One of the many celebrities (and by celebrity I mean reality star, don't judge me) I follow on Twitter recently (7 minutes ago) tweeted about her adoration for a site called MyLikes. Out of curiosity (and absolute boredom) I clicked the bit.ly attached to the tweet to find out more about MyLikes.
If you've never heard of MyLikes it is an absolutely crazy yet incredibly relevant new marketing and advertising concept that gives even more control to the consumers. On MyLikes you simply create an account that links to your Facebook, Twitter, or other social networking site. Once an account is created you simply go to the website and start rating and commenting on random products and services. What separates this from everyday consumer promotion is that MyLikes will pay you for your opinion.
MyLikes describes themselves as a "word-of-mouth advertising platform that connects advertisers with influencers on the web. Influencers can spread the word and earn money."
Getting paid to click a "like" button? Am I alone in thinking this all sounds too good to be true? Is my pseudo-celebrity a reliable source? Someone make an account and let me know if how soon their paycheck arrives.
This blog aims to explore the effects of trending social media news. It will investigate new facets of social media and determine how they will or can effect current societal norms. Some of the main components making up this blog include, social media marketing/advertising, social media in popular culture, popular social networking sites (Twitter, Facebook), emerging social media sites (Quora, Tunerfish, Hunch), as well as reactions to social media literature.
Showing posts with label marketing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label marketing. Show all posts
Thursday, March 24, 2011
Thursday, March 10, 2011
How the consumer-marketer relationship has shifted
As a communication major my fascination with trending social media grows with every class. I find it so incredibly interesting how viral social media is in itself. In such a short amount of time it has completely transformed the art of communication as a whole, whether it be personal communication or business communication. Social media has a hand in it all.
While this subject is compelling, I do find myself slightly scared about how prevalent social media has become, especially the fact that every article I read claims that this is just the beginning of social media. How much more encompassing can it get? As it is now it seems that social media has transformed marketing the most. Advertisers and marketers now have the ability to connect with consumers in almost all avenues of their life. To me that seems a tad invasive.
However the first chapter of Brian Solis's book "Engaged", he eases some of these fears. He says, "Social media is about speaking with, not "at" people. This means engaging in a way that works n a conversational medium, that is, serving the best interest of both parties, while not demeaning any actions or insulting the intelligence of anyone involved." It seems that social media is forcing marketers to stop acting above consumers instead leveling with them about what they really want or need. Social media has caused these agencies to rethink the way the treat their customers. We are no longer numbers or statistics, but people.That is a concept I can get behind.
I think it is about time the consumer-marketer relationship got a face lift. Marketers and advertisers need to realize that consumers respond better to peers than pop-up ads. I really enjoyed how Solis captured the idea of personable marketing when he stated, "While intent counts, value talks and BS walks".
While this subject is compelling, I do find myself slightly scared about how prevalent social media has become, especially the fact that every article I read claims that this is just the beginning of social media. How much more encompassing can it get? As it is now it seems that social media has transformed marketing the most. Advertisers and marketers now have the ability to connect with consumers in almost all avenues of their life. To me that seems a tad invasive.
However the first chapter of Brian Solis's book "Engaged", he eases some of these fears. He says, "Social media is about speaking with, not "at" people. This means engaging in a way that works n a conversational medium, that is, serving the best interest of both parties, while not demeaning any actions or insulting the intelligence of anyone involved." It seems that social media is forcing marketers to stop acting above consumers instead leveling with them about what they really want or need. Social media has caused these agencies to rethink the way the treat their customers. We are no longer numbers or statistics, but people.That is a concept I can get behind.
I think it is about time the consumer-marketer relationship got a face lift. Marketers and advertisers need to realize that consumers respond better to peers than pop-up ads. I really enjoyed how Solis captured the idea of personable marketing when he stated, "While intent counts, value talks and BS walks".
Sunday, March 6, 2011
The power of online ratings and reviews
Chapter seven of Groundswell explores how powerful product ratings and reviews are in terms of marketing and advertising. While this concept seems simple enough, I think we as consumers tend to overlook what this means for the company.
Initiating a very basic rating system on your product, assuming you are producing a well-made product, could create a new hands-off approach to advertising. Your customers could be the driving force behind an increase of sales, while you sit back and watch.
Product rating is the new word of mouth.
While reading this chapter I couldn't help but think that yes ratings and reviews are a good idea in theory, but what if it back fires and you receive more negative reviews than positive ones?
This reminded me of working in a restaurant in high school. Our managers would always emphasize the importance of quality service by reminding us that if a guest has an exceptional meal at a restaurant they might tell one or two people, but if they have a horrible experience at a restaurant they will tell everyone they see. When comparing this logic to online purchasing I assumed the same would be true. However I really like the way Groundswell explained the importance of negative reviews.
According to the chapter, 80% if reviews would be considered positive. This chapter also emphasizes that negative reviews are essential to the credibility of the site. This is a very true statement. If a website only displayed positive reviews then most consumers would assume the reviews were false testimonials created by the company. With the initial risk of online shopping, purchasing from a website with fake reviews would greatly reduce the trust you had in that company and the odds of you buying any of their products.
It will be interesting to see what role ratings and reviews will play in the future of advertising as they become more prevalent.
Initiating a very basic rating system on your product, assuming you are producing a well-made product, could create a new hands-off approach to advertising. Your customers could be the driving force behind an increase of sales, while you sit back and watch.
Product rating is the new word of mouth.
While reading this chapter I couldn't help but think that yes ratings and reviews are a good idea in theory, but what if it back fires and you receive more negative reviews than positive ones?
This reminded me of working in a restaurant in high school. Our managers would always emphasize the importance of quality service by reminding us that if a guest has an exceptional meal at a restaurant they might tell one or two people, but if they have a horrible experience at a restaurant they will tell everyone they see. When comparing this logic to online purchasing I assumed the same would be true. However I really like the way Groundswell explained the importance of negative reviews.
According to the chapter, 80% if reviews would be considered positive. This chapter also emphasizes that negative reviews are essential to the credibility of the site. This is a very true statement. If a website only displayed positive reviews then most consumers would assume the reviews were false testimonials created by the company. With the initial risk of online shopping, purchasing from a website with fake reviews would greatly reduce the trust you had in that company and the odds of you buying any of their products.
It will be interesting to see what role ratings and reviews will play in the future of advertising as they become more prevalent.
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