Monday, October 13, 2008
Tapping the Groundswell (65- 194)
Notes:
- POST method (people, objectives, strategy, and technology) is the foundation of groundswell thinking- a systematic framework for assembling your plan. (67)
- 5 objectives companies can pursue in groundswell- listening, talking, energizing, supporting, embracing
- Suggestions for thinking through a strategy:
Create a plan that starts small but has room to grow
Think through the consequences of your strategy
Put somebody important in charge of it
Use great care in selecting you technology and agency partners
Listening:
- 2 "listening" strategies: set up your own private community and begin brand monitoring
- Reasons to listen to groundswell:
Find out what you brand stands for
Understand how buzz is shifting
Save research money; increase research responsiveness
Find the sources of influence in your market
Manage PR crises
Generate new product and marketing ideas
- Suggestions to help succeed in listening to groundswell:
Check the Social Technographics Profile of your customers
Start small, think big (single brand monitoring)
Make sure your listening vendor has dedicated an experienced team to your effort
Choose a senior person to interpret the information and integrate it with other sources
Talking:
- The Marketing Funnel- "in traditional marketing theory, consumers are driven into the big end through awareness activities like advertising. They proceed through stages- including consideration, preference, and action- to become buyers. Marketers have little control over what happens in the middle stages, but the influence of the groundswell is heaviest there (101)."
EYEBALLS --> (awareness, consideration, preference, action, loyalty) --> BUYERS
-Techniques for talking:
Post a viral video
Engage in social networks and user-generated content sites
Join the blogosphere
Create a community
- Deciding if using social networking sites to talk with your customers:
Use the STP to verify that your customers are in social networks
Move forward if people love your brand
See what's out there already
Create a presence that encourages interaction
- POST method (people, objectives, strategy, and technology) is the foundation of groundswell thinking- a systematic framework for assembling your plan. (67)
- 5 objectives companies can pursue in groundswell- listening, talking, energizing, supporting, embracing
- Suggestions for thinking through a strategy:
Create a plan that starts small but has room to grow
Think through the consequences of your strategy
Put somebody important in charge of it
Use great care in selecting you technology and agency partners
Listening:
- 2 "listening" strategies: set up your own private community and begin brand monitoring
- Reasons to listen to groundswell:
Find out what you brand stands for
Understand how buzz is shifting
Save research money; increase research responsiveness
Find the sources of influence in your market
Manage PR crises
Generate new product and marketing ideas
- Suggestions to help succeed in listening to groundswell:
Check the Social Technographics Profile of your customers
Start small, think big (single brand monitoring)
Make sure your listening vendor has dedicated an experienced team to your effort
Choose a senior person to interpret the information and integrate it with other sources
Talking:
- The Marketing Funnel- "in traditional marketing theory, consumers are driven into the big end through awareness activities like advertising. They proceed through stages- including consideration, preference, and action- to become buyers. Marketers have little control over what happens in the middle stages, but the influence of the groundswell is heaviest there (101)."
EYEBALLS --> (awareness, consideration, preference, action, loyalty) --> BUYERS
-Techniques for talking:
Post a viral video
Engage in social networks and user-generated content sites
Join the blogosphere
Create a community
- Deciding if using social networking sites to talk with your customers:
Use the STP to verify that your customers are in social networks
Move forward if people love your brand
See what's out there already
Create a presence that encourages interaction
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
First Impression (1 - 62)
Great introduction! When I first selected this book I had an idea as to what the title might meant but I did not know the real definition for what it stands for. So for all those who were like me, the concept of Groundswell is defined as "a social trend in which people use technologies to get the things they need from each other, rather than from traditional institutions like corporations (9)." The author backed this definition with several examples of groundswell occurring in all sorts of different ways throughout our everyday lives. One example, was a video about a Comcast technician who fell asleep on a customers couch while waiting on hold for help from the Comcast home office to fix an Internet problem. The book said this was now the number one hit when you search "Comcast" on YouTube and it took only the click of a button for me to confirm this for myself (it was actually pretty funny).
The point of this book: "And while you can't stop it, you can understand it. You can not only live with it; you can thrive in it." (talking about Groundswell)
There are several notable quotes from the first section of this book. Some I found most interesting included:
"The Internet is not some sandbox that can we walled off anymore- it is fully integrated into all elements of business and society (7)."
"(Groundswell) is an important, irreversible, completely different way for people to relate to companies and to each other (10)."
"Along with people's desire to connect and new technologies, the third force driving groundswell is simple online economics: on the Internet, traffic equals money (11)."
Other interesting key points: (paraphrased)
- Groundswell has the capability to affect all businesses from media companies to retailers, financial services, business-to-business, and even inside companies are all in "danger"
- Principal for mastering the groundswell: concentrate on the relationships, not the technologies (18)
- One in four online American adults visit social networking sites at least monthly (22)
- Social Networking sites and virtual worlds are by definition about the facilitation of relationships with technologies
- Wikipedia is universally known and frequently used: it's the 8th most popular site on the Web. This makes it a classic example of groundswell power- the masses determine what's on it, including the image presented for companies.
- RSS (really simple syndication) and widgets help users find the right bits of information quickly by giving people the ability to consume and process more social content therefore accelerating the action of groundswell
- The goal of Social Technographics Profile is to allow people in business to examine and then create strategies based on the groundswell tendencies of any group of people, anywhere (41)
a) creators- publish, upload, and write
b) critics- post, comment, and contribute
c) collectors- use, add, and vote
d) joiners- maintain and visit
e) spectators- read, watch, and listen
f) inactives- do none of these activites
"The real power in STP is that with is we can understand how social technologies are being adopted by any group of people. If that group happens to be your customers, you can use their STP to build an apporpraite social strategy (45)."
In Summary:
The first section of this novel really gave all of the background information about the groundswell trend. It defined how both the people and the technolgies drive all different aspects of the groundswell effect. It listed the top sites used by groundswell enthusiats as well as gave a template to use (STP) in order to create your own social stratigies. The book changed its focus from talking about groundswell to talking about how groundswell effects you (the business owener). I enjoyed reading this section because it gave me alot of information about technologies I never new existed as well as different ways they are being used today. Also, some of the key points were ones that I had never thought of before. Overall, I am really enjoying the first section of this book and I am interested in reading on to learn how to develope a framework for groundswell thinking.
The point of this book: "And while you can't stop it, you can understand it. You can not only live with it; you can thrive in it." (talking about Groundswell)
There are several notable quotes from the first section of this book. Some I found most interesting included:
"The Internet is not some sandbox that can we walled off anymore- it is fully integrated into all elements of business and society (7)."
"(Groundswell) is an important, irreversible, completely different way for people to relate to companies and to each other (10)."
"Along with people's desire to connect and new technologies, the third force driving groundswell is simple online economics: on the Internet, traffic equals money (11)."
Other interesting key points: (paraphrased)
- Groundswell has the capability to affect all businesses from media companies to retailers, financial services, business-to-business, and even inside companies are all in "danger"
- Principal for mastering the groundswell: concentrate on the relationships, not the technologies (18)
- One in four online American adults visit social networking sites at least monthly (22)
- Social Networking sites and virtual worlds are by definition about the facilitation of relationships with technologies
- Wikipedia is universally known and frequently used: it's the 8th most popular site on the Web. This makes it a classic example of groundswell power- the masses determine what's on it, including the image presented for companies.
- RSS (really simple syndication) and widgets help users find the right bits of information quickly by giving people the ability to consume and process more social content therefore accelerating the action of groundswell
- The goal of Social Technographics Profile is to allow people in business to examine and then create strategies based on the groundswell tendencies of any group of people, anywhere (41)
a) creators- publish, upload, and write
b) critics- post, comment, and contribute
c) collectors- use, add, and vote
d) joiners- maintain and visit
e) spectators- read, watch, and listen
f) inactives- do none of these activites
"The real power in STP is that with is we can understand how social technologies are being adopted by any group of people. If that group happens to be your customers, you can use their STP to build an apporpraite social strategy (45)."
In Summary:
The first section of this novel really gave all of the background information about the groundswell trend. It defined how both the people and the technolgies drive all different aspects of the groundswell effect. It listed the top sites used by groundswell enthusiats as well as gave a template to use (STP) in order to create your own social stratigies. The book changed its focus from talking about groundswell to talking about how groundswell effects you (the business owener). I enjoyed reading this section because it gave me alot of information about technologies I never new existed as well as different ways they are being used today. Also, some of the key points were ones that I had never thought of before. Overall, I am really enjoying the first section of this book and I am interested in reading on to learn how to develope a framework for groundswell thinking.
Monday, September 8, 2008
Groundswell
I just recieved my book this morning so I will begin reading it tonight. When looking at the choices between books, I thought this one was rather interesting in the sense that it is one of the newest books on social media. Also, it contains a lot of "how to" information for those who do not know all that much about social media in general, such as myself. Once I get into the novel I will update my thoughts on this blog.
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