In the future everyone will be famous for fifteen minutes.

Andy Warhol

Enter social media and it turns out Andy was right. And then some.

Our customers are far from nobodies. They’re broadcasted continually across the World Wide Web. Some more notorious than others, but virtually all accessible.

We are now able to get closer to our customers than ever before. To build personal relationships through the art of conversation. Businesses large and small are engaging their customers in digital dialogue to build relationships, solicit feedback and provide new levels of customer service.

The nature of relationships is reciprocal, however, and so as we get to know them, customers too have the opportunity to get intimate with our brands. So how do we put our best foot forward in this global conversation to charm our powerful friends?

Here are some tips to help your brand master the art of great social media conversation.

Listen first. Talk later.

A great conversationalist listens carefully before speaking. You wouldn’t jump into a face to face conversation without first listening to what it’s about. So before you unleash a barrage of tweets or status updates, take some time to monitor the conversations that are already taking place.

Take stock of where your brand currently stands online. Find out what people are already saying about your brand and about your competitors and who is doing the talking.

Converse, don’t sell.

The golden rule that businesses must remember is that the social media environment is just that; Social. Users join a social network for entertainment and human interaction. It’s quite unlikely they’ll be happy to hear your blatant sales pitch.

That’s not to say you shouldn’t let your fans or followers know about special offers, new products or store openings from time to time, but refrain from constant or pushy sales messages. Instead, show you care by ensuring your contributions are useful and interesting.

Always be yourself.

The key to building successful relationships is maintaining open and honest dialogue. Social media provides a fantastic opportunity connect with customers and prospects on a personal level. Let them know what your brand stands for.

Internally, ensure that all employees who will speak on behalf of your brand are aware of the appropriate brand personality and tone of voice that should be used. A clear strategy and policies are vital.

Balance quality with quantity.

A well-balanced conversation is a good conversation. Find the happy place between talking too much and awkward silence.

Fewer more valuable contributions speak far louder than constant or pointless babble, so don’t go overboard with the updates, messages or tweets. On the other hand, it’s best to avoid awkward silence. Once you make the commitment to get social, make sure you participate on a regular basis.

Never ignore your fans or followers or delete their comments. Awkwardness always ensues, and it’s unlikely to involve silence. Remember negative noise can spread quickly so diffuse any negativity before it escalates.

Don’t be a bore.

Our final tip needs little explanation. Remember that your brand is entering a social environment, so it’s important to be respectful of this. Strategically charm your community with relevant games, engaging applications and useful information.

By mastering the above, your brand can become a valuable participant in social media conversations. Be strategic and you’ll have personal access to your most loyal customers and brand advocates. Although social media isn’t meant for explicitly pushing sales, it does provide an opportunity to let your brand personality shine. Become a brand of choice, and sales will follow.

Inverness Medical Innovations Australia required an updated brand identity for their Panbio portfolio of dengue fever diagnostic tools. The brand approach was required to reflect the previous visual identifiers used, communicate the company’s premium offering and market position, and move the brand into the online space where research and purchase decisions are increasingly made.

STRATEGY/EXECUTION

Enso worked simultaneously on a refreshed visual identity for the product portfolio as well as an online communications strategy. The two aligned closely in an approach that reflected the products’ market leading position as an innovator in the diagnostics industry. The project saw the launch of panbiodengue.com – an online dengue resource designed to leverage the increasing use of the internet and provide a valuable communications platform for product reps, distributers and end users. Other touch points included included in the project included product brochures, packaging, email communications and trade show exhibitions.

http://www.panbiodengue.com

Panbio required a presentation to present a simple illustration of their Homogeneous Assay Technology platform and its implications in the medical diagnostic industry. The animation was required to present the concept in a format that could be easily understood by potential licensees, partners and investors.

STRATEGY/EXECUTION

Enso visualised the process using 3D animation tools to result in a 2 minute video that provided a visually stimulating and simplified overview of a complex concept. The video was provided in various formats for distribution online, in powerpoint presentations and at trade show exhibitions.

Australian medical diagnostics researcher and manufacturer, Panbio Limited, engaged Enso to develop a short corporate video aimed at potential investors in the biomedical / biotech sector. Budget and time were major challenging factors in developing an effective strategic approach.

STRATEGY/EXECUTION

Enso Consultancy developed a style that would be visually engaging and deliver strong messages and an ambience of confidence that would reflect the cutting nature of Panbio’s activities. An onscreen presenter placed in an animated virtual set was the approach chosen to achieve the communication goals most efficiently and effectively. Following careful identification of the key messages and script consultation, Enso Studios’ production team handled the entire production in-house to ensure communication objectives were met on time and within budget.

OUTCOMES

The corporate video was screened at the Ausbiotech 2007 conference function and received a great reception. Used as an exhibition tool, it has provided a significant increase in the traffic drawn to Panbio’s information centre. A shorter version of the video has become a popular download on the Panbio Website.

Sydney joins Paris, San Francisco, Miami, Singapore, Chicago, London, Beijing, New York and Shanghai as a host city to bring together leading edge digital marketers to discuss industry best practice and future directions of digital at a 2 day conference.

Social networking, brand dialogs, online business models and metrics are some of the key themes to be discussed this year at the Hilton in Sydney on March 12-13.

The Enso Consultancy team will be soaking it all up and using the forum to discuss digital strategies and directions with both industry peers and attending clients.

We encourage anyone involved in digital communication to attend what should be an insightful 2 days.

Click Here to Register

We look forward to seeing you and saying hi at Ad-Tech.

Many marketers are asking about web 2.0. what is web 2.0, and as a brand marketer, what do i need to know? is web 2.0 forcing us to rethink marketing and possibly see the onset of marketing 2.0?

Web 2.0, a term coined by Tim O’Reilly in 2004, refers to the resurgence of the web with new business and social models and increasing relevance and importance following the dot com crash of 2001. Web 2.0 is often used to loosely define a set of online technologies and methodologies that are forging a new level of interaction between online publishers and online consumers. In fact, the movement is starting to blur the line between these two previously very distinct groups.

Popular websites built on Web 2.0 methodologies include the likes of YouTube, Digg and Facebook which are driven by user contributed content, however the same methodologies are showing exceptional promise as Brand Marketing and Communication tools for a broad range of enterprises.

Business Embraces Web 2.0 – Competitive Advantage or Survival Necessity
A McKinsey Global Survey: How business are using Web 2.0 conducted in January 2007, showed widespread business interest and implementation of Web 2.0 technologies across a variety of industries. Technologies enabling automation and networking were of particular interest to businesses in the near term. The results point toward increasing investments in Web 2.0 technologies in the coming years with a high level of satisfaction from early adopters.

While the respondents to the survey were optimistic about the business benefits of Web 2.0 (with many already realising considerable value), it is perhaps a little early to accurately measure any competitive advantage gained by adopting Web 2.0 tools. Certainly customers have responded to increased quality of communication and participation, and early adopters of Web 2.0 tools for the consolidation and optimization of internal knowledge and communication may see long term competitive advantage through improved internal processes. However, the adoption of the tools are happening so quickly that it may no longer even be a game of long term competitive advantage, but rather one of keeping up with the Joneses as these new approaches to business become quickly commoditised.

Easier Implementation
Web 2.0 tools are often characterised as being relatively simple and inexpensive to set-up and trial, and can often bypass the implementation barriers of traditional IT projects. In fact, according to the McKinsey survey, many successful projects start as grassroots efforts from within the organisation rather than topdown management mandates. This is allowing different departments within an organisation, such as Marketing and HR, to trial the tools and experiment with aligning them with their objectives without the usual resistance of traditional business decision processes. The value and business case can often be quickly demonstrated without huge investments in new IT infrastructure.

New Business and Brand Strategies
Wikis, blogs, podcasts and RSS have all been demonstrated as technologies that can bring immediate value to an organisation by enhancing communication. Web 2.0 is all about conversations, collaboration, openness and transparency. Before a business jumps into Web 2.0 they need to make sure their brand and communication strategy is prepared for it. Following are four considerations when forming your Web 2.0 strategy:

1. Define a commitment to communication, especially listening and responding. Some Web 2.0 initiatives can take significant time to gain traction, and an ongoing commitment to communication is necessary for success. Abandoned blogs and unused internal wikis can do more harm than good, so make sure you have the resources in place to facilitate ongoing communication. Once a customer begins to participate in the communication you need to demonstrate rapid comprehension and response.
2. Be prepared to hand over some brand control. Your brand is already in the hands of the people, but Web 2.0 can amplify the voice of a single customer to a global audience. Passionate consumers will play with your brand and publish this online using Web 2.0 technologies. Brand messages need to be strong and relevant and aim to leverage the global voice of customers to reinforce positive messages.
3. Offer customers significant value and then extract value from the customer. Your Web 2.0 offering should offer the customer significant value, but also aim to tap the collective value of customers to further enhance the value of your offering back to them. Consumer contributed content is a example of the customer adding to the value of your offering. Web 2.0 can allow the customer to become involved in the design, testing and marketing of products and services.
4. Approach Web 2.0 from the perspective of top level business challenges rather than the enabling technology level. Although these tools are demonstrating themselves to be invaluable in increasing customer engagement, grow revenues and lower costs, they need to be approached appropriately to achieve the desired impact.

Examples – Financial Services
The Financial Services industry was a reasonably early adopter of digital marketing and advertising using online banner display advertisements and direct relationship marketing email campaigns. Having recently attended the Sydney Ad:Tech conference session titled “Web 2.0 for Financial Services” I thought it would be good to have a brief look at couple of examples of experimentation within the industry.

NAB – Yes the big Australian banks are still relying on traditional television based brand building with at least 2 of the big 4 currently running significant (and expensive) TV campaigns. However as the golden age of advertising continues to diminish with fragmenting media consumption, Web 2.0 tactics are being employed. This fun example demonstrates how engaging content can leverage existing Web 2.0 platforms like YouTube as a powerful brand builder:

RaboBank – RaboPlus has launched an executive blog in Australia

ING Asia Pacific – ING also has a popular blog

Financial Social Networking – Wesabe is an interesting Web 2.0 that provides tools and taps collective user data to assist members to manage their finances more efficiently.

Scotiabank – Scotiabank produces a series of podcasts called The Money Clip

ING Direct – ING Direct has also used YouTube: to drive traffic to their online campaign

UMB - American Finance Company UMB ran a campaign making use of user contributed content

Internal Communications – A number of financial services organisations (Including Clients of Enso Consultancy) are successfully using Wikis, Blogs and Web 2.0 Intranet systems as a way to stimulate but not fully control organisation wide conversations and sharing of knowledge. Web 2.0 facilitated Collective Intelligence is the next logical progression – but that is a topic for another post.