nate elliott - “using social media to create mass reach

Using Social Media To Create Mass Reach

© 2010 Forrester Research, Inc. Reproduction Prohibited1 © 2009 Forrester Research, Inc. Reproduction Prohibited

Nate ElliottPrincipal Analyst@nate_elliott

www.forrester.com/empowered

Peer influence is more common and more powerful than ever before


Smart mobile devices

Social technology

Pervasive video

Cloud computing

services

620+ billion


620+ billionimpressions

Marketers can create mass reach by treating

© 2010 Forrester Research, Inc. Reproduction Prohibited7Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/sepblog/3555130776/

mass reach by treating empowered customers

as a channel

Introducing the Peer Influence Pyramid

Why you need to target Mass Influencers

Three ways to create mass reach in social media

Agenda


You have different kinds of fans with different kinds of value – and they must be treated differently

Social Broadcasters


Potential Influencers

Mass Influencers

Social Broadcasters: Few with great reach

Social Broadcasters


Good news!

You already have a strategy for


handling social broadcasters

Bad news…

Social broadcasters generate more


reach than trust

Potential Influencers: Every day people with tiny, trusting networks



Good news!

Potential influencers are more


trusted than social broadcasters

Bad news…

Most potential influencers only


post a few times a year




Agenda


Mass Influencers: Everyday people who happen to have exceptional reach


Mass Influencers

The first type of Mass Influencer: Mass Connectors

– Europeans generate 120 billion influence impressions each year.

– Mass Connectors are the most active at creating impressions.

Social Broadcasters

Mass Influencers


– They post brief thoughts & links.

– Use social networks like Facebook.

– There are 7 million Mass Connectors in Europe.


Mass Influencers

Mass

Connectors

Mass

Mavens

The second type of Mass Influencer: Mass Mavens

– Europeans generate 1.1 billion influence posts each year.

– Mass Mavens are the most active creators of those posts.

– They post longer opinions &

Social Broadcasters

Mass Influencers


– They post longer opinions & observations.

– Use content-focused social venues like blogs, review sites, and forums.

– There are 21 million Mass Mavens in Europe.


Mass Influencers

Mass

Connectors

Mass

Mavens

Peer influence is Europe highly concentrated


Surprisingly, blogs account for less than half of influence posts across Europe


In the Netherlands there are less than 50,000 Mass Connectors and less than 150,000 Mass Mavens


Discussion forums play an even bigger role in the Netherlands than elsewhere in Europe





Agenda


First, study your key influencers and direct them to the social tools they want to use

� Social influence goes far beyond blog posts and Twitter

– For most audiences, discussion forums are a key channel

– Ratings sites are often overlooked as well

� Help users find the right pages on these sites

– Links to relevant discussion forum threads


– Links to relevant discussion forum threads

– Links to appropriate product pages on review sites

Second, actively encourage your positive influencers to get to work – by simply asking them

• Norton ran a Net Promoter survey, and realized it was the perfect way to identify advocates

• Norton invited those who scored 9 or 10 to join their ‘Norton Advocates’ program

• Norton asked its advocates to post product reviews online

• Doubled their average rating on key review sites


Third, promote the good things your mass influencers are saying about you online

• Accor hotels both requests influence posts and creates influence impressions for its hotels

• Send emails to their guests asking for TripAdvisor reviews

• Posts TripAdvisor scores on its own hotel booking pages


Summary

� Recognize that there are different types of influencers, and you must treat them differently

– Mass Influencers are the key: a small audience with big reach

� Don’t overlook the most popular place users post opinions about brands and products: discussion forums


� Turn social media into a mass reach channel:

– Direct your users to the tools they want to use

– Ask them to create influence

– Amplify their influence using your own sites and tools

Thank you

Nate [email protected]

© 2009 Forrester Research, Inc. Reproduction Prohibited

[email protected]

@nate_elliott

www.forrester.com

nate elliott - “using social media to create mass reach

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