Social Research

When a consumer buys from a company, there is not a whole lot the company knows about them personally. They will have their age, gender, geographic location etc. But what happens when research goes beyond this demographic information, and gets personal? More brands are investing in social. Some brands are simply trying to conduct traditional advertising, while others are actually trying to establish a social connection and engagement. As brands get closer and closer to consumers, information is going to change, and so will selling and marketing efforts. 

A great analogy would be the pursuit of young lady by a young gentleman. If all you know is her age, what she looks like, maybe where she works, then you don't know much. But once you start engaging with her socially you began finding out the intricate nuances that make her uniquely her. As you find these things out, you can begin tailoring your pursuit specifically to her and then ultimately make your sales pitch. She may agree to a date, she may not. Whichever the case, she knows that you were not just throwing her the same jargon you throw every girl. Your message was for her and only her. 

I see this happening in the future relationship between brands and people. Note that we aren't talking about companies and people, but brands and people. Brands are becoming the personality of the company like never before. As brands connect with us socially, they will better tailor their efforts towards us. How personal will it get? And how scary is that thought?

 

Vine

Vine has finally brought something I have long thought would be the future of Social. Vine allows users to upload a short video clip that can be shared on Twitter and Facebook. I always wondered when Social Media platforms would have a "video status" type feature. Instead of scrolling though a Facebook feed of print statuses. You watch 6 seconds of a person updating their status. This gets super personal. I mean, people already post the most ridiculous things on Facebook. SMH or Facepalm moments happen on the regular. Just imagine people giving you status updates all the time via video clips. Vine steps out into that uncharted territory. Could this be a step towards a more video incorporated social experience? Who knows. Even better question: how will companies use this platform for social gain? They will find a way.

Facebook Contests

Everytime, without fail, as I am aimlessly scrolling through my news feed I encounter more and more posts such as this

Great Picture, and awesome polo. But I am amazed by the amounts of companies who do not know the terms and conditions for a Facebook Contest. I think most would agree. This is a epidemic. "Like this photo and share it for chance to WIN" is something I see everyday. I guess it is a good way to garner followers and get some exposure. But I think there are two fundamental problems.

1. This practice simply doesn't follow code. The Terms may not be the most read thing on Facebook, but they are worth noting, especially if your a business. To have an official promotion you need to use an app. Facebook wants things to be legit. They also want you to use their apps. Hey, They make the rules. Using a liking feature, sharing a picture, none of those things are legit ways to run a promotion or contest.

 2. Is this creating real followers or number of likes? Are these people really interested in your brand or are they just hoping that they will win the weekend stay at one of your luxurious cabins the mountains (real promotion)? This is great exposure. I would not know of the brands if not for their giveaways. I don't think that giveaways will sustain true followers. That's not to say they shouldn't be used. If used properly, they way Facebook intends, they can be helpful to get your name out. At the end of the day you can hype people up over free stuff as much as you want, at some point you have to do something that will compel people to actually buy something.

Pull out the Passion

Following/engaging with a brand via social media is not always a comfortable thing for most people. Some will follow just get updates on deals. Some "like" the brand, but don't care at all about what the brand is wanting to feed them. Pulling out the passion in people transforms casual followers into brand ambassadors.

My group in my MARK 5000 class are doing a presentation on "Red Bull." This is a brand that has envoked passion within hearts of their followers. An energy drink doesn't really pull out a lot of passion in and of itself. But Red Bull has become more than that. Through Social Media they have become one of the driving forces behind extreme sports. The brand represents adventure. When you drink a Red Bull you aren't just trying to get a energy boost, your partaking in the extreme adventure that comes with Red Bull. If you go to Red Bull's Facebook page, they have a picture of a guy snowboarding. Red Bull goes beyond a simple energy drink, into an experience with the customer that inspires passion.

When consumers of Red Bull talk about Red Bull they of course talk about the taste, but more importantly they talk about the extreme nature of the brand. They are able to connect with the brand in a way that makes them passionate about the brand.

Svpply // stylish, curated shopping

Pinterest has been all the craze. The social site masterfully encourages user generated content. This allows people to scour through all sorts of "pins" finding numerous things they love. Businesses have taken to Pinterest by pinning pictures of their clothing items or products with links to their websites. This is a wonderful way to get your product in front of people. Even though I am a guy, I can confidently say I am a Pinterest user. I enjoy looking at different things that fancy my interest. But often times I wish it were easier to find and purcahse the things I see on Pinterest.

Well, not too long ago I found out about Svpply which combines stylish, curated content with the ability to purchase. As stated in the about section on their website, "Svpply is a community of people discovering the products they love." Each of the million or so products on the site's shop section have been selected by members of site using the bookmarklet; essentially like "pinning."I enjoy browsing through the different items in the shop section because if I find something I like, I can click on it and either select "want it" for my followers to see or "buy it" which takes me to the site that is selling the product. I can also browse through the "feed" section which are items posted by people I am following.

I enjoy three main things about Svpply:

1. The products are stylish, fresh, and sometimes odd. You'll find everything from some classy boots you would love to rock to an iphone projector to your own beer making kit. There is so much more. Art, home goods, books, can all be found on Svpply. And you can bet they will be hip.

2. Svpply smoothly connects social with commerce. As I said earlier, what I stumble across on Svpply can be clicked on to bring me right to the website selling the product. It makes sticking to a budget difficult though. I have clicked "buy it" numerous times and thankfully for my bank account, I've chickened out. Nevertheless the convenience is there.

3. Their email list rocks. I am on the email list which is sometimes a nightmare with companies. Not the case with Svpply. They send out "best of the week" products curated by their staff. Also, they send out a "sleepers" list of products undiscovered by the general public. I like these lists because there is much variety which stimulates search of products I like or want to buy.




 

Insta-ads.

Nothing is free. Social media sites are enjoyed by millions at no dollar cost to them. Time is the payment given Social Media sites. Ads are the source of revenue for companies like Facebook or Twitter. No social medium will be untouched it seems. Instagram, which has remained adless, will likely have incorporated with the introduction of their web based viewing. For the duration of its existence, Instagram was simply a mobile app. An online viewing has recently become incorporated. The features are limited. You can view your newsfeed and look at other users "profiles." This creates room for the always beloved apps on either side of the screen showing you advertisements filled with things you have been looking at on the internet. Internet shopping got a lot tougher. If you decide not to get that pair of shoes, you will be reminded again and again by the numerous ads lurking around every corner, making sure you know those shoes are available. I'm not complaining though. If all it takes for cool social sites to be free is me ignoring ads, I can get down with that. Instagram's online viewing will be interesting. Whether or not they decide to incorporate ads is still up in the air.

How well do you know your social network?

I was very intrigued by this social media game a friend of a friend has created as a way to learn more about your social network. The name of the game is Placetheface. After allowing access to your facebook, linkedin or meetup network, a picture comes up of a friend in your network and you must try to identify the person. When you enter the right name, basic information about the individual is shared to help you learn a little bit about who the person is and what they do. The information is extracted from the individuals facebook, linkedin or meetup. Placetheface engages you in two ways. It is competitive; at least to me. You want to guess the person's name right. Of course you will be able to identify your good friends easily, but some faces can be extremely unfamiliar. Secondly, Placetheface acts as a social network educational tool helping you to better recognize faces. I think we have all been in that awkward situation where we see a person we are friends with on facebook, but either we haven't see the person since highschool or we have hardly talked to them more than once, and remembering their name becomes as challenging as remembering what we ate for breakfast on July 3rd 2002 (completely random date). What do you do? I'll tell you what I do, make awkward eye contact until their is or isn't an agreed upon mutual recognition of each other. If social engagement is made, I use neutral greetings such as "Sup dude?" or "Hey girl" or even just a head nod and keep walking. Placetheface may just save us from these awkward scenarios. Even if it doesn't, its a great way to kill some free time when your bored...