Social Media Is Now Word Of Mouth

Social Media Marketing and Word-of-Mouth Marketing Are Now the Same...

Reading several articles all based on the same survey made me realize that many people still don't get it... they don't get the fact that Social Media Marketing and Word of Mouth Marketing are now the same thing!

The first place I saw it was on the blogs section of the Wall Street Journal website... To Heck With Twitter, Business Owners Say. Then I saw it on MediaPost.com Small Biz Ambivalent About Social Media. Then just yesterday I read this headline on MarketingProfs.com Social Media Gets Mixed Reviews From Small Business.

The survey was commissioned by the Hiscox Insurance Company who worked with market-research firm Opinium Research LLP to query 304 U.S. small business owners this past May. Overall, 47% of small business owners and managers surveyed said they don't use social media for business purposes at all. The survey also broke down each of the big players in the social media world, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn and the numbers for each of these individually are low with Twitter bringing up the rear as only 4% of respondents said they use Twitter.

And good luck trying to decipher what kinds of businesses these were that were surveyed, were they B2B, B2C, what industries were they in, etc... cause I couldn't find that information. You can click on any of the above links for the gory not-very-detailed details if you so choose but... what caught my eye and raised my proverbial ire was the fact that 50% of the respondents cited Word of Mouth Marketing as the one channel they couldn't do without compared to the 12% vote social media received.

Of the three articles I referenced earlier, only one, the MediaPost.com piece even made a reference to the connection between Social Media Marketing and Word of Mouth Marketing: "... Notwithstanding the obvious potential for overlap between social media and WOM..."

Potential overlap?

No, there is no potential overlap, there is a real and distinct overlap!

I'm reading these articles and wondering aloud, 'doesn't anyone get this?' There was one commenter on the WSJ piece who got it for sure...

"...What these business owners... are missing is the fact that Social Media is set to become THE way to spread word of mouth. Facebook is becoming the sewing circle of the future, and if you can get a group of people buzzing to each other online about your business, you can bring in more customers."

I will disagree with this POV only in the fact that Social Media is not set to become the way to spread word of mouth... it already is!

C'mon people, business owners, marketers, advertisers, etc... where do you think people are "talking" these days?

I will surely not trot out the latest Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn stats nor remind you of the accelerated growth of Google Plus... by now you know and have seen all the statistics.

Sure, are neighbors talking to neighbors as they mow their lawns about the new laundry detergent one just used or the great restaurant the other one went to the night before? Of course, that part will never change.

But what HAS changed is now those same neighbors, after mowing their lawns, are going back into their homes and going on their computers or back into their garages and whipping out their smartphones and telling all their friends... their ONLINE friends all about the new laundry detergent and great restaurant.

Their PCs, smartphones and tablets are now extensions of their mouths... in a matter of speaking.

They are now using their keyboards in addition to their mouths to spread the word.

Why does that seem so obvious to me yet seems lost on so many others?...

Back to School Shoppers Using Smartphones

64 % of surveyed back-to-school shoppers will use smartphones: study...

By Lauren Johnson

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July 28, 2011

Despite economic headwinds, 64 percent of surveyed consumers will use their smartphones to make back-to-school purchases this fall, per a study by Deloitte.

Additionally, nine out of ten back-to-school shoppers are expected to spend equal or more than they did last year. Deloitte also  found that mobile shoppers will use their devices for price information and to download discounts and coupons.

“We’ve seen mobile increases in the past, but this is a particularly high percentage of mobile shoppers this year,” said Jackie Fernandez, partner in retail and distribution practice at Deloitte, New York.
“The proliferation of smartphone technology has increased over the past few years to do so many other things besides just shop,” she said.


Deal-seeking on mobile
In addition to consumers just using their smartphones while shopping, the Deloitte study found that users are primarily using them to comparison shop.

Sixty-one percent of consumers will use smartphones to get price information.

Additionally, 43 percent of consumers are expected to download discounts, coupons or sale information on their smartphones.

“The number one response in survey was that people are using their mobile devices to get pricing and discounts,” Ms. Fernandez said.

 “Therefore, it’s clear that people are still going to stores, but there is still a disconnect with users getting to the point-of-sale with their smartphones,” she said.

This need of smartphones and mobile devices for prices ties into bigger consumer issues in the study.

For example, 65 percent of consumers surveyed said low prices are the most important retailer factor when back-to-school shopping.

Additionally, 55 percent of shoppers said they will only buy products their family needs this season.

Twenty-six percent say they will reuse items from last year instead of shopping.


Meeting consumer needs
Based on this study, Ms. Fernandez said that we can expect to see further use and engagement in the future, particularly around the holiday season.

“From our expectations about back-to-school shopping this year, I think it’s fair to see we will continue to see an increase in mobile shopping  in the future, and it will be interesting to see how retailers try to target consumers in the next few months,” Ms. Fernandez said.

Ms. Fernandez also said that mobile has come to be expected with consumers when shopping.

“This study should be eye-opening for retailers because it’s clear that consumers are using their smartphones while shopping, and if retailers aren’t on board with them they’re losing valuable consumers, both online and in-store,” Ms. Fernandez said.

Do you have a Social Media Marketing strategy?

Executives Fail to Focus on Social Media Marketing Strategy...

JULY 20, 2011

Recognizing its importance is not enough to make social strategy a reality

Social media marketing has gained its place at the table. eMarketer estimates 80% of companies with at least 100 employees will use social networks for marketing this year, up from nearly three in four last year. By 2012, usage will be even greater, and, in turn, efforts are becoming more sophisticated.

Most companies now recognize a well crafted social media strategy is a vital part of the marketing mix. In fact, a study from found 78% of executives thought a social business strategy was somewhat or very important to the future success of their business.

Despite this realization, most executives are still only in the tentative stages of making social strategy a priority.

The survey of executives who have final say or significant input on social business strategy found that only 27% listed social business as a top strategic priority. Nearly half (47%) admitted a social plan was necessary but not a strategic priority and 19% said social business strategy was simply not necessary.

Meanwhile, executives were also not overly optimistic about their current social strategy efforts. Only 17% felt their social strategy was ahead of the curve. About four in 10 (42%) felt their social strategy was just keeping up and 33% felt they were behind.

A different study from showed a similar amount of enthusiasm for social strategy. Only 11% of US and UK executives surveyed at large businesses listed social media strategy as a leading priority in 2011—tied for last place with mobile marketing. Social media strategy will receive a small boost in 2012, though, with 19% of execs listing it as a leading marketing priority for the coming year.

Many companies may be using social media marketing, but those that choose not to focus on a social strategy risk falling behind the curve in integrating social media with their overall marketing goals. Recognizing the importance of strategy alone isn’t enough; companies should start implementing a plan.

Smartphones On The Rise

35% of American Adults Own a Smartphone...

One Quarter Use Their Phone for Most of Their Online Browsing

July 11, 2011

Summary of Findings

In its first standalone measure of smartphone ownership, the Pew Internet & American Life Project finds that one third of American adults -- 35% -- own smartphones. The Pew Internet Project's May survey found that 83% of U.S. adults have a cell phone of some kind, and that 42% of them own a smartphone. That translates into 35% of all adults. Our definition of a smartphone owner includes anyone who falls into either of the following two categories:

One-third of cell owners (33%) say that their phone is a smartphone.
Two-in-five cell owners (39%) say that their phone operates on a smartphone platform (these include iPhones and Blackberry devices, as well as phones running the Android, Windows or Palm operating systems).
And here's how they feel about their devices:

Smartphone adoption is highest among the affluent and well-educated, the (relatively) young, and non-whites

Several groups have higher than average levels of smartphone adoption, including:

The financially well-off and well-educated -- 59% of adults living in a household earning income of $75,000 or more are smartphone owners; 48% of those with a college degree own smartphones.
Those younger than age 45 -- 58% of Americans between the ages of 25 and 34 now own a smartphone as do 49% of those ages 18-24 and 44% of those ages 35-44. Even among those with a household income of $30,000 or less, smartphone ownership rates for those ages 18-29 are equal to the national average.

African-Americans and Latinos -- 44% of blacks and Latinos are smartphone users.
Urban and suburban residents are roughly twice as likely to own a smartphone as those living in rural areas, and employment status is also strongly correlated with smartphone ownership.
Mobile phones are a main source of internet access for one-quarter of the smartphone population

Some 87% of smartphone owners access the internet or email on their handheld, including two-thirds (68%) who do so on a typical day. When asked what device they normally use to access the internet, 25% of smartphone owners say that they mostly go online using their phone, rather than with a computer. While many of these individuals have other sources of online access at home, roughly one third of these "cell mostly" internet users lack a high-speed home broadband connection.

Smartphone owners under the age of 30, non-white smartphone users and smartphone owners with relatively low income and education levels are particularly likely to say that they mostly go online using their phones.

Android is the most common smartphone platform, followed by iPhone and Blackberry devices

Phones operating on the Android platform are currently the most prevalent type of smartphone, followed by iPhones and Blackberry devices.

Demographically, Android phones are especially common among young adults and African-Americans, while iPhones and Blackberry devices are most prevalent among college graduates and the financially well-off.

Read the full report for an in-depth look at the demographics of smartphone owners and how they use their devices at pewinternet.org.

How To Maximize Opt-In Loyalty...

Mobile Opt-in Retention - Rules of Engagement

The following is a guest post by Paul Faherty

When it comes to SMS Marketing, conversation touch points generally center around acquiring the opt-in and building the database.  While placing a clear and enticing call to action—where it’s sure to be seen seems simple enough,  there remains a large number of do-it-yourself businesses who seem to struggle with this.  However, page two in my would-be-operator’s-manual would outline techniques for retaining the mobile consumer’s opt-in and include a rules-of-the-road on what types of subsequent SMS to send, and when not to send them.

Best practices necessitate that the SMS campaign should start by abiding to the message frequency they’ve outlined in their call to action.  Telling me I should expect to receive 4 messages a month, then sending me 3 in the first 48 hours will find me running for the nearest proverbial text club exit.  Awaking on a Saturday morning to a text from a business telling me they are now open late on Mondays isn’t going to win me over either.  At Text2VIP, we are constantly reminding clients that their customers have granted them permission to be marketed to – through the most immediate and personal channel marketers have ever known.  This privilege should be respected or it’s destined to be short-lived.

A great example of a well executed SMS campaign is that of a Moe's Southwest Grill.  This  client offered a Free Fountain Drink at the point of purchase to acquire nearly 5,000 opt-ins. 
They cap their frequency of touches at 4 per month, and always offer something of value.  On July 4^th, 2011, this particular location offered a burrito, chips, and drink combination at a $3 discount.  Achieving 10% redemption, they drove nearly 500 customers through their door and broke same store sales records for Independence Day.  Most tellingly though, may just be that of the nearly 5,000 messages sent, only one subscriber opted-out of their campaign.  I largely attribute this to the quality of offer, timeliness of delivery, and restraint of messaging frequency.  Not seeing the other 90% redeem an offer on what is generally considered a slow holiday isn’t the end of the world.  Losing the opportunity to market to them again next week because you’ve abused your privilege-that’s another story.

Happy 4th Of July