Web engagement management Understanding how your social efforts lead to meaningful engagement online Social Capital Conference 2012 | July 21, 2012

Hey there #SoCapOtt’ers, I’m Joe! •  Strategic Services Consultant

non-linear creations

•  Instructor Algonquin College Social Media Certificate Program

•  Occasional Blogger 42 Points on a Double Word Score

•  Twitter @joeboughner

•  LinkedIn www.linkedin.com/in/joeboughner

Before we start, a bit of housekeeping •  “Slow it down!

•  “Clean it up!”

•  “Dumb it down!”

And let’s just track some jargon here •  CMS

•  CRM

•  A|B and multivariate testing

•  Conversion points, harvest points, goal funnels

Ok, we can probably get started now

So what exactly is WEM? •  Web Engagement Management

An approach to digital strategy using a new generation of software platforms to deliver a personalized experience for your digital audiences in a measurable, meaningful and comprehensive way

•  Or, put another way, WEM is like epic sci-fi coolness that makes the digital experience come alive for your visitors based on their own behaviours, across sessions, platforms and channels

In the words of smarter people … •  "If engagement is the outcome, then web experience

management (WEM) is the practice”

•  “[WEM is the] promise to manage and optimize the customer experience across customer touchpoints through…content management, search, customer targeting, analytics, personalization, and optimization capabilities”

•  “Understanding is where WEM departs from the mechanics of publishing”

It’s not that this is entirely new … •  Cross-channel user profiles

•  Content- and source-aware analytics

•  A|B and multivariate testing

•  Lead scoring

•  Lead nurturing

•  Implicit / explicit personalization

… it’s just becoming “easier” •  New-generation platforms are bringing these

marketing and analytics functions together

•  Warning: Big-ass charts coming

Gartner Magic Quadrant for CRM Multichannel Management 2011

Gartner Magic Quadrant for CRM Multichannel Management 2012

Web CMS vendors are moving into CRM turf (with the added bonus of being able to control your digital content)

This makes true content marketing possible Across devices, across platforms

Meet the “visitor profile” •  A record, tied to a unique identifier, that documents a

visitor’s history on your site, including:

•  Where they came from •  What they did

•  Combine this with the ability to rate your content against predefined personas and you get …

A scenario In which an environmental non-profit identifies four personas: •  Activist •  Outdoors enthusiast •  Policy advocate •  Educator

Entry page Second page Exit page

Entry page Exit page

New visitor UID: 000-001  

A – 10 points OE – 8 points PA – 6 points E – 2 points  

A – 8 points OE – 2 points PA – 10 points E – 4 points  

A = 0 OE = 0 PA = 0 E = 0  

A – 8 points OE – 0 points PA – 10 points E – 10 points  

A = 26 OE = 10 PA = 26 E = 16  

Returning visitor UID: 000-001  

A – 10 points OE – 2 points PA – 6 points E – 2 points  

A – 10 points OE – 2 points PA – 0 points E – 4 points  

A = 46 OE = 14 PA = 32 E = 22  

UID  000-­‐00

1  is  an  Ac.v

ist!  

So what now? •  Personalize calls to action that this user sees based

on the understanding of the persona

•  Test against other variables such as visit source •  Do activists from social channels behave

differently than those who click on email newsletters?

•  Find pages with high bounce rates for this persona and test alternative content

Now meet the “engagement plan” •  A series of steps or actions that a visitor from a target

audience (or persona) might take towards a desired end goal

•  Download Whitepaper X •  Comment on Blog Post Y •  Watch Video Z

A scenario In which a fantabulous digital agency deploys a lead nurturing strategy for recruiting developers

Downloads a whitepaper

Receives an email with

link to a blog post

Did (s)he click? Add

points!

Receives an email with

link to a more different blog

post

Did (s)he click? Add

points!

Point threshold hit

yet?

Send their info to HR!

Yup!  

Nope!  

Here are a few other examples (without the handy charts)

(Sorry) (Those little dudes take a long time to make and copy)

What other roles can social play? •  Analytics / goal tracking traffic source

•  See which of your site visitors come from different social channels

•  See which channels refer the highest value visitors over time

•  See which of your visitors refer the most traffic

•  Personalization option •  Show different calls to action for social visitors •  Show special content to visitors who promote

your site on social channels

•  Testing parameter •  Do social visitors react differently to certain

types of content than others?

How can you apply this today? •  For now, there aren’t many (if any) options for WEM-

enabled CMSs in the open source category

•  Start by introducing the enabling behaviours with free tools

•  A|B and multivariate testing Google Website Optimizer

•  Robust analytics and goal funnels Google Conversion University

•  Create audience personas and map your content to them …

•  Develop a content strategy to fill any gaps; map out an approach to future content creation

But before you dive in •  Remember that strategy comes first

•  Don’t be creepy

•  Brace yourself (and your servers) for data overload

If you’re interested in learning more…

www.joeboughner.ca/socapott

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