1 Online Consumer Behaviors and Emerging Technologies: What You Need to KnowVirginia Professional Communicators October 2016 Dean Browell, PhD RICHMOND NEW YORK LONDON PARIS SINGAPORE
2 My Perspective
3 My Perspective I am an academic first…We believe in listening first to the millions of people posting billions of thoughts, experiences and opinions From these, Feedback delivers advanced insights and strategy to leading brands worldwide By doing this, we consistently improve sales and outreach programs Personally my passion and research background is generational differences – so I can help answer further questions on Millennials, Generation X, etc.
4 My Perspective But I’m also a PR vet…I was the Public Relations Director of Ferrum College As well as the Blue Ridge Institute I’ve headed up Public Relations at ndp (formerly ND&P, Neathawk Dubuque & Packett) including working on: National rollouts of products, services SEC filings and announcements PR for many nonprofits Still heavily involved in communications – and in particular healthcare through the Society for Healthcare Strategy and Market Development (SHSMD – a national AHA group)
5 Housekeeping
6 The Presentation: Meant to be portable for youIncluding a portion called, “Activation to Advocacy” that you can share easily You can find it online to download here:
7 Housekeeping on TerminologyIs it: Social Media? New Media? Emerging Media? ANSWER: To everyone else it’s just “The Internet” Is this: Public Relations? Marketing? Customer Service? Donor Relations? ANSWER: it’s everything, & soon we’ll stop labeling it
8 Housekeeping on ConsumersLet’s be blunt about this consumer journey: They don’t think of themselves as being on a, “journey” per se They are instead Seekers of information, assurance, validation, purpose, resolution …and sometimes they just want it simple – which may or may not mean they want to hear from you “Social Media” = “New Media” = “Emerging Media” To everyone else it’s just “The Internet”
9 Housekeeping on ChannelsSocial Media is also far more than Facebook, Instagram and Twitter Message Boards Review sites Consider all the places user-generated content exists It is not a matter of if but rather, how different generations use it The Review Example Boomers Gen X “Millennials” …For every teen girl on Twitter there’s a baby boomer on a car enthusiast forum
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11 You and Your Audiences We often begin with our audiences but in the need to make quick decisions we start extrapolating out quickly, making, at times accidentally, wildly wrong assumptions… Let me give you an example: How many of you have read general articles on Twitter? Now how many of you have read an article on Twitter use in rural Virginia? How about even just the difference between rural and urban Twitter use?
12 A Behavioral View: Activation to Advocacy
13 From The Perspective of the AudienceActivate Research Shopping Purchase Advocacy The audience interacts with you…
14 From The Perspective of the AudienceActivate Research Shopping Purchase Advocacy First the audience is activated by a brand, which could include: seeing a billboard, hearing a radio spot, reading an article...
15 From The Perspective of the AudienceActivate Research Shopping Purchase Advocacy Next, they research the service they need through searches, seeking validation and advice from others as well (hopefully including the desired brand in the mix if they have been activated enough)
16 From The Perspective of the AudienceActivate Research Shopping Purchase Advocacy They whittle their choices down to just a couple and begin to do outright comparisons, still influenced heavily by their research
17 From The Perspective of the AudienceActivate Research Shopping Purchase Advocacy The audience decides to “purchase” or transact/convert and here sales staff/operations have to seal the deal
18 From The Perspective of the AudienceActivate Research Shopping Purchase Advocacy The happy audience may be motivated (personally or if invited) to become an advocate of their experience and potentially the brand
19 How Long Does This Take? Activate Research Shopping Purchase AdvocacyThis cycle is only as long as any average sales process - it could happen in minutes or years
20 Components of the SegmentActivate Research Shopping Purchase Advocacy Traditional Media Social Media Public Relations Sear ch Search Social Media Public Relations Sales Social Media Public Relations Sales Social Media See how most components (“traditional” and non) fit in at each step
21 However… Activate Purchase...many campaigns simply focus on Activation and then Purchase, ignoring the process our targets take part in before making a decision
22 Components of the SegmentActivate Research Shopping Purchase Advocacy Traditional Media Social Media Public Relations Sear ch Search Social Media Public Relations Sales Social Media Public Relations Sales Social Media ...the more Advocates you can create, the more they provide content (endorsement, reinforcement) to be found by others in the research phase
23 Warming The Lead Activate Research Shopping Purchase AdvocacyTraditional Media Social Media Public Relations Sear ch Search Social Media Public Relations Sales Social Media Public Relations Sales Social Media Social Media & Public Relations effectively warm the lead from the Research Phase onward
24 The Issue of Recall Activate Research Shopping Purchase AdvocacyMost traditional advertising operates here in the model, although some contact throughout the life of the cycle could occur
25 The Issue of Recall Activate RecallThe problem is, as soon as the media buy is over, recall begins to dive
26 The Issue of Recall Activate Research RecallTraditional Media Social Media Public Relations Sear ch Search Social Media Public Relations Recall Social Media & Public Relations helps buoy recall past the typical drop-off point - and the more Advocates the longer the recall
27 Observable Behavior and Example Trends
28 Observable Behavior Who is exhibiting behavior?Our audiences take on several roles; that are important to acknowledge: Participant – Engaged consumer who posts textual commentary, opinions, etc. Endorser – Engages largely through endorsing actions such as Likes or Favorites Lurker – Only there to read or gather information, often satisfied with finding similar questions and scanning for answers; May not join communities
29 Example Trends We are seeing an increased emphasis on: BehaviorExperiencing the moment Review cultures Technology Live interactions Ephemeral content New advertising platforms
30 Example Trends: BehaviorsOnline, “Experiencing the Moment” means sharing how you are participating in it – whether that’s from afar or in-person Facebook has been leveraging geolocation to give you “Place Tips” at events Twitter’s live platform called “Moments” that pulls together curated posts about a live event This also plays out into personal live moments
31 Example Trends: TechnologyLive Interactions The next step in Video is livecasting (not unlike how it was 10+ years ago) Casual, quick, centralized live broadcasting of events, moments, etc. Video of everything from trying on clothes to a baseball game Top technology for it: Facebook Live (Distant second: Periscope) Archiving VC’s missed the boat with Meerkat (Rest in Peace)
32 Example Trends: BehaviorsAcross the country – but particularly in the South – we are seeing a heavy online Review Culture Not just for foodies in the city anymore From Yelp to local message boards, people are making decisions with peer influence (rating, question, review) Reviews and tips are being brought into the most benign platforms from car GPS to pulling in Tips on Pinterest Places
33 Example Trends: TechnologyWhat is Ephemeral Content? Quick content that disappears shortly after it is seen or heard Photos, text, short videos On a wider scale, when brands use it, it’s meant to make others wish they’d seen it This is the one tech space where America is behind the rest of the world – our time with apps like these is just beginning Top technology for it: SnapChat
34 How to Listen: Identifying Distinct Communities Online
35 How to Listen: Identifying CommunitiesWe break up our research into two phases: Discovery Who and Where? When? Mining What examples matter? Where are the trends? Creating personas/archetypes Creating appendices
36 The HumanFilterSM SystemA proprietary process used to uncover online conversations of all types, which are then analyzed by social scientists for the development of more effective marketing and outreach programs. Some important backstory Notes on the VA project that may aid you: - Typically the Commonwealth uses a Statewide paper survey of teens as a Needs Assessment which impacts funding of the local prevention and outreach groups (Community Service Boards (CSBs); this project was seen as a massive shakeup of that, showcasing how much need-related data is literally in front of their faces, pouring out every day We focused on Twitter for the needs assessment test – but each geography would use a host of different channels and in a normal, full project for each locality we will bring about much more than just Twitter, and also be able to delineate how behaviors and trends differ by geography Our next steps are to pick 2-3 pilot regions of Virginia, do a thorough deep dive to identify all channels and all instances of evidence of these issues, and work with the CSBs in those regions to understand the impact, trends, and need and help connect proper resources to listen, engage, and connect to these audiences The project also included an element for young veterans, who we discovered on Twitter in heavy use through approximately age 22, when they would migrate to forums;
37 How to Listen: Identifying CommunitiesThe three key principles we keep in mind: Understanding the Role Geography May Play Being Platform and Channel Agnostic Creating Accurate Personas
38 How to Listen: Identifying CommunitiesUnderstanding the Role Geography May Play The “USA Today-ification” of social media We read an article and think we understand how a social channel actually works on a local level Richmond, VA is very different than Nashville, TN – which is very different than Manchester, TN The “How far will they travel for…” effect on community Rural vs Urban Twitter location example (search.twitter.com “Advanced”) Southern Outer Banks example…
39 How to Listen: Identifying CommunitiesUnderstanding the Role Geography May Play Southern Outer Banks Example Picture it: a CEO enters the room and says, “We need to be on Twitter” Waterside tourist-driven area Our research showed the hospital should only use Twitter for emergency services… Why? Key Insight: Community development, even online, is heavily influenced by geography Not all Twitter communities are created equal
40 How to Listen: Identifying CommunitiesBeing Platform and Channel Agnostic The single most important rule The rule we ignore the most Dashboards are comfortable with certain channels People are comfortable with certain channels Fish where the fish are My Morning Jacket example Fanclub Forums Facebook Groups
41 How to Listen: Identifying CommunitiesCreating Accurate Personas Consider the personas you already have created Often from a hodge-podge of consultant advice and statistical data Can be very accurate to a point Validate them by looking at their behavior Make them more valuable Consider the personas that are actually operating What personas have undue influence on others? Making an accurate, actionable amalgamation of the two
42 Doc Personas might include:Their personal views on healthcare, recruitment, patient interaction style, etc. Again – all ages are represented online Better than a focus group
43 Personas for Micron: Existing personas validated Added a spoiler persona Analysis on how to communicate and message, where to intersect
44 How to Listen: Identifying CommunitiesAudience Decision-Making Analysis What behaviors are they taking? What decisions are they making? What triggers are moving them to action? What products do they need? Audience / Influencer Identification and Engagement What does REAL influence look like? How best can we engage them? Industry Trend Studies and Monitoring How are these audiences changing / morphing? What opportunities are emerging / changing? Which competitors are maneuvering and how? Some important backstory Notes on the VA project that may aid you: - Typically the Commonwealth uses a Statewide paper survey of teens as a Needs Assessment which impacts funding of the local prevention and outreach groups (Community Service Boards (CSBs); this project was seen as a massive shakeup of that, showcasing how much need-related data is literally in front of their faces, pouring out every day We focused on Twitter for the needs assessment test – but each geography would use a host of different channels and in a normal, full project for each locality we will bring about much more than just Twitter, and also be able to delineate how behaviors and trends differ by geography Our next steps are to pick 2-3 pilot regions of Virginia, do a thorough deep dive to identify all channels and all instances of evidence of these issues, and work with the CSBs in those regions to understand the impact, trends, and need and help connect proper resources to listen, engage, and connect to these audiences The project also included an element for young veterans, who we discovered on Twitter in heavy use through approximately age 22, when they would migrate to forums;
45 Best Practices And Mini-Case Studies
46 Best Practices What is working best in social? Understanding your audiences and tuning your efforts based on: Frequency Quality Engagement Listening
47 Best Practices The most misunderstood element of social media is the application of Frequency as a band-aid for social media troubles You can’t fix problems of engagement by posting more The most successful brands are finding smarter, more potent ways to post – not more frequent ways We have to let logic in: Users of these social platforms already have so many Friends, Interests they follow Posting too often increases your chances of being UnFollowed more than Engaged
48 Best Practices But what makes a Quality post?It doesn’t have to be a mystery We likely know what is considered a quality post by your current audience because they tell us – through engagement and the immense stats we have We need to value our metrics – the ROI is clear The best brands have taken what works and followed the cues to produce more content in that vein
49 Best Practices There are actually several types of “Engagement”People can “Like” (or Favorite) your content They can ask for more content later (Subscribe, Follow, Like your Page) They can Share your content with others And finally they can comment and interact with your content on your channels or elsewhere We have to listen to their behavior as it is the perfect cue to take on whether our actions are working
50 Best Practices: Mini Case StudyMythbusting North Carolina Waterman & NC Hunting and Fishing Forums Quite often we face, “this audience isn’t online” More often than not the assumption is around rural, older, and/or male audiences One example such as the study for Vidant we found older men online in droves – but not at the big social sites; rather on specialty forums
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52 Best Practices: Mini Case StudyInternal audiences Nursing We’ve studied nurses for over 6 years now They were the very first industry audience to embrace Facebook outside of the, “average” college students For The American Nurses Association we looked at how they discuss leadership For dozens of hospitals we’ve looked at how they discuss their profession and institutions
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54 Best Practices Last but certainly not least – we have to ListenWe should identify our audiences and be honest with ourselves as to where those audiences are Those who understand this best understand the difference between the audiences we have and the ones we want Let’s not be distracted by the shiniest objects of new apps, channels, tech, etc. – let behavior and engagement govern use You can apply a sales funnel to social: the warmer the quality lead, the more likely the sale; the easy lead may look good on paper but may never result in sales
55 Mini Case Study Really Listening Can Help More Than MarketingCamelBak’s R&D Benefits They engage in channels Including many off the beaten path The result of putting together a programmatic listening solution allows: Pinpointing specific issues: Such as a pallet of bottles with a flaw in an REI in San Diego The nuances of audience groups such as Road Cyclists vs. Mountain Bikers
56 Mini Case Study Applications Can Be VariedBF Goodrich Tires – Via The Martin Agency Cross-country trip of creatives in a van Promoting a new app and website We provided realtime updates on communities As well as directed them to new communities End result was a very successful campaign (time spent on site via social generated eclipsed web ads) Discovered all new audiences Compiled all learnings into massive document for planners
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58 Mini Case Study The audiences we have vs the ones we want SKYN CondomsA study was conducted on how latex-free condom use was discussed among European countries Public channels yielded unexpected surprises in online chatter: The use of Yahoo Answers for males in England Females discussing latex allergies and unbeknownst to SKYN, taking over their Facebook
59 Best Practices Putting them all together: User-Generated ContentWhere brands are making smart strides is in combining these best practices to stay in their customer’s eye without turning them off They do this by letting them lead the way through their own content, influencers, and platforms Frequency: Customers want to hear from peers more often than brands Quality: Peer content is considered quality content / not contrived Engagement: Much lower barrier to engagement with one another Listening: Knowing how they influence each other is key
60 Best Practices: Fast Moving and Real
61 Best Practices: Fast Moving and Real
62 A Warning About Dashboards
63 A Warning About DashboardsIt’s likely that many of you have invested in expensive dashboard licenses and products over the years Some may think you’re already listening because you use/pay for these; the kind of insights I’m talking about literally can’t come from these dashboards You may be unaware of significant weaknesses and complete blind spots: Content they don’t see Content they can’t interpret What you lose
64 A Warning About DashboardsContent they don’t see Dashboards primarily (and disproportionately) rely on Facebook and Twitter Only public Facebook posts Can’t see into most message boards, forums, any channel with a single click-wall to look inside Radian 6, Meltwater, etc. admit openly that they cannot see into most forums and message boards
65 A Warning About DashboardsContent they can’t interpret Dashboard algorithms are notoriously bad Don’t detect sarcasm Don’t detect comparisons well Reliance on Twitter means poor interpretations of limited characters, abbreviations, emojis, etc. CamelBak example Remember that Dashboards Can’t Interpret Imagery No context for photos, memes, etc. Immediately useless for Instagram
66 A Warning About DashboardsWhat you lose No forums Can’t see into Facebook Groups, even if Public Context Poor overall insights and specific insights Relying on a robot to tell you contextual details Looking for efficiency, you may find yourself over-valuing platforms because the dashboard can see them; ignoring behavior elsewhere won’t make it go away
67 How Can Behavior Be Used to Understand ROI?RICHMOND NEW YORK LONDON PARIS SINGAPORE
68 Quick View Of The ChannelsContent Facebook Post Views Content Views Likes of Content Ad Clicks Shares Comments Promoted Posts Sponsored Stories Twitter Tweet Views Follows Favorite/Like Retweets Reply Pinterest Pin Re-Pin Pin Views Like/Subscribe Follow Web Article/News Clicks Sharing Review Forum Comments Clicks Referrals Ezine Subscribes Ezine Opens Page views YouTube Like Share Subscribe Video Views Instagram Photo Views
69 How Do We Measure Transactions?Converge terminology: subscribers, disseminators (or repeaters), approvers, commenters Line-up similar actions: Approving Tweets & Likes, link-sharing & ReTweets, Followers, LinkedIn Group Members & Page-Likers... etc. Peek inside your website’s stats/analytics: investigate what social sites are referring traffic and intersecting with your site
70 Or Viewed Differently…Content Noun; a post on Facebook (ex. text; link); a Tweet; the thing an app creates (ex. your festival schedule); the thing a service provides (ex. weather; movie; song) View Impressions; How many people have merely seen something/content/Page/site Connect I Endorsement; Low interaction; Like (Content, Post); Verb; Etc; Favorite on Twitter Connect II Ongoing; Endorsement; Like (Page); Subscribe; Newsletter; Follow; List; Follow List Engage Comment; Vote; Discuss; ReTweet (with and without comment); Share
71 So Let’s Look At Them As Touchpoints…Content View Page Views (Web) Post Views (Fb) Content Views (Fb) Tweet Views (Tw) Photo Views (Instgm) Pin Views (Pinterest) Video Views (YTb) Opens (e-newsletter) Connect I Clicks (Web) Referrals (Web) Likes of Content (Fb) Ad Click (Fb, Tw, Web) Favorite (Tw) Like (Instgm) Like (Pinterest) Like (YTb) Article click (e-Nwsltr) Connect II Like/Subscribe (Fb) Follow (Tw) Follow (Instgm) Follow (Pinterest) Subscribe (YTb) Subscribe (Nwsltr) Engage Share (Fb) Comment (Fb) ReTweet (Tw) Reply (Tw) Share (Tw) Comment (Instgm) Pin (Pinterest) Re-Pin (Pinterest) Share (YTb) Share (e-Nwsltr) Review (Any) Comment (Forum)
72 Impact on engagement and SEOSo Let’s Look At Them As Touchpoints… Content View Page Views (Web) Post Views (Fb) Content Views (Fb) Tweet Views (Tw) Photo Views (Instgm) Pin Views (Pinterest) Video Views (YTb) Opens (e-newsletter) Connect I Clicks (Web) Referrals (Web) Likes of Content (Fb) Ad Click (Fb, Tw, Web) Favorite (Tw) Like (Instgm) Like (Pinterest) Like (YTb) Article click (e-Nwsltr) Connect II Like/Subscribe (Fb) Follow (Tw) Follow (Instgm) Follow (Pinterest) Subscribe (YTb) Subscribe (e-Nwsltr) Engage Share (Fb) Comment (Fb) ReTweet (Tw) Reply (Tw) Share (Tw) Chare (e-Nwsltr) Review (e-Com, Any) Comment (Forum) Impact on engagement and SEO
73 The Only Vague Stats Content View Connect I Connect II EngagePage Views (Web) Post Views (Fb) Content Views (Fb) Tweet Views (Tw) Photo Views (Instgm) Pin Views (Pinterest) Video Views (YTb) Opens (e-newsletter) Connect I Clicks (Web) Referrals (Web) Likes of Content (Fb) Ad Click (Fb, Tw, Web) Favorite (Tw) Like (Instgm) Like (Pinterest) Like (YTb) Article click (e-Nwsltr) Connect II Like/Subscribe (Fb) Follow (Tw) Follow (Instgm) Follow (Pinterest) Subscribe (YTb) Subscribe (e-Nwsltr) Engage Share (Fb) Comment (Fb) ReTweet (Tw) Reply (Tw) Share (Tw) Comment (Instgm) Pin (Pinterest) Re-Pin (Pinterest) Share (YTb) Share (e-Nwsltr) Review (Any) Comment (Forum)
74 Awareness, Content, Volunteers, Donations, etc.So Let’s Look At Them As Touchpoints… Content View Page Views (Web) Post Views (Fb) Content Views (Fb) Tweet Views (Tw) Photo Views (Instgm) Pin Views (Pinterest) Video Views (YTb) Opens (e-newsletter) Connect I Clicks (Web) Referrals (Web) Likes of Content (Fb) Ad Click (Fb, Tw, Web) Favorite (Tw) Like (Instgm) Like (Pinterest) Like (YTb) Article click (e-Nwsltr) Connect II Like/Subscribe (Fb) Follow (Tw) Follow (Instgm) Follow (Pinterest) Subscribe (YTb) Subscribe (e-Nwsltr) Engage Share (Fb) Comment (Fb) ReTweet (Tw) Reply (Tw) Share (Tw) Comment (Instgm) Pin (Pinterest) Re-Pin (Pinterest) Share (YTb) Share (e-Nwsltr) Revi Comment (Forum) Awareness, Content, Volunteers, Donations, etc.
75 Questions? Thoughts? RICHMOND NEW YORK LONDON PARIS SINGAPORE
76 Thank You! [email protected] Twitter.com/feedbackagencyFacebook.com/feedbackfb RICHMOND NEW YORK LONDON PARIS SINGAPORE
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