Conversation Management: manage word-of-mouth to increase business value for Social Media Forum 2010

Conversation management Manage word-of-mouth to increase business value

Polle de Maagt for Social Media Forum

Hello. I am Polle de Maagt.

I create impact through

conversations at a pretty cool

company called InSites Consulting.

We work mostly because we’re

committed to make research sexy

again, but brands like Ben&Jerry’s,

Telenet, Danone and Philips agreed

to pay us for it.

Managing expectations ... I only have 30 minutes. Don’t expect me to do magic.

For magic (or more on conversation management and

business value), drop me an email at [email protected]

Honestly, sentences like the world has changed, power has shifted to the consumer, increase your share of conversation, consumers trust each other most, shifting power from marketers to consumers, marketers are no longer in control, social media strategy and learn to lose control make me puke in

my mouth a bit.

While it is really really simple.

People talk. A lot. Internet made it pretty easy to talk. But still: 80% of the talking is done offline. You might not be surprised that talking influences others. Especially when the conversations are searchable and retweetable. Consumers talk better, more and more genuine than brands. So you better be ready.

Kindness, happiness and cool things are talkable. KLM surprised random passengers in their effort to discover how happiness spreads. Advertising campaigns make great conversation starters.

“ “ Consumers out-conversate brands.

Create stuff worth sharing.

Tom de Bruyne (Boondoggle)

Great products create happy customers. No surprise, I guess.

“ Focus on what really matters: making users happy with your product as quickly as you can, and helping them as much as you can after that. If you do those better than anyone else out there you’ll win.

Marc Hedlund (Wesabe) “

A remarkable company culture works. Every company has it’s stories and ambassadors. Capitalize on these stories and turn your employees in an army of ambassadors.

Your product might has fans who love to help. Facilitate them in sharing.

Buying new consumers is expensive. Advertising is the tax for being unremarkable. Please think retention.

Helping people helps. Exceeding customer expectations builds loyalty (81% repeats, 63% recommends) and falling below customer expectations erodes loyalty (5%/71%). * Forrester, Build Loyalty By Exceeding Expectations When Resolving Customer Problems, 2010

When you understand your customers, you’ll do better. 66% of marketers is disconnected from their target audience.

* InSites Consulting, Meet The Joneses Research, 2010

If someone asks you a question, answer politely. Zappos invites every employee to WOW their customers. By the way: 11% of organizations doesn’t reply to customer emails. * InSites Consulting, Meet The Joneses Research, 2010

Recap. People talk. A lot. Kindness, happiness and cool things are talkable. Great products create happy customers. A remarkable company culture works. Buying new consumers is expensive. Helping people helps. When you understand your customers, you’ll do better. If someone asks you a question, answer politely.

It’s really about being human. It is about asking yourself ‘What should consumers be saying to each other after they’ve seen my ad or contacted me and my brand?’ It is about integrating conversations in all thinking and acting. And that might be a challenge.

Offline WoM Road map

WoM

Product improvement

Does it work? The best performing marketers do three things that make them stand out. * Conversation Readiness research amongst 500 European marketers

You can forget most of the silly things I said. But, please:

Remember these five things.

The world is a conversation network and customers out-conversate brands. It is about integrating conversations in all thinking and acting. It is about managing the conversation.

1)

It is about changing the way you treat your consumers. About acting human. About being talkable. It is about doing what you say you do, it is about listening and acting. About observing, facilitating and joining the conversation.

2)

It isn’t rocket science. Kindness, happiness and cool things are talkable. Great products create happy customers. Helping people helps. When you understand your customers, you’ll do better. If someone asks you a question, answer politely.

3)

Offline WoM Road map

WoM

Product improvement

Does it work? The best performing marketers do three things that make them stand out. * Conversation Readiness research amongst 500 European marketers

Read the manual.

Seriously.

Read it.

48

I hope I was worth sharing.

Send me an email at

[email protected] so I can help you

remind of the 48 hours.

Find the presentation at

http://polle.me/smf10