Visible Technologies Social Media Monitoring Blog

A civil lawsuit accusing an entertainer with a negative reputation of financially benefiting by promoting his bad boy reputation on the Web was the crux of an interesting trial I was asked to testify at. It was a real Web 2.0 case with viral marketing labeled as the “smoking gun.”

The plaintiffs are four young adults who allege they suffered injuries and emotional distress during a brawl that erupted in the audience at a 2004 concert in Springfield, MA., where the non-jury trial recently took place in District Court. The defendant is well known rapper Curtis Jackson, a.k.a 50 Cent, who leaped into the audience along with his entourage of band mates after being doused with a bottle of water by someone in the audience. The ensuing brawl was ugly and disturbing.

Arguing the famous rapper has a long history of similar bad behavior, the plaintiffs claim Jackson is reaping economic rewards as a brand and a business thanks in part to a professionally produced YouTube video of the brawl that has been viewed by nearly 200,000 people over the past year. The video also has been linked to by dozens of other popular gangster rap music sites, which further promote his bad boy selling image. The defense, of course, strongly disagreed.

The intersection of that argument is why I was asked to testify as a paid “subject expert” about online reputation management and quantifying the value of viral video marketing, namely the five-minute YouTube video.

I think there is little doubt in the world of marketing that people can make as much money from being a bad character just as much as Miley Cyrus does from her wholesome image. The main issue came down to whether or not Jackson’s complacency in allowing the video to remain online is contributing to sales of his music and merchandise. It was a hot topic that resulted in me being under oath a surprisingly long two hours. Even the judge got into the act, asking poignant questions about digital marketing and the comparative value of paid advertising on television vs. a free on-demand video on the Web.

It was difficult for the defense team to justify why Jackson’s camp didn’t have the video removed from the site if he really thought it was having a negative impact on his image. I’ve worked on campaigns with celebrities before and none of them were ever unaware of what was in the public domain and whether or not it should be stopped or enhanced. Jackson’s attorney was also surprised when I pointed out that in addition to the dozens of free 50 Cent videos on YouTube, his client also has his own paid branded community channel on the very same site.

At the moment the case rests in the hands of the judge so I’ll be sure to update on here the verdict when he rules sometime in the future. On a personal level, it was the first time I had ever had to testify in court and you quickly learn on a witness stand that your opinion means very little if it isn’t based on fact and first-hand personal experience. I hope I don’t have to “face the music” again anytime soon.

Mike Spataro

One of the fun parts of being in this business is working with companies on their social media strategies. That’s particularly true as more brands move from passive listening to active participation. Even though there is a ton of discussion around the Web about a handful of highly visible companies that are leaders in connecting with consumers online, the fact of the matter is that roughly 95% of Corporate America is not yet involved in social media engagement.

Based on my personal experience with many brands, I see a big shift in this area over the next few years. The question is how many companies are really ready to enter this brave new world. With this in mind, here’s what I suggest companies keep in mind as they develop their online engagement strategies.

• Don’t underestimate the importance. Some companies think it’s no big deal to get someone out responding to people online - until they do it. It’s a 24×7 job and brands that don’t understand the demands and challenges of online participation are doomed for failure. And let’s forget forever the idea of outsourcing this role.
• Pick the right person or team. Give a lot of thought to who will be your online voice. Ideally it is someone who already lives and breathes social media and understands that this is not a 9-to-5 job. Social media doesn’t end at sunset. Having someone who understands this is super important. Jeremiah Owyang’s running list of social media managers is worth bookmarking.
• Minimize the bureaucracy. Brands need to have faith in their strategy and the people running that strategy if they want to succeed. If they think they can pre-plan for every scenario that will occur and every response needs to be run by the legal team before it gets posted then they need to take a step back and re-consider their game plan.
• All participation is not created equal. There are significant differences around the concept of participation. While corporate communicators may have one reason to get involved in online conversations, that may be vastly different than brand marketers, customer service, and others in an organization. It’s actually a bit telling how uncomfortable some corporate marketers feel in this new area. Perhaps customer service, which has been dealing with customers forever, should have a bigger role in corporate social media. If you ask me, a firm grasp of CRM 2.0 is what’s required for success.
• Define the concept of when. A typical global brand is talked about online a lot more than they know or believe until you show them the results of your analysis. That said, there is a fallacy in Corporate America that they have to respond to everything. Not even close. The brands we work with to leverage our TruCast solution for “actionable social media” typically participate in roughly 10% to 15% of total conversations about their brands.

Obviously, there is a lot more that goes into a successful online engagement plan. There is no doubt in my mind, however, that every company will be involved in one way or another within the next five years.

Mike Spataro

Now that I’ve had the pleasure, and sometimes pain, of digesting RFPs and RFIs from dozens of companies seeking partners for their social media monitoring and intelligence programs, I feel ready to offer some insights and tips on how to develop a strong proposal for your organization.

One of the interesting trends over the past year is how fast companies went from calling for a quick demo and proposal to issuing formal RFPs - a real validation of the increasing importance of this new stream of data. Brands are anxious to get closer to their customers and are finding social media is one of the best ways to do so. With that in mind, here’s a handful of items to consider when developing your first social media RFP.

• Understand Your Needs: Think through what you want to learn from consumers who share information about your brand, products, services, industry and competitors. There is a huge difference if you just want to monitor mentions of your brand to keep an eye on potentially hot issues vs. the need for indepth strategic insights that could impact customer service and product development.
• Identify Your Team: Will your social media intelligence team have staff from one division or from several different internal groups? This is particularly important if you’re a big company or agency. It’s likely the VP of Corporate Communications, the Chief Marketing Officer, the Director of Market Research, and the head of Customer Relations are going to look at the data in very different ways, so it’s important to articulate that in your proposal.
• Data Depth: Give some thought to the importance of the depth of data coverage you’d like. Despite the sales pitches you’ll hear, there are big differences in how much of the social media landscape providers cover. For instance, do you want all blogs, newsgroups, message boards, mainstream media, video-sharing sites, etc., and both original authored content as well as follow-up comments? It’s important to outline data coverage that match your company’s specific needs. In some industries, messages boards may be more important than blogs. If you want to identify top authors then you’d want to be sure you target vendors that include that type of data. The more detailed you get the better.
• Frequency and Access: Does your staff need to see the data hourly, daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, or yearly? Do you want to access the information on-demand at your desktop or mobile phone or want it spoon feed throughout your organization in a variety of printed formats? It’s likely that’ll depend on the different members of your social media team. Again, the more you think this through upfront, the easier the decision process will be later on.
• Speed and Analysis: Some companies need unfiltered posts without any analysis and they want to see them as fast as possible, while other brands can wait a few hours to receive an entire threaded discussion from start to finish that has been fully analyzed to provide thoughtful insights. Balancing the need between speed and analysis is another consideration.
• Actionable Insights: Do you want to just monitor and measure consumer perceptions, or are you getting your company prepared to start participating more actively in online communities? Once you’ve figured out your strategy in this area, it may lead you down a few different decision paths and impact the structure of your RFP. The same goes for whether you are looking for additional value-added consulting services or just a technology provider.

If you consider some of these tips it should help you save time and more easily identify the right group of social media providers to consider. Keep in mind, however, that there are no silver bullets in this emerging industry just yet. There are dozens of companies like ours that provide a dizzying array of different products and services, so reducing your time to find the right fit for your company should also be a priority.

Mike Spataro

A new study published by the Society for New Communications Research has found that social media is rapidly becoming a core channel for companies to position their brands, products and services. In addition to some interesting findings and stats, the report includes an array of informative case studies from brands and organizations, such as Quicken Loans, American Red Cross, The Mayo Clinic and others.

The study, which focused on what it calls ’social media power users,’ found that PR and corporate communications professionals are increasingly relying on a wide variety of new tools and technologies to reach audiences. Having spent years in PR myself, this is welcome news for an industry that has been criticized at times for its slow adoption of new media.

Fifty-seven percent of respondents indicated that social media is becoming more valuable to their marketing activities, while 27% went as far to say that social media is now a core element of their communications strategy. Surprisingly, search engine rankings and Web site traffic were among the top responses for measuring the effectiveness of social media on brand building.

The study, which can be downloaded for free, was conducted by an impressive team of SNCR fellows - Joseph Carrabis, John Cass, Paul Gillin, Richard Nacht and Greg Peverill-Conti.

Mike Spataro

It’s funny how new ideas and ways of doing business can sometimes take shape in companies. Contrary to popular belief, not all innovation comes from the research lab or executive management suite. Oh those guys usually get credit for it, but sometimes real change starts with a single person or small team of people buried deep within an organization.

A good example of this is when some former colleagues of mine at another company banded together in the early 90’s on their own time to create the company’s first Web site. No executive strategic vision. No corporate budget. They refused to wait around for management to tell them the Web was going to be something special. They just saw the future and literally jump started this Fortune 500 brand into the Internet Age.

I see a very similar trend in many companies today when it comes to social media.

In at least half of the companies I’ve met over the past two years, the initiative for social media is being driven by what I call Social Media Champions (SMCs). These people are forward-thinking individuals who have a knack for spotting important trends before their colleagues and bosses. Not all of them know exactly why it is important, but they just know it is. They don’t have fancy social media jobs or titles, but they are real corporate change artists who have a true understanding of how new technologies can impact the companies they work for.

For SMCs - just like early Web pioneers - adapting new ways of doing business seem so obvious to them, but they are often frustrated because others can’t see the world the same way they see it.

SMCs can work anywhere in a company. In just the past few weeks, I’ve met one who works in the purchasing department for a mid-size pharmaceutical brand, another in the IT department for a major food manufacturer, and yet another in the legal department for a consumer electronics company.

It’s important for companies to not only recognize SMCs, but also seek them out. Here’s a few indicators that you have a SMC among your staff.

• they are always trying out new technologies and applications - on their own time no less;
• they are happy to show others how to use the Web to improve efficiencies;
• they are highly connected and their “online rolodex” is far bigger than the one of their desk;
• they don’t get discouraged when others criticize them for getting excited about “the next big fad;” and,
• they know how to impact change in a company in a very positive way.

Mike Spataro