Allan Schoenberg | B2B Voices

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Other Voices: Julie Meredith, Radian6

Filed under Other Voices Interview by Allan Schoenberg on 10 February 2012 at 08:24 {one comment}

Julie Meredith is a Community Engagement Specialist at Radian6 with a focus on social strategy as it relates to financial services. I had a chance to engage in a Q&A with her on the topic of measurement in B2B and financial services.

You concentrate on financial services at Radian6 and there’s been so much discussion about the role social media plays in that industry. Most stories present the industry as social media laggards — is that a myth that’s been created or do you find that financial services firms are still learning?

Financial Services companies are certainly still learning. Slowly. With the hefty regulations around the industry, it’s no wonder financial services are slow to adopt, and tap into the amazing resources social media provides. The marketers and public relations professionals that work in the financial services industry, are smart, forward-thinking people that understand the enormous benefits of being active in the social space The problem is they need to make a case for it – by creating a strong social media policy that is in-line with the regulations they are facing.

Do clients in B2B communications and B2C companies come to you with the same set of questions and challenges or are they different?

B2B and B2C financial services companies are both coming to us with the same questions and challenges. They’re hesitant to get involved in social media on account of their industry regulations, but they all seem to focus on the same thing – just finding a way to be active in the social space. However, they’re missing the big picture: just by listening alone, and measuring sentiment around their products, brand, competitors and industry, they are tapping into a market research tool, with almost unlimited possibility.

At the very foundation of social media is the concept of listening. What do you tell clients who come to you about the importance of listening?

To me, Listening is King and Content is Queen. To gain a competitive edge, financial services companies need to use the power of social listening to find out who their community is, and what they want to know. Then they can start to engage with their community, provide efficient customer service that will create long-lasting relationships, and begin to share relevant,
useful content within their network that will give them credibility and influence within their community.

Metrics are historically not a function of communications. When we look at the people who make up the executive suite they come with a history of working with spreadsheets, financial dashboards and concepts like Economic Value Added and various financial ratios. How have metrics in branding and social media changed things for communicators?

Although most companies have a tough time determining the ROI of social media and tracing it back to their bottom line, metrics in social media have given companies a way to not only measure how often their products, brand and competitors are being mentioned throughout the social space – but they can measure the sentiment around it – and who is talking about it. This is an unbelievable resource that just can’t be compared to any focus group or market research program.

What trends do we need to be watching now when it comes to measurement?

B2B companies need to be watching industry and competitive trends. Competitive intelligence and understanding your industry is key to knowing your share of voice within your industry and how you can tune your products to better serve your clients. Having a clear understanding of your industry and what is trending within it, you will have the tools to generate leads. From a media relations/ crisis management perspective, keeping an eye on what is being said about you and your shareholders will put you way ahead of the game.

If you enjoyed this you may also want to read:

Do most online communities fail?

Are you ready for a real-time B2B world?

Still pitching to use social media?

Are you ready for these five trends?

What drives your b2b strategy?

Do Most Online Communities Fail?

Filed under Application, Discussion, Resources, Soap Box by Allan Schoenberg on 6 February 2012 at 09:57 {4 comments}

This is an interesting question. Fortune magazine seems to think they are failing. But the answer is never as easy as the question.

For instance, if you build a community targeting CFOs from the Fortune 100 companies what would determine your success?

Would it be 100 percent participation? Probably not since we know most people watch and listen online and getting 100 percent is unrealistic.
Would it be an increase in sales from the companies respresented in your online community during the year? Maybe, but they may do that regardless of your online community.
How about if you focused on just three CFOs in the group whom you know would receive value from doing more business with you? Bringing in increased sales from two of them could potentially be linked to your efforts.

So determining what you want to get out of a community from the start may not be what you actually get out of it in the end, but that depends on what your objectives are for your community. Adjusting your strategy along the way may help you achieve the results you want, but you may also need to adjust your strategy because the results you desired have changed (You are getting results just not the ones you expected). Yes, communities are complicated, ever changing and complex.

The trading floor community in Chicago

I’ve been lucky that even before the rapid growth in social media I was part of working with a large community — the trading floors. To get a feel for that you can read some of Jeff Carter’s posts on social media and trading and why he likes Twitter better than Facebook for building his social media trading community.

So what can you do to be successful? One key part of building a good community is letting the community run it. As PR20/20 reminds us, it’s the conversations that make good communities function. And running a community takes a number of skills – from adaptability to empathy — as the Business 2 Community points out. Whether you are an experienced community manager or new to it, I would definitely recommend you read Community Spark from Martin Reed.

Having the right resources in place can make a difference in a number of ways for you and your team. Here are some thoughts on what you need to build your success:

My suggestion to you is not to spend an overwhelming amount of time choosing what you need. You should have a list of important criteria (e.g., does it have mobile capability, what are the metrics you will receive, etc.) and focus on those. In addition, there are numerous blog posting and online reviews of platforms that can help you speed up your decision process.
Not only should you focus on your own content to share, which should be unique, interesting and offer helpful insight, but you should also be a resource to find and distribute third party content that your community may find useful. A good mix of content is challenging but will make you more trustworthy; it also can spark conversations around the topic of choice and should lead you to develop more of your own content. Here were some thoughts on content curation and dealing with social clutter.

Have a vision. It’s easy to get bogged down in what you are doing today — posting stories, answering questions, finding new members, etc, but don’t forget to keep thinking forward. Not only will you need to understand changes to social platforms, but you will also need to understand the trends and issues of your business.
While not something you can create or build, you will need to enlist the people who believe in what you are doing. I wrote about this concept and motivation as a driver of success earlier. For instance, we’ve found that some people really understand and enjoy LinkedIn vs using another social platform. In this case, we are cultivating the “believers” and getting them to best utilize the platform to meet their needs. Here’s some help about how we use LinkedIn: Don’t Overlook the Power of LinkedIn Groups

Community management is not simple nor is it easy. It takes a lot of hard work, making personal sacrifices and a constant flow of ideas and conversations. In fact the worst thing a community manager can receive is silence. But if done right, a community will grow, network and provide you with valuable insights and relationships.

So what do you think? Are more communities failing? Or are we measuring them wrong? What do you think makes a community successful that I missed?

If you enjoyed this you may also want to read:

Don’t Overlook the Power of LinkedIn Groups

Content Curation: What Does it Take To Be Successful?

Social Clutter or Social Clarity?

Is Motivation the Key to Success?

Around the World in Social Media

Filed under Application, Discussion, Resources, Toolbox by Allan Schoenberg on 16 January 2012 at 07:28 {one comment}

A lot has been happening in the world of social media, and I do mean the world. As many B2B companies move into using more social and digital tools we continue to read about case studies involving the big three — LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook. But what abo0ut Sina Weibo? Orkut? Hi5? Renren? Are these networks a part of your strategy? Do you know who they reach and what they do? Do you need to expand your reach by using them?

Is your digital strategy stranded at home or are you on a journey to expand your work around the world?

As our business expands and we look to reach our customers around the world I’ve been reading more about the growth of social media globally. Here’s a breakdown of some of the research I’ve found interesting and helpful:

Asia

New research in late 2011 according to Burson-Marsteller shows Asia’s top companies double their social media presence (Slideshare) compared to 2010. Penn Olson breaks the study down for you.
Mashable writes about a Forrester Research poll of 100,000 consumers in Asia, Latin America and North America in the second and third quarters of 2011.
Last year, Edelman published its study and infographic of Asia’s key digital and social media markets. And over at The d Infographics they break down social media statistics in a large infographic for Australia, China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam.

Europe

I spoke last year at the the European Corporate Social Media Summit where we discussed a number of topics, including my talk on measuring influence. Most of the discussions focused on measurement and evaluation and two presentations are available here for download. Late last year, Adobe commissioned a study on social media measurement in Europe that is worth a view (Slideshare).
The Economist last July reported on the European Commission’s study of the most enthusiastic, and the most fearful, social networkers. Even European MBA programs have embraced social media.
And if you need any data to further support a mobile strategy, Comscore reported in November on the rapid growth in mobile social networking in Europe.

Latin America

If you’re looking to expand into Latin America your destinations should be focused on Brazil, Mexico and Argentina.
Another excellent Edelman Digital study and one from Synthesio look at the rise of networks throughout the region.

But if you’re pressed for time and want a global view of what is happening online, I strongly suggest you download this Slideshare presentation from InSite Consulting and their total view social media around the world in 2011 (NOTE: you will need to request a copy from them).

Is there a presentation you liked that I missed pointing out above? Is there an example of what you’ve learned from your experiences? Is there a fact that surprised you from the information you viewed from the above links? Please share them in the comments.

If you enjoyed this you may also want to read:

World-Class social practices for B2B companies

What drives your social media strategy?

Are you ready for a real-time B2B world?

Are you ready for these five trends?

The most important question you can ask

Using social networking sites in B2B businesses?

What Drives Your B2B Social Strategy?

Filed under Discussion, Resources, Soap Box by Allan Schoenberg on 11 January 2012 at 08:31 {3 comments}

A new year and another opportunity to get under the hood and check your social engine. One of the keys to success in the social B2B space is having a strategy. The team here at B2B Voices have posted often on this topic of strategy from using social networking sites in B2B to looking at what makes a world-Class social practice for B2B companies to asking the right question.

We all agree here that if you want to succeed you need to start with a strategy. Jeremiah Owyang from Altimeter now has a must read paper titled “A Strategy for Managing Social Media Proliferation.” The paper is a great way for the experienced and novice B2B communicator to step back and think about what you are trying to accomplish.

The social vehicle you choose should help drive your conversations and evaluation

The key takeaways for me were as follows:

Businesses struggle with strategy: On page six of the report it’s clear that companies are struggling to get handle on what they want to accomplish and how they will get there. One thing we always focus on here at B2B Voices is making sure your social media strategy aligns with your business and other communication initiatives. It should rarely be a silo. If you need help understanding what your strategy should be you can reference the graphic on page 13 of the study.

Vendors need to catch up: The rapid growth of free tools with premium tools is creating an overload of resources that in the end create more confusion. Page 10 and 11 detail the issues and in my opinion we will see an ongoing consolidation of these tools. There is a good review of many of the platforms in the report and we at B2B Voices would encourage anyone looking at tools to take your time in choosing where you spend your resources.

The one point to remember in this discussion is that strategy takes time and effort. Not only do you need to have the right tools to work with, but you need to understand your business goals as well as what drives your brand strategy. While it’s easy to “do” social it’s much more difficult to “do social well” and measure the results.

UPDATE (JANUARY 17): Apparently, Tac Anderson and I are on the same page when we think about social media. Here is his post (Can’t Find a Good Social Media Management Tool? Get a Strategy First) on the same study by Jeremiah Owyang.

If you enjoyed this post you may also want to read:

Are you ready for a real-time B2B world?

Still pitching to use social media?

Are you ready for these five trends?

Navigating the Legal Road Map of Social Media

Filed under Case Study, Discussion, Soap Box by Allan Schoenberg on 6 January 2012 at 10:02 {no comments}

Navigating the social landscape brings a number of challenges. What content should you publish? Do you use platforms like StockTwits that target investors? Do you create private or public LinkedIn groups? And what about those influencers?

Know your way around the law and social media

One thing we also cannot forget is collaborating internally. I’ve blogged before about making sure you have talked with InfoSec so both of you understand each other – your goals and their risks. Another department to work with is legal. Mashable has a new post on the five predictions for social media law in 2012. If you haven’t read it you need to, but don’t stop there. If you are continuing to try to convince legal about mapping out the opportunities and value of social media you should do the following:

Understand the concerns: Is legal worried about intellectual property? Privacy? Reputational risk? If you don’t know – or just think you know — now is a good time to sit with legal to discuss.
Find a legal champion: Someone on the legal team may already use social media (e.g. LinkedIn). Discover who you think may be someone that can help you understand the concerns before you go into a formal meeting.
Do your research: The Mashable post is helpful and a good start, but dig deeper. You should have a firm grasp of the concerns and issues so that you can alleviate the risks and make everyone more comfortable.
Find working solutions: There are always ways to be more flexible, so be prepared to work with your colleagues and have a variety of idea.
Create a dialogue: You can start with the Mashable article and forward it to your legal team. If you start positioning yourself as someone who understands their concerns they will be much more open to listening to you.

If you enjoyed this you may also want to read:

What’s your “I” in social media?

Why LinkedIn’s Company Pages Now Matter More

Are You Using StockTwits?

Do we need a social index for businesses?

When it Comes to B2B Content, Don’t Go it Alone

Filed under Application, Discussion, Soap Box by Allan Schoenberg on 4 January 2012 at 06:32 {no comments}

One of the most often asked questions when I speak is around content — “Where do you find so much information about your company to post?” The answer is easy: That much content doesn’t exist. What B2B companies fail to realize is the power of partnerships and connecting with other users for content. Shannon Paul also makes a good point about B2B content:

Many folks in the B2B space often blame the lack of social media content opportunities on the fact that what they do doesn’t directly impact consumers, but I don’t buy it.

Finding good, original content can be difficult. So stop trying so hard. Instead, focus on ways that you can find content from others and collaborate with others. Here are ways that have worked for us:

Find internal champions who will send you content proactively and make sure you give them their just internal rewards for helping out.

My inspiration partner happens to be 8 years old and drinks hot chocolate.

Identify the key content aggregators in your industry and work with them. This takes time and effort but will pay off in the long run.

Experiment with content on platforms and times to find what interests your audience.

Finally, don’t be boring. Any company can post a news release or a research report. It’s up to you to make it interesting and fit within your brand standards. While you want to be taken serious as a brand, you should also find ways that capture people’s attention, and sometimes that requires a little bit of fun.

If you enjoyed this you may also want to read:

You are What You Read

Social Clutter or Social Clarity?

Content Curation: What Does it Take To Be Successful?

Is Motivation the Key to Success?

Social influence matters! No, it doesn’t!

World-Class social practices for B2B companies

What’s your “I” in social media?

Your Game Plan: Focus on Fans

Filed under Application, Discussion, Soap Box by Allan Schoenberg on 3 January 2012 at 09:38 {2 comments}

There’s a lot to be said for comparing social media strategies these days and supporting your favorite team in sports. In fact, much of the reason sports teams do so well in using social media is that they understand the value of a loyal following. They also understand the value of winning, and one way of viewing how you can help your clients succeed is to get them into a sports mentality.

In fact, one thing Facebook got right early on was allowing people to be “fans” of brand pages. It’s a concept I think they should have kept rather than replace with the “Like” feature. Like a team in sports, companies don’t want people to “like” them, they want fans who defend them in a crisis, support them when new products are announced, and who constantly sing the praises (not literally, but employee bands still seem popular) of a company when they perform well.

Here are ways to start making fans out of your followers:

Find out where they want to talk with you: Prior to the rapid growth of social media customers more than likely relied on email from you to know what was happening. With so many choices now at their disposal, you need to decide how to best communicate with them. A customer who uses LinkedIn may not be on Twitter or Facebook while others still rely on email newsletters to know what is happening. As social CRM tools become more sophisticated you should be able to start understanding more about where your clients are learning about you and what type of information they want. If you need ideas here’s a relevant post from Eloqua on some new year’s resolutions for talking to your customers.

How are you attracting and keeping fans?

Actually talk with them: The worst thing you can do is ignore your fans. Living in Chicago it was easy for me to see this with the Blackhawks hockey team and how the fan base changed when ownership changed from father to son — and with that change you saw a huge momentum shift in support for the team.

Find your “off the field” captains: The captain on the playing field rallies the team and helps make key in-game decisions. There are also captains in the stands — the leaders of fan clubs who organize events, keep fans informed and become a key part of the organization. Finding the people online who can do the same for you is just as important and you and your team should embrace them, help them and learn from them. There are a number of ways to look at influence and I wrote about that before when I spoke about defining ROI.

Deliver on content: Just as a winning team in sports needs to field its best players in order to succeed, a good B2B marketing company will deliver content that wins. There are a number of ways companies can now do this via Twitter, a blog or research as some examples, and providing original and relevant content is key. As the concept of content marketing has grown it will continue to be important for most B2B companies.

Have a strategy: The best players don’t always win championships. Nearly every winning team has a smart leader who has a strategy. Don’t just think that doing all of the things above will instantly gain you the following you want. I encourage you to think about what you want to accomplish, how you plan to achieve it and how does it fit with the overall strategy of the business. If you need to get better at developing a strategy one suggested I made earlier was to start playing more games.

While we encourage you to start thinking more like a sports team, please don’t share your favorite team with us in the comments — we don’t want to divide our readership. But we do want you to be fans of our blog and we hope you subscribe to us via email or follow us on Twitter.

If you enjoyed this you may also enjoy reading:

Getting Your Degree in Business Acumen

You are What You Read

Is Motivation the Key to Success?

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