techhints 
In the old days, the broadcasters were the advertiser, and their audience sat obediently on the other side of the television screen, digesting news of how sensational moonbeam soap was, whether they had asked to be spoon-fed this information or not. Yet, now, in the age of the dongle and the hybrid automobile, the tables have turned. The broadcasters are now the general public, and they are broadcasting their opinions about your brand, both bad and good, whether you like it or not, on blogs, social networks, and forums.
Brands On Social Media
“The site, “A friend in every City,” recounts that, “A Google search for “Nike”, now considered a leader in managing labour conditions in its factories, still brings up a “Boycott Nike” website,” and as the excellent study of, “The Top 100 Brands in Social Media“ reminds us, “no company wants negative comments as part of its profile in Google.
Turn online criticism on its head, though, and brands might well ask whether the conversationalists have a point. Have they got something valuable to say? Could they help improve the brand or service? If it were your brand, it seems that the only way to have any influence at all on the conversation is to become part of it yourself.
So who are these online usurpers who have become your uninvited spokespeople and assumed to speak for you? The “Top 100 Brands” study explains that less than 10 percent of the UK online community uploads content regularly, but that it is this small group who have the potential to be influencers who can be either advocates championing your brand or detractors instigating negative word of mouth about it. In fact, “83% of uploaders actively recommend a product or service that they like.”
It is this group of potential brand advocates that companies need to identify, influence and and charm enough to inspire positive conversations around the brand or even buzz.
However, companies must understand that, where marketing is concerned, the days of dictatorship and control and command are now over. They cannot control the conversation. In fact, on the blogs and forums, an honest exchange of opinion, warts and all, is far more likely to ring true in the ears of those who have Google-searched a brand before making a purchasing decision.
The very least that brands can do is:
- Be present
- Monitor the sentiment of conversations in the blogosphere
- Respond instantaneously to queries.
- Address any customer service issues or negative comments promptly and sensitively to prevent the spread of negative word of mouth.
Further to this, though, is the growing trend for brands to actively facilitate positive word of mouth via initiatives which may include:
- Identifying potential brand advocates by “Determining the most influential Blogger/s, Forum member/s or network,” and establishing a communication link.
- Launching long-term campaigns that establish a brand-customer relationship with carefully chosen participants.
- Providing a space for campaign participants to give honest online assessments of brands or upload user-generated content that reflects honestly on the brand
Whatever the strategy, an understanding of how to coach and facilitate honest positive word of mouth rather than demand it is essential, and as with all marketing initiatives, experimentation will be necessary before campaigns can be optimized. Failure is often the first port of call. For example, Erik Uetz at Sundog reports that the company Skittles assumed a 100% release of brand control to the public by publishing conversation streams from YouTube, Facebook,k nd Twitter on their home page.
Unfortunately, they were forced to almost immediately remove these streams as a result of bad language and other issues to a less conspicuous location.
