Social Media Marketing, An Hour a Day: The Social Feedback Cycle

Social media is all about being an active participant in a conversation on the web.  By increasing the amount in which you participate in an online discussion whether it be in Twitter or some other forum, you are actually helping to create your very own social reputation.  To take it a step further, when the context involves marketing, your social reputation becomes an expression of the brand you’re trying to sell.  For example, if several people on Twitter become involved in a conversation about how the iced mochas at Starbucks have tasted really bad over the past few weeks and suddenly Starbucks responds with an explanation, then they become a part of that conversation with the consumer.

Because they are measurable, online communities foster participation.  According to Evans, these communities maintain the collective reputation of a brand, based on which an individual may develop or attest personal loyalty.  Increasing numbers of marketers (and rightly so) are getting involved with the Social Web, with particular interest centering on the collective.  You see, by influencing the collective, you can then reach the individual!

Evans points out that traditional forms of media take a “push and tell” approach to marketing whereby the marketer is in control of the message and dictates that message to the consumer (who is in a subservient role).  Social media throws this balance off, making the consumer and the marketer equal partners- both with the opportunity to voice their opinions.

Consumer Generated Media

Over time, the Internet has grown to have a significant impact on how people view their own ability to hunt and gather information on a wide range of products and services.  Consumer generated media is all over the Internet in the form of photos, blogs, videos, comments, ratings and reviews, and guess what?  It is CONTROLLED BY THE CONSUMER.  You may have wanted to buy that brand name blender, but after having spoken to a few other people online prior to your purchase, you realized that it was a piece of junk with a label.  One of the biggest things that marketers can take away from all of this online chatter is that consumers talk about the things that interest them the most.  As Evans stated,

Consumer-generated media is a reflection of the generational norms: as Millenials move into the center of the marketing power brand, their online behaviors become increasingly significant.

So, what does this mean for modern day marketing gurus?  Marketers need to identify what it is they want to look at when it comes to studying consumer behavior.  After that, create a list of the things that you’re doing (or have already done) to generate some sort of awareness about your product and/or service.  Join social networking groups such as Twitter, and find out what people are talking about, and then start talking back.  And don’t downplay the little things such as blog commenting because every little bit counts when it comes to solidifying your online reputation as someone your consumers can trust!

The Main Points According to Dave:

• Social media plays a significant role in marketing:  The conversations that take place on the Social Web determine how easy-or difficult- your task in driving conversion will be.
• The social feedback cycle is built on the post-purchase feedback and conversational loop that augments your traditional purchase funnel activities.
• Consumer-generated media, and in particular photos, audio, and video that supplement text (blogs), are in mainstream use now, even if concentrated in the Millenial and Gen X segments.
• The determined detractor is an individual who plays an important role in the evolution of markets but nonetheless will not (normally) be “won over” and therefore is generally best viewed as a participant with whom you will “respectfully  agree to disagree.”  Your best response is to simply ensure that your story is also being told.
• Your social feedback cycle, developed and maintained over time, is a key planning tool as you develop your social media plan.