1. The Secret toMONETIZINGSOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGY6 Consumer Buying Behaviors that Will Change Your Social Strategya publication of

2. Social medias promise for marketers has been in building 1:1 relationships withcustomers relationships that can be leveraged to keep current customers happy andengaged, while bringing new ones on board.ContentsAccording to market research conducted by The Incyte Group, however, Facebook, 1 SOCIAL MEDIA: THE MORETwitter, and other social media platforms are not necessarily the places where consumers THINGS CHANGE, THE MOREgo to build relationship with companies. When given a choice, they would rather join anTHEY STAY THE SAME.............................. 2Internet Community that is directly managed by the brand and exists on the company2 CONTENT AND CONTEXT ARE KING:websitesomething we like to call a customer community.WHAT CONSUMERS EXPECT FROM CUSTOMER COMMUNITIES ................... 4So why use these social networks at all?3 EVANGELISTS PREACHIN THE FAITH: WHY YOU WANTConsumers revealed in The Incyte Group study that while they like to explore relationships BRAND ADVOCATES.................................. 6with brands through social networks, social media is merely a door to entering into that4 WHAT IN HADES ISdeeper relationship with a brand or business.AN INTERNET COMMUNITY, IF NOT A SOCIAL NETWORK? ............... 8Despite the significant investments that companies have made to build a presence onsocial platforms, there have been few actionable breakthroughs that prove impact on 5 HOW TO MAKE A CUSTOMER COMMUNITY PART OFrevenueuntil now. YOUR SOCIAL STRATEGY........................ 9Whether youre a marketing, product or customer service executive, or some other6 INVESTIGATE TO ENLIGHTEN:professional who needs to step up their social media game, the consumer research WHY GET SATISFACTION COMMISSIONED THEconducted by Incyte indicates that you need a customer community to build and maintain INCYTE GROUP STUDY......................... 10your brand in social media.THE SECRET TO MONETIZING SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGY: 6 Consumer Buying Behaviors that Will Change Your Social Strategy 1 3. 1 THE MORE THEYTHE MORE THINGS CHANGE,SOCIAL MEDIA:STAY THE SAMEHow quickly things change is an adage that has never been more true. From MySpace,to Facebook, to Pinterest, what was sizzling yesterday could be lukewarm tomorrow.Heres whats happening now.Of almost 6,000 respondents to the Incyte Group research survey, the results focused onresponses from 1,897 qualified consumers, who actively use the Internet and representadults from all age, socio-economic, and geographic groups in the U.S.Which social networks came out on top?Nearly 83 percent of the representative sample frequented Facebook. Fifty-two percentused YouTube. Almost 34 percent leveraged LinkedIn. Twitter and Google+ closed out theTop 5.In June 2012, All Things Digital described Pinterest as On pace to become the mostsignificant driver of social traffic to e-commerce sites by the end of the year. And theIncyte research backed that up. Pinterest proved to be 2012s rising star, coming in at 16.1percent, and ranking above some social media stalwarts.While these are the most popular social networks, its important to remember that thepurpose of social networks is to enable consumers to interact with each other. However,The Incyte Groups study went even deep than that to uncover how people want tointeract with brands. The results provided us with meaningful insight into the best ways todrive revenue using social media.THE SECRET TO MONETIZING SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGY: 6 Consumer Buying Behaviors that Will Change Your Social Strategy 2 4. In a nutshell, heres what they said: Consumers prefer to interact with companies through an Internet Community sponsored or run by the company, and they expect that Internet Community to be apart of the companys websitenot just in social networks. Without this customer-centered community, your social media strategy is incomplete.THE SECRET TO MONETIZING SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGY: 6 Consumer Buying Behaviors that Will Change Your Social Strategy 3 5. CONTENT AND CONTEXT ARE KING: WHAT CONSUMERS EXPECT FROM 2CUSTOMER COMMUNITIESWhen asked, consumers said they were particularly interested in an Internet Communitywhen evaluating a product or service that they wanted to buy. In that context, the top fourthings customer community users want are the following:1 A way to ask questions and get answers from other consumers.2 To see that the company answers questions (when the community doesnt).3 To review testimonials or praise posted by other consumers.4 To see product reviews and usage tips and tricks posted by other consumers.Where do consumers want to engage in an online community?Incytes research showed that company websites are still the No. 1 place consumers willCompany website isgo when researching products or services. While 58 percent of consumers will join an still the No. 1 placeInternet community through Facebook, it was way down the list as a tool consumers use consumers go whento research products. researching productsWhat consumers said they would do to learn more about a new product or service. or services.0%10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%80% 90%Look at its website81.1%Go to a store 25.7% Look at its Facebook page19.9% Research it on mobile phone 3.1%THE SECRET TO MONETIZING SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGY: 6 Consumer Buying Behaviors that Will Change Your Social Strategy 4 6. So again, mainstream social media channels are but a door to your brand: Customerswant to interact with your company in a community dedicated to their relationship withyour brand.Heres the good news: Making customer conversations an integral part of your Websitealso generates valuable word of mouth marketing. The Incyte Group Study also showedthat.Forty-two percent of consumers The Incyte Group surveyed said they would freelyadvocate for a product or service they care about. An additional 40.5 percent wouldadvocate with an incentive.So thats 82.6 percent of customers willing to take the timeto promote your brand online (and sometimes offline, as well). Heres how to make thatmagic happen.What would characterize consumers willingness to become an advocate for aproduct or service if there was an Internet Community?82.6 percent ofcustomers willing topromote a brand online 42.1% 40.5%Freely AdvocateAdvocate w/IncentiveWould Not Advocate17.4% THE SECRET TO MONETIZING SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGY: 6 Consumer Buying Behaviors that Will Change Your Social Strategy 5 7. EVANGELISTS PREACHIN THE FAITH: 3WHY YOU WANT BRAND ADVOCATESGone are the zoot suits, snakeskin boots and makeshift tents. Community givesyou a bigger tent for your brand evangelism. The Incyte research showed that in thecommunity, relevant customer-generated content and information has double the impactthat company-generated content does. Kablam! Free advertising.Heres How Consumers Assess the Quality of ContentWhen Incyte Group respondents were asked what was most important to them indetermining the quality of content about a product or service, nearly 50 percent wantedthe opinion of other community members, while only 10 percent preferred company-vetted content. The reputation of a community member was important to 34.7 percent of Relevant customer-customers, when assessing the quality of content. The message here: generated contentWhen knowledgeable customers participate in the online voice of your brand, current and information hascustomers and prospects listen. double the impact thatAnd todays evangelists include everyone from Mommy Bloggers in the burbs, tocompany-generatedbrogrammer geeks in flip-flops, to college co-eds caffeinated on Red Bull.content does.Here are some Customer community Member Programs to get customers to give a shoutout to your product and put some high quality leads in your pipeline.1 Advocate Programs: Incyte research showed that more than 80% of consumers were willing to advocate for products and brands they care about. More than half of those said theyd do it freely and without an incentive. Managed communities are the perfect platform to identify and activate advocates who would share content on social networks; contribute or post content on product pages of the website; and attract new customers. THE SECRET TO MONETIZING SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGY: 6 Consumer Buying Behaviors that Will Change Your Social Strategy 6 8. 2 Referral and Lead Programs: Companies often create referral programs to generate new leads and upsells. A customer community is a natural place for these. About 82 percent of Incyte research respondents said they would provide sales leads and referrals after making a purchase at an online community. Again, nearly half of those would do so without an incentive.When you mix brand advocates with high quality content at a customer community,sprinkle in the voice of your companys creative team, what you have is recipe forgenerating revenue through social media.In summary, here are the 6 highlights of the Incyte consumer research: 6 Consumer Buying Behaviors that Will Help You Monetize Your Social Strategy 82.6 percent of customers are willing to promote your brand onlinethey1only have to be asked. A company website is still the No. 1 place consumers go to when 2 researching products or services. Consumers prefer to interact with companies through an Internet 3 community sponsored or run by the company; and they expect to find that customer community on the companys website. Social media is a door into your customer community58 percent 4 of consumers have joined an internet community based on a friends Facebook post. Relevant customer-generated content and information has double the 5 impact that company-generated content does. Free advertising. Nearly 50 percent of consumers prefer the opinion of other community 6 members, while about 10 percent prefer company-vetted content. THE SECRET TO MONETIZING SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGY: 6 Consumer Buying Behaviors that Will Change Your Social Strategy 7 9. WHAT IN HADES IS AN INTERNET COMMUNITY, 4 IF NOT A SOCIAL NETWORK?Were glad you asked.An Internet or customer community refers to one that is actively managed or sponsoredby a company or brand. Its a place where customers can interact with one another, aswell as with representatives from the company.Like a social network, a customer community allows customers to read, post, share, andrespond to content by and for one another. A customer community also permits themto read, post, share and respond to information supplied by the sponsoring company ororganization.An important objective of a customer community is to bring resolution and outcome towhat customers are saying, such as: Resolve customer support issues Provide a forum to react to ideas Answer pre-sales questionsTHE SECRET TO MONETIZING SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGY: 6 Consumer Buying Behaviors that Will Change Your Social Strategy 8 10. HOW TO MAKE A CUSTOMER COMMUNITY 5 PART OF YOUR SOCIAL STRATEGYGet Satisfaction communities give companies and their customers the opportunity tobuild stronger 1:1 relationships, online. With Get Satisfaction, you can engage with yourcustomers: On your Website On Facebook Via Search queries On mobile devicesWith Get Satisfaction you can embed relevant customer generated conversations onliterally every page of your website, where they read or watch content about your brand orbusiness.Your companys customer community members and brand advocates will do a lotof the work for you at little to no cost. To ensure that your communitys membersparticipate readily and often, Get Satisfactions platform addresses the following needsfor companies of all sizes: Customer Support Marketing E-commerce Product ManagementWe regularly release new features, provide educational webcasts, and engage with ourown customers, both online and off. Check back in a few weeks for our next ebook, whichwill highlight the demographic and market findings from The Incyte Group research.THE SECRET TO MONETIZING SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGY: 6 Consumer Buying Behaviors that Will Change Your Social Strategy 9 11. INVESTIGATE TO ENLIGHTEN: WHY GET SATISFACTION 6 COMMISSIONED THE INCYTE GROUP STUDYWhile no one needed to convince us that a customer community helps build socialbrands on the Web, we wanted to find out more about what consumers want from theirexperience with communities. The goal: To better serve the business needs of both smalland enterprise companies using Get Satisfaction. After all, these are our customers.The Incyte Group asked hundreds of questions to everyday consumers as well as experts(CMOs and other business leaders, as well as academics). From this research, GetSatisfaction learned even more about how to create the types of communities that willHave questions?accomplish the most important business goal of all: To drive revenue.Feel free to email sales@getsatisfaction.com or, you can call877-339-3997 and talk to a real human. http://youtu.be/CtnrQ1Gucl4THE SECRET TO MONETIZING SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGY: 6 Consumer Buying Behaviors that Will Change Your Social Strategy 10