Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Rule #3, Post 4--Lesson #7 Don't just talk, listen

Read through this blog about the Old Spice Man commercials.

Old Spice capitalized on listening to customers through YouTube. Do you agree with the blog author that this can no longer be done now that Old Spice paved the way with this method? What are some other ways we can spark conversation through listening to customers? And, by listening to them, are we actually sparking conversation or just joining conversation that's already there?

10 comments:

  1. I don't agree with the author of that post. Provided that the content is good and the conversation/buzz is there, that exact execution could work again. The key is that the Old Spice spots are incredibly inventive, worth watching over and worth telling a friend about.

    Re: sparking v joining - both tactics should be employed to the degree you're involved in a social channel. If you've built a community around your product, service, brand, etc - then you can spark a conversation, as well as join one. For an organization still in the community-building mode, joining conversations is a great first step.

    Listening to and joining conversations seem especially important in a customer service function.

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  2. I agree with Ethan. I see no reason why another company couldn't implement a similar tactic to re-energize their brand provided they had the community. Of course another company wouldn't have the Old Spice man riding a horse backwards, they might have to go with a lama instead. :)

    As far as the chapter goes I really liked the focus Mathieson placed on soliciting feedback through social media and actively monitoring sites to address complaints as quickly as possible. It looks like social media is the new public relations tool of choice.

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  3. I agree that social media can be a strong tool of choice, but only if it is done correctly. There is a potential for social media to become a double-edged sword for any business that chooses to actively monitor sites for conversations that include their brands.

    Companies must be willing to dedicate the appropriate resources to the endeavor in order to be successful in utilizing social media in this manner.

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  4. I think all companies that have a brand image to protect need to monitor the social media sites. There is no better way to understand your brand perception and how well your marketing strategy is working than hearing what people actually think of you.
    However, as for leading the conversation, I think brands need to try to be less of an influencing factor and more of a researching factor (whether it be how their brand is doing or furthering the development of their industry) when it comes to "joining the conversation". When companies try to control the conversation and influence buyers to simply purchase their product, it seems like there is too much of an angle for the consumer.
    Companies walk a fine line when it comes to promoting their product and "joining in on the conversation".

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  5. I agree with George, firms need to tread lightly when attempting to control the conversation about their product. Old Spice certainly incorporated the idea of sparking, rather than controlling, the conversation with its viral campaign. Although the effects of the Old Spice man, in terms of ROI, are dubious, it certainly got people talking.

    As for companies using a similar methodology, I don't see why not. Social marketing is limited by the available mediums, so I certainly wouldn't shy away from using YouTube in a similar fashion (as Old Spice). Ultimately, it's a matter of determining your target demographic, and utilizing the available means. Whether it's successful sometimes just boils down to luck.

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  6. Sparking conversation is something I haven't figured out how to do. It seems like every time I try to throw a question out there I am met by silence and the only quality conversations I seem to have with customers are started when I respond to someone who has recently said something about one of our products. While I'm not sparking these conversations I am listening and I am talking. It probably differs across industries but listening has proven to be easier and more effective than any attempts to spark conversation and I don't know if that is because I am not putting the right sparks out there or not timing things correctly, but while I continue to try to figure out how spark conversations I will gladly fan the flames that other people have started and see what I can glean from their flickering light. I don't think who started the conversation changes the potential value overmuch, you do pick and choose to some degree what you reply to like we saw mentioned with StarBucks last week, but keeping your ears open seems to be the easier piece of this equation.

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  7. Conversation sparking is a way to get the conversation going in the direction you would like as a company. Also if customers feel that strongly about a brand, I would think they are more likely to join in on a conversation sparked by that brand.

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  8. Re: "effects of the Old Spice man, in terms of ROI, are dubious"

    In her new analysis of the Old Spice video push, Adweek's Eleftheria Parpis has this summary: "According to Nielsen data provided by Old Spice, overall sales for Old Spice body-wash products are up 11 percent in the last 12 months; up 27 percent in the last six months; up 55 percent in the last three months; and in the last month, with two new TV spots and the online response videos, up a whopping 107 percent."

    Link to AdWeek blog post (from which the quote comes): http://adweek.blogs.com/adfreak/2010/07/hey-old-spice-haters-sales-are-up-107.html

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  9. Admitting that anything called “old spice” paved the way into any e-anything and left the path not for trod makes me sick to my stomach.

    As for the second part, I am seeing this more and more not only on Facebook Pages but Twitter as well. Isogenix sales people reach out on Facebook starting conversations all the time with current and potential customers with more abstract questions (i.e. “What was the best thing that happened to you today, this week, this year?”) They are reaching to their current customers to talk about more energy, better lifestyle, better everything while potential customers are reading this and wanting that because their answers may not be so positive.

    Want to see the best conversation starter? Become a fan of Seinfeld on Facebook, they start a conversation with one quote and screen shot from an episode and within MINUTES they have 500-700 responses, usually ending the day in the thousands.

    This is interesting because now I’m going to keep my eye out for starters and maintainers to see who is doing what.

    Great topic…thanks!

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  10. @ Ethan

    Good find on that article. My comment was based off the following article (that I had read awhile ago), which claimed that some sales were down (Red Zone Body Wash). Looking it up now, there's an update claiming the article to be a wash based on newer figures....
    BNET Old Spice Article

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