Social Media: A New World of Opportunities

Social Media: A New World of Opportunities

Real-World Case Studies of Businesses Gone SocialPresented to: Women Presidents’ Organization

What’s all the buzz about Social Media!?

The Five Concepts of Social Media

#1 Social Media sites are just #1 Social Media sites are just tools…tools…

not the focusnot the focus

#2 Customers can #2 Customers can now control what they now control what they want to “hear”!want to “hear”!

#3 Customers want to #3 Customers want to speak and not just be speak and not just be

spoken to!spoken to!

#4 Customers want a #4 Customers want a relationship… not just a relationship… not just a receipt!receipt!

#5 Education now converts #5 Education now converts more often than promotions!more often than promotions!

So who actually “Gets It”?

• Fiskars– Creating a community for crafters.

• Zappos– Letting employees be the brand.

• Louis E. Page, Inc.– Educating their prospects to make them

customers.

Fiskars & The Fiskateers

• Founded in 1649 at Fiskars Bruk, Finland

• Quality cutting tools for home, garden, crafting and office

• ~$1B in revenue for 2009

• 48% of revenue from “Home” brands

– crafting as the majority

How’d They Do That!

• Recruited “Ambassadors” from customers

• Multimedia communications platform

• Digital interaction + physical interaction = tighter relationship

• Exclusivity & community = belonging & loyalty

Break It Down

• Communications platform– Mini-site = front face– Blog = information sharing– Message board = community discussion– Videos & Craft TV = visual communication– Photo gallery = visual stimulation– Facebook = information promotion (extend

reach)– Twitter = information promotion (extend reach)

Key Concept

• Community = sense of belonging (bond with customers)

• Sense of belonging = access to customers’ minds

• Access = product feedback, innovation ideas, brand loyalty and increased sales

The Results for Fiskars?

• Results of the Fiskateers initiative? – Original goal: 200 members– Actual results: Over 6,000 members &

growing– 300% increase in year-over-year sales

Zappos.com Wow’ing Customers

• Founded in 1999 in Henderson, Nevada• Online retailer only• Originally sold only shoes, now:

– Clothing– Accessories– Handbags & Purses– Eyewear & Watches

• Revenue in 2008: $1B+• Acquired by Amazon.com in 2009 for $1.2B

How’d They Do That!

• Focus on WOW’ing customers with their great customer service– Free shipping both ways– A 365-day return policy– A 24/7 call center/Online customer service

• Multimedia communications platform

• Employees are the relationship builders

• Openness and transparency build trust

Break It Down

• Communications platform– Core ecommerce website = sales

• Customer product reviews• Product promotion widgets• Video product descriptions• Customer submitted videos & pictures

– Blog = information sharing (written by employees)– Zappos.TV = “behind the scenes” (culture

sharing)– Facebook = information promotion (extend reach)– Twitter = information promotion (extend reach)

Key Concept

• Employees as Relationship Builders = Greater customer loyalty

• Increased customer loyalty = Increase in lifetime sales of the customer

• Increased lifetime of the customer =Raving brand loyalists who become strong word-of-mouth referral points

The Results for Zappos.com?

• Results for Zappos.com’s online initiatives? – 75% of annual revenue is from repeat

customers– They have become the king at creating the

most loyal employees, fans, and brand evangelists!

Louis E. Page, Inc. Educating Customers

• Founded in 1893 at Littleton, Massachusetts

• 117 years old

• 3rd generation family owned

• Unusual and hard to find fencing products

How’d They Do That!

• Multimedia communications platform

• Focused on education over promotion– Showing results rather than telling benefits– Become a resource expert on using products

to build solutions– Share the information where your customers

are

Break It Down

• Communications platform– Corporate website = front face– Blog = information sharing/education– Videos = visual “how to’s”– Twitter = information promotion (extend

reach)– Facebook = information promotion (extend

reach)

Key Concept

• Educated prospect = Happy customer

• Put the value on the solution rather than product

• Multiply solutions = Multiply sales

The Results for Louis E. Page, Inc.

• Results for online initiatives? – 850% increase in sales leads– Average monthly visits of ~4,000 (up 400%)– Lead to media coverage, which increased site

traffic.

What Can I Do to Start Using Social Media in My Business?

Step One: Step One: Find the Channels Your Find the Channels Your

Customers UseCustomers Use

Step Two:Step Two:Look for the conversation Look for the conversation

and start listening!and start listening!

Step Three:Step Three:Identify your end user to find Identify your end user to find

your true customeryour true customer

Step Four:Step Four:Start asking for feedback! Start asking for feedback! Engage your customers!Engage your customers!

Step Five:Step Five:Start or join the conversationStart or join the conversation

Remember the Concepts

• The social media sites are just tools

• Customers control what they want to “hear”

• They want to speak, not just be spoken to

• They want a relationship, not just a receipt

• Education converts more than promotion

Thank you for your time!

Brian Hamlett is the President and owner of mPower Consulting, an online marketing consultancy based in Charlotte, North Carolina.

His goal is to “Make the Web Easy” for businesses and organizations to leverage the power of the Internet to fuel growth, increase sales, attract new prospects and build strong relationships with customers.

He is routinely invited to speak to groups on topics such as: social media for businesses, online marketing strategy, building better websites, using the web to cut operational costs, and digital relationship-building.

Contact him or learn more about him by going to: www.mpoweringu.com