The fact of the matter is that word of mouth is the most powerful form of marketing communications – always has been and always will be. Historically marketers have had very limited means to effectively measure or influence word of mouth, and we’ve spent unimaginable amounts of time and money on the next best thing to get people to buy our products. In doing so we’ve talked about brand gap, conversion rates and engagement as measures of minute changes in marketing effectiveness while customers simply ask each other “is it going to do what I want and is it worth the price?” What if you could overhear what your customers were saying about you?
Of course you are listening to your customers, but are you listening everywhere they’re talking?
A recent survey* of over 400 marketing executives found that 56% said their companies have no programs to track or spread positive word-of-mouth.
Only 30% rated their companies highly in their ability to handle or resolve customer complaints.
Despite all the hype about social media, only 16% of respondents reported that their companies have any routine system in place for monitoring what people are saying about them or their brands online.
How could that improve your business? What would it highlight that you're overlooking? How much power would that give you?
Yes, this is possible. It's called social media monitoring. Simply put, social media monitoring is using technology tools to identify what people are saying about your company online.
Social Media Monitoring Tools & Resources
Here are a few free and simple ways to do this:
1. Twitter Search
Enter keywords relevant to your business in the Twitter search form, particularly your company name.
2. Google Alerts
Enter your relevant keywords at google.com/alerts. Google will email you any time in encounters those keywords online, based on your preferences. (You need a Google account to set this up.)
3. RSS Feeds
Set up a Google Reader (or other RSS reader), then set up RSS feeds from social media sites as generated by searches. A specific RSS feed is generated for every search.
4. Facebook Page
Set up a Facebook Page for your business, and then simply check the wall daily for comments.
5. Free Monitoring Platforms
There are a number of free social media monitoring platforms to take advantage of, such as Addictomatic, Socialmention, and Tweetdeck. There are also tons of companies who offer social media monitoring services, such as Spiral16, Radian6, and Tracker, but I wouldn't recommend these for most small businesses; it's simply unnecessary.
No matter how streamlined your processes are, or how fancy your web site is, you can’t guarantee that every customer will have a fabulous experience every time they buy from you. Yes, you can improve your overall customer satisfaction scores, but at some stage, someone’s going to be unhappy. Most customers won’t complain if they’re not happy, but they won’t come back either. Find out who those people are and react fast. Automate surveys so that customers have the opportunity to give you feedback straight away. Then use alerts to flag customers who need to be re-contacted. Resolving issues quickly shows customers you care, promotes loyalty, and gives those customers a positive tale to tell their friends and family.