers are now using social media intelligence to drive their strategies. As these brands start leveraging the rich insights social media can provide, they will be forced to address the demand for real-time response and communication with customers. This leap to an agile content development, instant distribution and real-time performance environment is driving the creation of new models to ensure successful execution.
In addition to using topical social media insights as an integral part of their digital strategies, brands are hiring talented individuals to manage and analyze this big data resource. This enhanced monitoring and analysis goes beyond Twitter and Facebook, and extends to the thousands of blogs and forums available for analysis. This vast resource enables marketers and customer service leaders to develop deeper insights and respond immediately and effectively to the market.
For example, one of the most successful ads of 2013 – which highlights the opportunity for real-time marketing across social media – was Oreo’s Dunk in the Dark Super Bowl ad. The ad was pulled together in response to the Super Bowl blackout, dominating social chatter and news articles for days. To accomplish this, the Oreo marketers did three things: monitored current events on social media to identify relevant trends, created an ad that would resonate in the media and social channels, and promoted it via Oreo’s social profiles. With its compelling marketing program and talented social media analysts, Oreo ignited the imagination of marketers to achieve the same relevance and recognition for their own brands.
As marketers engage in agile communication, they will need customer service proficiency and fluency across all social channels. As brands realize the business intelligence (BI) and measurable ROI provided by multichannel engagement with consumers, they will be positioned to deliver significant customer service improvements. With the deeper insights of social intelligence, marketing teams can provide support and assurance to customers in real time, and use social media relationships to identify leads and recommend marketing actions.
The integration of customer service and marketing isn’t new, but it will become a stronger real time link this year and a foundational component for leading consumer facing companies. In fact, in 2009, through social listening, one of our international clients discovered its customers discussing service questions and shipping experiences amongst themselves, but not with the company. At this point, the company decided to implement a social customer service solution in order to engage with consumers. The goal was to deliver speedy answers and relevant feedback while creating a more customer friendly brand. The program was well received by the market and this integrated marketing / customer service collaboration continues to deliver positive results today.
From these examples, it’s apparent social media monitoring is an effective way to stay ahead of the competition, provide excellent customer service, address in market issues more quickly and gain insights about important brand perceptions.
Marketing is expanding its responsibilities and the approach it’s required to take, as more brands and consumers join and interact on social media. To support their brand and social media efforts, marketers will need to acquire the appropriate resources, whether it is talented staff or new technology, to engage with customers and prospects in real time, and create relevant and memorable connections. It’s no secret, 2014 will be the year for swift social interactions created by the teamwork of marketing and customer service – and the consistent singular relationship they offer to their consumers.
This article originally appeared on the Wired Innovation Insights blog >>
