Leveraging the Old to Inform the Present

Data… We have access to more than we know what to do with, and one of the most common types of data from a social media marketing perspective is conversation data. The ability to identify who is talking, what is being said, the motivations behind consumer-generated posts and where people are talking is just a report away. Tools like Sysomos, Radian6 and even Twitter Search allow marketers to monitor conversations surrounding their brands, their categories and their competitors.

I know. This is old news, and you already knew that.

We live in a world of real-time information, and marketers who are monitoring online conversations are constantly struggling to be as fast and as reactive to what consumers are saying online as possible. This leads to missed opportunities.

Three Ways to Leverage Conversation Data

The opportunities that can be leveraged from online conversations depend on what you’re trying to get out of them. That will determine your approach to leveraging the data.

Listening to Learn: One of the most common practices for brands, particularly those just getting into the social space, is monitoring online conversations to identify threats, opportunities and insights. Brands can use this information to inform what they can leverage, should avoid and can provide to social consumers.

Listening to Respond: There’s also the opportunity to leverage social conversations to build brand trust by responding to customer complaints, thanking customers for endorsing the brand and providing value to relevant conversations from a brand’s POV.

Leveraging the Old to Inform the New: This is the one I think we as real-time marketers too often forget. We’re so caught up in the day-to-day need to keep up and be responsive that we neglect the data we’ve built up over time.

One of the immediate opportunities for marketers is around the holidays. Conversations from last year and the year before can be used to inform this year.

• What were people saying?
• Who was talking?
• What motivated them to share?
• What were the conversation drivers?
• How were your customers sharing?

We have access to focus groups from last year. They have the potential to tell us something we may have forgotten and can act on.

Old Information is Valuable

Past conversations on social channels can be treasure troves of data, and you can bet Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and other platforms know this.

Twitter’s already sold access to its database to data resellers like Gnip and Topsy. This is information marketers will be ready to buy soon if they aren’t already.

You can save yourself a bit of cash by starting to build up your own trove of information and start leveraging old conversations to inform actions taken today.

Social Media IS Risky!

Most organizations have two kinds of people when it comes to social media: the believers who are enthusiastic about the potential for social media to help solve business problems and the detractors who see the risks associated with social media and would rather steer clear.

Both groups are right.

The enthusiasts see the potential for social media to benefit the business in a variety of areas from product innovation and customer service to branding and advertising amplification.

The detractors, on the other hand, have legitimate concerns. An August 2012 study from the Altimeter Group found that 35% of respondents cited reputation or brand damage as a critical risk. Other concerns included release of confidential information, compliance issues, identity theft and others.

The Concerns are Justified…

Social media brings an unprecedented level of transparency, and brands don’t have a lot of control when it comes to what employees share. The platforms haven’t done a lot to alleviate fears with password leaks and questionable privacy practices.

The playing field has leveled and lines have blurred. Information moves quickly and can easily get out of control and cause issues for a brand.

The concerns are legit.

…But Overblown and Can Be Overcome

People don’t start discussing a company once it sets out with a social media program. They started discussing it long before that, but the brand at that time had no opportunity to make its voice heard, join the conversation, correct misinformation, embrace advocates and convert detractors. The bottom line is it’s just as risky (or even less risky) to have a brand presence in the social space than it is not to.

But that’s not exactly comforting news to those concerned with the risks of social media.

It’s important for pro- and anti-social media organization members to come together. Risk will never be nullified, but the two sides can come together to mitigate risk by:

• Establishing a solid social media org chart and work flow with roles and responsibilities clearly articulated and aligned upon
• Making social media part of your crisis and response plan protocol, so you aren’t forced to make it up when a crisis occurs
• Establishing a corporate social media policy to protect the business and employees
• Monitoring online conversations for potential threats
• Working closely with customer service to quickly work with online detractors to offer support before a problem grows worse

Both voices are important. But it’s important for those voices to come together and find solutions.