Expectations for today’s social media users

by | Oct 10, 2011 | At Checkerboard, Integrated Marketing, Social Media | 0 comments

Social media permeates many of your customers’ lives. Understanding their attitudes toward it will help you engage more effectively with them.

The Social Media Marketing Conference held in Bloomington, Minnesota last month opened with a joint session on Marketing in a Social World. The conference was designed primarily for employees leading social media efforts at their companies. Those following track one are just jumping into social media; those following track two attended for tips on stepping up their company’s social media efforts. Though the conference divided into two tracks, conference organizers SkillPath Seminars stressed the global nature and omnipresence of social media to all attendees.

Conference facilitators played the video ‘Social Media Revolution 2011’ to help attendees picture the new world of social media. (View the video below or read some of the statistics mentioned here.) Our article series begins with a review of some common social media expectations:

  1. Social media is always changing. Sure, some of us were confused or frustrated when Facebook revamped user profiles last month and presented a new layout. Even though it may have angered some fringe friends, the rest of us can applaud Facebook for embracing the ever-changing nature of social media. Your customers don’t want the same old, same old from you either.
  2. Your customers decide what’s relevant in social media. Alright, so the Facebook change was really inconvenient for you as a user. You could have hopped over to the new Google+ networking site right? Well, that wouldn’t have been a wise move for every company. For most, Google+ doesn’t yet have the users to count as a relevant platform. Your company needs to be where your target customers are. It’s all part of letting go and giving your customers control of your brand.
  3. Word of mouth is now WORLD of mouth. Like many, you may have jumped on the social media bandwagon in search of brand ambassadors: customers who advocate your products. These fans explain their devotion to your products thus persuading others to try them. Word of mouth is an apt description of what happens when two housewives trade cleaning tips and recommend those products over a cup of coffee, but that’s not the world in which we live now. More social media platforms, with more users, means there are now entire communities talking about your brand. What’s said about your company – both good and bad – will spread faster and farther than you probably imagined.

Check here often for more tools, trends and tips from The Social Media Marketing Conference. Through our article series, releasing through November, we will share our insider’s perspective on the strategies and examples of social media success straight from the conference. We attended the conference to get the information you need to make your job easier, and your social media campaigns more rewarding for you and your customers.

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