For me this engagement is what makes me love a brand. It gives a brand a personality. I think who ever is in charge there really understands my need to connect with and respect the brands I invest my hard earned dollars in. It makes them approachable, and sets the tone for our relationship. Believe me when I say it is a relationship, I have been dealing with some brands longer than my 21 year marriage, and have invested a small fortune in them. Do we need a relationship counselor? Don't get me wrong I am in no way encouraging unprofessional, or inappropriate twitter exchanges, and I expect excellent quality, customer service, and issue resolution, but when a brand jokes, and engages sharing trivia or pictures, or has a really fun contest, it is the equivalent to someone saying hello and remembering my name at a store. If makes me feel special, and important. It makes me want to come back. It builds loyalty and a rapport ... a relationship.
If you have nothing other then promotion, marketing, and sales pitches for me then this is a one way conversation and not a relationship that interests me. Lets save time and leave that for TV or radio advertising, or send it to me in a newsletter. All of these are one way communication tools. If your response is you need to be on social media, then you also need to understand that social media is a two way conversation. I have watched a fun comment by a brand snowball into group participation and a collective "LOL", which my friend is meaningful interaction and engagement. Every person who reads or participated in that exchange will remember it, and for me if I haven't tried that brand there is a good chance I will. It definitely makes me want to share my positive experience with my friends and family, and as many of you know I am very good at sharing. You see they too want to feel special and like they are more than just a sale.
So brands don't reduce your interaction! Double it and engage in a meaningful way. In other words:
Talk to Me!
Now might be a good time to reread my post:
Yep, just me Cathy thinking out loud about brands and engagement.
I was thinking about this the other day. Some brands just are not making the best use of social media at all, and it is sad to see. They have internal business meetings around what to post and create a posting schedule of things to say, but they lack personal interaction. The person doing their social media needs to be more spontaneous and look like they are on top of things instead of just pre-scheduling a few tweets or facebook updates throughout the day.
ReplyDeleteAnd I find it interesting that the company sponsors giveaways on different blogs to promote brand awareness, but the person doing their social media ignores the giveaways.
And I agree with you, they can interact and have fun, while still behaving professionally. I think they are leaving a lot of money on the table by not using social media more wisely.
Thanks so much for reading and commenting. There are brands I have loved and championed for years that used respond but have just stopped. I have actually tweeted them daily for a week to so if maybe it was just a busy time, but did not get a single response. I know I am just one person, but put together a bunch of 1 person and it adds up. Agreed leaving lots money on the table AND free advertising when we share.
DeleteYour comment about brands not promoting blog giveaways is so true. I love when it at least appears to be a partnership between my fave bloggers and the brands.
Great post, Cathy!! There are a number of brands I deal with who really "get" social media. They interact, they respond, they joke and they listen to their followers. Some of them are simply amazing with how they handle social media. Those that do this have my total respect and loyalty. They make customers feel that they matter, and that their voice is heard. Sadly, many businesses have yet to understand the importance of social media, or have let things go, as you say. I'm not a brand myself, but if you take the time to contact me, you can be sure I'll respond. I appreciate anyone who is willing to reach out and share something with me.
ReplyDeleteThanks for reading my post and commenting Sandy, I think it is a process, and not all brands are understanding or catching up to the fast paced arena social media is. From this "think out loud process" for this post and reading some of the comments two things come to mind. A) Hire an online community manager, and take the time to hire someone that is knowledgeable about social media, and your market, product, and the brand culture. They are the face of the brand and deliver the message. B) Maybe there is a bigger or better role we as consumers, and "followers" can do to express the type of engagement we want. Both of those may be areas for me to "think out loud" about in the future by way of blog post
DeleteWith regards to brands, I've seen it change over the years too. The removal of a personalized and engaging community manager and brand advocate, who was the one responsible for bringing that brand into an engaging level of relationship with their customer in the first place, and handed over to a generic PR firm who pushes out polished pictures and perfectly scheduled posts/tweets/updates. It's sad. They drop the ball after gathering their following. It's not about the numbers... it's about the conversation! ;)
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for reading and commenting. There are some brands that are excellent at engaging. It appears some have changed their engagement and I am trying to figure out why. As I often do I was thinking out loud about it. I love the insight that others with varying experience like yourself can offer to the discussion. Maybe the numbers have grown to quickly for them to manage or maybe they are working on plans to better engage. Maybe we the customer or follower have also changed.
DeleteOne point I want to make is there has also been a recent backlash from contesting community that has had an impact on how some brands interact, particularly with bloggers, on social media. It's sad, but false accusations from people who don't understand the industry are starting to scare some brands. The engagement is being affected and becoming much more "dry" instead of that natural engagement there once was.
ReplyDeleteFirst Thanks for reading and commenting Shayna, and I would like to say that I love the insight that someone like yourself can bring to a conversation like this. I certainly do not have all if any of the answers, and thinking out loud about some of these things might start a conversation that allows us to see the whole or big picture better. I find you comments very interesting and wonder then whether we have played a role in this change, and if so in what way and to what extent. It is indeed ever evolving - this thing we call social media.
DeleteIt's sad when a few try and ruin it for the rest of us. I'm with the other commentors, Brands need to engage, engage, engage. The more genuine the better. You can't control others, only yourself. Make it count.
ReplyDeleteBesos, Sarah
Blogger at Journeys of The Zoo
I totally agree Sarah We can't control others actions, we only get to control our reactions. I always try to do that with dignity and empathy. It makes me sad when people have to make others feel bad in order to feel good about themselves. For myself, people can say what they please, but I take it all with a big grain of salt and then compare that to my own experiences, and those of people I trust to based my opinions on, not hearsay and factoids.
Deletewe definately do
ReplyDeleteWe lets hope we get a good one, Know of any? LOL
DeleteWell said, Cathy - I miss the "social" in social media lately, too! I wonder if there will be a re-birth of a new "more-social-media" now that SM is becoming so main-stream? Let's hope!
ReplyDeleteThanks for reading and taking the time to leave a comment Christa. I hope so too!
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