1. Fresh Toast Hot off the toaster to the tip of your tongue
Planning Dept.
Quarter 1 2011, Issue 2
a purpose-driven community
There’s a world of social networks and communities that we may be invisible to because we keep our attention uniformly focused on
the world of Facebook. Now, don’t get me wrong, Facebook is wonderful and amazing (and sometimes an evil addiction), but there
are a plethora of social communities and conversations going on outside of the world’s most beloved social network. It’s time we
refresh our minds and revisit (or get introduced to) The Conversation Prism.
The Conversation prism the blood and guts of a “real” news story. But now that “every-day-
average-Joes-and-Janes” are becoming the reporters and journalists,
There are social conversations and relationships going on right in front
they’re choosing to share the big and little stories of the day from
of your face, if you just know where to look. The Conversation Prism
world events, backyard shenanigans to what’s happening with your
sheds light on the many types of conversations people are having and
brand. The stories they share are even helping to dictate and
the sites and resources that are enabling them to connect, learn and
transform mainstream media coverage.
share. “The Conversation Prism represents the opportunity to
proactively survey the landscape to pinpoint relevant dialogue, Now Public
prioritize participation strategies and create an engagement hierarchy Recognized by Time, UK Guardian and Gartner as the best crowd
and org chart.” powered news, Now Public “lets you report on news that matters to
Breaking Down The Conversation Prism you, explore news and share your views on the global community.”
Now Public has reporters in 6,000 cities and 160 countries who
The Center is where your brand lives. Halo 1 focuses on observation
share eye witness accounts, expertise and facts on the day’s stories and
(“discovering communities
events. But
that are actively listening
readers don’t just
to your brand”), listening
h av e b a c k s e a t
(hearing what people are
participation.
s ay i n g a b o u t yo u ) ,
Readers are
identification (recognizing
contributors,
the people in
encouraged to
communities who can
participate,
serve as brand
become authors,
ambassadors or just need
journalists, on-
a response immediately),
t h e - s c e n e
internalization (recognizing
reporters,
patterns in feedback and
photographers,
“spots of brilliance” that
v i d e o g r ap h e r s ,
can improve your
tweeters and of
products and services),
course, provide
prioritization (assessing
food for thought
where your team should
commentary on
focus) and routing
posted stories.
(delegating by topic and
Now Public has
expertise).
over 5 million
Halo 2 involves engaging
monthly readers.
various departments and
listening in and assigning Amplify
s o m e o n e f ro m e a c h A m p l i f y ,
department to manage another crowd
responses. “Over time, created news
this process will source, is billed as
seamlessly integrate a smarter way to
within the company’s share and spark
C R M i n f r a s t r u c t u re , conversation.
creating a new class of People participate
Social CRM, or sCRM.” by signing in via
Halo 3, the outer ring, Facebook or
completes the “image of Twitter accounts
the conversational (social sign-on),
workflow but not the which then gives
cycle. This process is them access to
powered by the continual read and post
rotation of listening, content. The front page scrolls with the latest trended stories and
responding, and learning, and online and real world interactions.” actual quotes from users and news sources.
A Peek at A Few Online Communities The Value of Crowd Created News
Wisdom of the Crowds Now Public and Amplify are not only places to find out what stories
I once heard that the news operates under the mantra, “If it bleeds, it associated with your brand are newsworthy, but they also enable you
leads.” While this is probably still true, this means that some intriguing to identify brand advocates or issues. Besides the opportunity to listen
and relevant stories get put on the back burner because they’re missing in on conversations, there’s a functional lesson here too - the
1
2. local stores.” Index, which helps measure the value of the
The Value of Social Shopping relationships and conversations. So in
addition to blog posts and Tweets, brands
This Next could be a cool place to feature should consider using the following to help
your brand’s unique products and offering. measure impact:
It’s also a place that can be used to stay • The timeframe
informed and on top of what’s hot (or going • Keywords
to be hot). For shoppers, part of the fun of • Quantity of mentions vs. competition (total
This Next is the bragging rights that come and by channel)
along with finding something different. Taking • Tonality
importance of social sign-on. Social sign-on a cue from this, in what ways can your brand
makes participation easy, seamless and • Reach of mention within each network
help consumers boast about a new product (web traffic, subscribers, followers, re-
encourages return site visits. or experience? tweets, link-backs).
Social Commerce Milo sheds light on a trend that continues to T h e s e a r e n ’t t h e e n d - a l l - b e - a l l o f
Social shopping is just as much about getting remain important to consumers - local. measurement, but a few places to start.
a deal, as it is about finding a particular or People like to support their local businesses,
unique item. The value of social shopping artists, entrepreneurs, and creators. How can Exploring the Prism
comes not only in the “best bang for your your brand showcase and incorporate local While you continue to explore (and even add
buck” but in the ability to communicate with talent to not only bring people in-store but sites) to The Conversation Prism, keep in mind
friends and strangers and ask questions about show a commitment to the community? the value of social conversations and
ordinary and uncommon finds. Listening and Targeting Tools communities. These communities:
This Next • Encourage us to explore various
There’s nothing more coveted than the voice communities to find brand ambassadors
This Next is a social shopping community of the consumer. So in addition to focus • Enable us to identify which communities are
“where tastemakers share and shop for groups, here are a few tools that enable you most appropriate for our purposes and
w h a t ’s next. to listen in and hear communications
Whether you are a firsthand what people • Remind us that social communities are
die-hard design fan are saying. constantly evolving so we must stay aware
or lover of green Social Mention of what’s out there and how we can engage
yoga gear (or both!), • Allow us to create a social presence and a
This Next is a place Social Mention is
relationship beyond just having a fan page
where you can find like Google Alerts but
for social media. Social • Give us opportunities to look, listen and
others who share participate.
your taste and Mention sends free daily
through them email alerts of your
discover new things b r a n d , c o m p a n y, Once you join a community and
that you will love.” marketing campaign, connect with people, don’t forget to
The site features a competitors, developing stay connected. The relationship is
live shopping map that shows up-to-the- stories, celebrities and more. The company not a one-off, but a continuous
minute global finds, a community where you monitors and aggregates stories and two-way interaction.
can meet the Mavens (people who know comments from over 100+ social media
about the coolest products on the market) properties including Twitter, Facebook,
and a Tastemakers blog which features picks Friendfeed,YouTube, Digg, Google, etc.
of week and commentary on topics including Who’s Talkin
fashion, beauty and decor. Who’s Talkin “is a social media search
Milo tool that allows users to search for
Milo “searches the shelves of local stores in conversations surrounding the topics that
real-time to find the best prices and they care about most. Whether it be your
availability for the products you want to have favorite sport, favorite food, celebrity, or your
— right now. We show you what's in stock company's brand name; Whostalkin.com can
where, and tell you how much you should help you join in on the conversations that
expect to pay once you hit the road or the you care about most.” Who’s Talkin uses
sidewalk. Milo helps brick and mortar search and sorting algorithms to combine
retailers convert online browsers into in- data taken from over 60 of the internet’s
store shoppers. We know that actual stores most popular social media sites.
offer what the internet never can—instant The Value of Listening and Targeting Tools
gratification and the tangible benefits of Want an easy and almost instantaneous way
seeing a product before you buy it. With to find out what people are saying about
Milo, brick your brand? Sign up and
and mortar check your inbox.
can more
e f fe c t i ve ly What does it all mean?
compete It All Comes Back to
with e- Measurement
c o m m e rc e While being able to interact
retailers like with consumers is great, we
Amazon all want to know if we’re
and drive really moving the needle.
intent-based According to the creators of
foot traffic The Conversation Prism, there
into their needs to be a Conversation
Social conversations The Conversation Prism is a reminder of the many
“Social media is defined by the people, the ways in which people are connecting and socializing
communities they join, and the parallel cultures and with one another. There are a myriad of forums and
behavior that manifest. Technology and the outlets for people to share, seek and find
networks that spawn through constant innovation information. It is our job to pay attention, listen and
will continually surface, merge, excel, or vanish. identify the best forums for our brands to have a
Human nature and the desire to connect, interact strong and endearing presence. These social
and elevate is perpetual.” - The Conversation Prism communities are not about invading the consumer
2 space but finding a middle ground where a two-way
conversation and relationship can be nurtured.
References: The Conversation Prism, Various social community blogs
