Well, love them or hate them, they have done it again. Google have come up with a great product. A very usable and wonderful tool. At least it looks like it ought to be. I would be the first renegade to Bing just so I don't have to use Google search but I can't help but admire them.
I suppose it was bound to happen that the great minds of Lars and Jens Rasmussen would come up the latest and greatest thing. But it isn't just that it looks like a great extension of an online tool, they have really thought through how it could be used.
It allows realtime interaction between users, with no conflicting versions being created because one WAVE is being used concurrently by two people. If WAVE (which is being hinted at) supports applications such as video editing, spreadsheets etc, not only can you interact with someone socially, you would be able to actually work with somebody on a 'document'.
It allows a two-way feed between blogs and social media entities so you no longer have to visit those entities to interact, you can do it all in one place.
The version of any one WAVE is held on the server so it can be delivered to any client; PC, mobile device and because it is held on the server, the server does all the work. This means any device you are using has the same power as any other device to deliver the same on to any one WAVE.
'Robots' will allow developers and brands to create their own functionality and applications to enhance any one WAVE, or their own.
This is possibly an online marketers nightmare, but more than likely a fabulous online marketing opportunity. If brands embrace it. Of course, whilst there is still confusion about how to implement an effective social media strategy, and monetise it, this may initially cause much more confusion. And much band-wagon jumping.
As far as Google goes, well it's just been really well thought through.
Wednesday 10 June 2009
Tuesday 19 May 2009
Is social media about sharing or more about self-admiration?
I know it is a harsh title, but it is a reasonable question as a marketer. I am not admonishing people who use social media sites to talk about themselves, I would just like to know the answer because it does have a direct impact on how you use social media for marketing.
All the statistics say that social media sites are used, prolifically. Regardless of churn, drop out rates, number of interactions, people simply do use them. This has been translated by some companies as being a way of sharing information. Largely I suppose because there is a lot of information out there that validates this belief that social media sites are the new communities.
Not an unreasonable belief as there is also evidence to show that social media sites have worked to share.
However, what is the ultimate goal of the person who goes on a social media site? I would argue that it is simply to talk about... themselves. The functionality of the sites means that the communication is shared, that is unavoidable. But that is not the intention of the user. Or so it would seem.
I read a lot of twitter posts and largely they are self-indulgent. I put one up a while ago and quite frankly felt like an idiot. Who on earth would want to read what I had written? Who cares really? So I haven't done it again. I certainly don't need to validate myself through how many people are following me (1). Around me however, there is clearly this need to be confirmed as a great person.
Self-indulgent are those posts that are written in jibberish, clearly saying I am so important that I can write rubbish and people will still follow me.
The uselessness of those posts that simply say something akin to 'I am doing the ironing now' are unfathomable. Again, who cares?
Or there are those posts which frequently appear on Facebook such as 'So pleased things are going well now'. These posts are in another clever league altogether. As far as content goes they say nothing but they are clearly designed to instigate a question from one of the writers friends: 'why are things going well?'.
How ... well ... self-indulgent is that? It's not about sharing, you are just trying to pull people in, make yourself seem important enough to warrant all your 'friends' jumping up and down wanting to know the answer. Filling your profile with their comments, about your life.
Very self-centred. I repeat, I am not berating these people, if it makes them happy then great. I as an individual, after all, don't have to join in.
So all those companies who have started using the word 'sharing' in their messages I feel have got it wrong. They haven't understood that it isn't about sharing. Companies should understand that they need to tap in to the pure selfishness of these people. Make them feel even more important.
Indulge the individual.
All the statistics say that social media sites are used, prolifically. Regardless of churn, drop out rates, number of interactions, people simply do use them. This has been translated by some companies as being a way of sharing information. Largely I suppose because there is a lot of information out there that validates this belief that social media sites are the new communities.
Not an unreasonable belief as there is also evidence to show that social media sites have worked to share.
However, what is the ultimate goal of the person who goes on a social media site? I would argue that it is simply to talk about... themselves. The functionality of the sites means that the communication is shared, that is unavoidable. But that is not the intention of the user. Or so it would seem.
I read a lot of twitter posts and largely they are self-indulgent. I put one up a while ago and quite frankly felt like an idiot. Who on earth would want to read what I had written? Who cares really? So I haven't done it again. I certainly don't need to validate myself through how many people are following me (1). Around me however, there is clearly this need to be confirmed as a great person.
Self-indulgent are those posts that are written in jibberish, clearly saying I am so important that I can write rubbish and people will still follow me.
The uselessness of those posts that simply say something akin to 'I am doing the ironing now' are unfathomable. Again, who cares?
Or there are those posts which frequently appear on Facebook such as 'So pleased things are going well now'. These posts are in another clever league altogether. As far as content goes they say nothing but they are clearly designed to instigate a question from one of the writers friends: 'why are things going well?'.
How ... well ... self-indulgent is that? It's not about sharing, you are just trying to pull people in, make yourself seem important enough to warrant all your 'friends' jumping up and down wanting to know the answer. Filling your profile with their comments, about your life.
Very self-centred. I repeat, I am not berating these people, if it makes them happy then great. I as an individual, after all, don't have to join in.
So all those companies who have started using the word 'sharing' in their messages I feel have got it wrong. They haven't understood that it isn't about sharing. Companies should understand that they need to tap in to the pure selfishness of these people. Make them feel even more important.
Indulge the individual.
Thursday 26 March 2009
Social media and business - a profitable relationship?
Businesses have definitely jumped on the social media bandwagon. I heard it at a conference I went to a few weeks back and one I went to only last week. There is definitely a perception that it is vital to business success. And I probably agree, but I would say so cautiously. It is evident in online marketing today that avoiding the social media opportunities is going to minimise your chances of marketing success. However, is there actually an argument to say that over-indulging in social media, particularly with no clear focus guiding and directing it, could exponentially reduce your marketing success?
I think it is very possible, as a business, to do too much in this space. More importantly though, not only is it easy to do too much, but it is very easy to do it haphazardly. Have groups on x number of social networking site, blogs and communities on your own site, rss feeds and bookmarks, be tweeting, even your own social/business networking site ... but is there a real objective to any one activity or is it supported by a relevant need? It feels at the moment that boxes are being ticked with perhaps little or no thought about the holistic view.
It became clear to me at these conferences that social media was a huge topic (you don’t say!) and that marketing and online people were being pushed by the business to be in on the act. Equally though, it became clear that businesses did not really understand how they should be dealing with it. Everyone had a social media story to tell but I found it easy to question why these new opportunities had been tapped. Various social networks were cited and everyone thought a community of some sort would enhance their brand engagement.
I only heard one story where I truly felt that social media had been used in the exactly the right way and that was from a charity. They used their social media outlet to answer the doubts and negativity surrounding a particular subject which is close to people’s heart. In doing this they created trust for the charity and its cause. And a charity is a non-profit making organisation which tells me something about social media and business. People who engage in social media activities want to talk and be heard as well as listen to others who say something of interest and relevance to them. Businesses may want listen but there is a higher cause, sometimes underlying and not spoken of – they want to make profit from it, of course they do.
Monetisation may certainly be an option for some businesses, but I feel I can generally say that if a business thinks there is money in social media, think hard about having a good strategy to make it work for you. Don’t assume that setting up a group on Facebook will increase your revenue. Because it probably won’t if you don’t use it in the right way.
Does your community serve a useful purpose for both parties, does it drive innovation which is good for business and relevant to customers? Is your social networking profile or group talking and listening to the conversation of the people in that group, and ultimately doing something about it? Don’t say you are just using it as another click through to a sales channel. What are you saying about your brand through your Tweets?
Ultimately social media is about engagement with the other people who are using it. It is active engagement and therefore needs a different tone to your traditional online marketing. It is about providing relevant content to the audience, ever more so than simply providing content which is driven from a scientific behavioural algorithm. And so it is not just another marketing tool. It is a tool which will serve your business as a brand entity, if correctly managed. It is about listening and for a business listening is a difficult concept. But in listening you can understand what the conversation is about and actively participate in a manner which is relevant.
And in order to correctly manage it, you definitely need a bottom to top strategy. Formulated on the basis of what you’re the two way conversation is.
I think it is very possible, as a business, to do too much in this space. More importantly though, not only is it easy to do too much, but it is very easy to do it haphazardly. Have groups on x number of social networking site, blogs and communities on your own site, rss feeds and bookmarks, be tweeting, even your own social/business networking site ... but is there a real objective to any one activity or is it supported by a relevant need? It feels at the moment that boxes are being ticked with perhaps little or no thought about the holistic view.
It became clear to me at these conferences that social media was a huge topic (you don’t say!) and that marketing and online people were being pushed by the business to be in on the act. Equally though, it became clear that businesses did not really understand how they should be dealing with it. Everyone had a social media story to tell but I found it easy to question why these new opportunities had been tapped. Various social networks were cited and everyone thought a community of some sort would enhance their brand engagement.
I only heard one story where I truly felt that social media had been used in the exactly the right way and that was from a charity. They used their social media outlet to answer the doubts and negativity surrounding a particular subject which is close to people’s heart. In doing this they created trust for the charity and its cause. And a charity is a non-profit making organisation which tells me something about social media and business. People who engage in social media activities want to talk and be heard as well as listen to others who say something of interest and relevance to them. Businesses may want listen but there is a higher cause, sometimes underlying and not spoken of – they want to make profit from it, of course they do.
Monetisation may certainly be an option for some businesses, but I feel I can generally say that if a business thinks there is money in social media, think hard about having a good strategy to make it work for you. Don’t assume that setting up a group on Facebook will increase your revenue. Because it probably won’t if you don’t use it in the right way.
Does your community serve a useful purpose for both parties, does it drive innovation which is good for business and relevant to customers? Is your social networking profile or group talking and listening to the conversation of the people in that group, and ultimately doing something about it? Don’t say you are just using it as another click through to a sales channel. What are you saying about your brand through your Tweets?
Ultimately social media is about engagement with the other people who are using it. It is active engagement and therefore needs a different tone to your traditional online marketing. It is about providing relevant content to the audience, ever more so than simply providing content which is driven from a scientific behavioural algorithm. And so it is not just another marketing tool. It is a tool which will serve your business as a brand entity, if correctly managed. It is about listening and for a business listening is a difficult concept. But in listening you can understand what the conversation is about and actively participate in a manner which is relevant.
And in order to correctly manage it, you definitely need a bottom to top strategy. Formulated on the basis of what you’re the two way conversation is.
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