The World Wide Soap Box!

 Social Media Measurement and Analytic Tools

So when you are listening to somebody, completely, attentively, then you are listening not only to the words, but also to the feeling of what is being conveyed, to the whole of it, not part of it.

Jiddu Krishnamurti

Social media has provided consumers, publics, and constituents with a unique platform to voice their opinions and attitudes in an unprecedented manner – a word-wide ‘soap-box’ to preach from! As public relations practitioners, a critical part of our job is listening to these advocates and enemies, admirers and haters, and reporting back to our organizations. As social media has expanded exponentially, measurement and analytic tools have followed shortly behind. These tools come in as many different shapes and sizes as social media platforms. Here are a few of the (potential) Twitter, Facebook, and LinkLinkedIns of the measurement and analytical sets.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Free is good... let’s start there!

HootSuite

HootSuite is one of the most popular (according to a ‘steveology blog’ survey) tools which provide comprehensive social media monitoring and some analytic tools. Subscribers can manage and measure their social networks including Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and a multitude of other social networks, schedule messages and tweets, track brand mentions, and analyse social media traffic. Basic services are provided free, additional services can be added for only $9.99 per month, or for companies requiring more substantial monitoring and customized analytics, an ‘enterprise’ option is offered (cost to be tailored to suit the organization’s needs).

Laura’s top three reasons why I think Hootsuit adds value to social web programs --

1.    It appears to be fairly user friendly – you won’t need an advanced degree to get set up. Overly complicated user interface would be a deal-breaker for me.

2.    It’s robust – you can schedule your activities AND can track multiple social networks in one place.

3.    You can collaborate with team members.

Kred

This unique social media monitoring tool mines social data to measure the relative influence of an organization or individual based on their Twitter use/following and assigns them a ‘Kred’ (as in credibility) score. The score is determined based on their influence and outreach activity. This tool allows you to measure how effectively you are communicating with your audience.

Some great reasons to choose Kred include --

1.    Complete transparency - the measurement criteria that Kred uses is readily available.

2.    Users can measure success by following increases in their ‘Kred’ score. An Activity Statement is available that illustrates what activities increased or decreased your score.

3.    Competitor information is available – you can see how you’re social media strategy is working versus another brand/organization.

Social Mention

Social Mention bills itself as `real time search platform` and provides free daily email alerts on any chosen subject i.e. your brand, organization, competitor, or current issue. It is a social media search and analysis platform that gathers user generated content from Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Google and many more, from around the world. It gathers information and provides analytics regarding the `tone` of the message – is it generally positive or negative, and `passion` -- the social media value of the people talking about your brand or organization.

Social Mention adds value to social media PR because --

1.    Social Mention provides an excellent reputation monitoring tool, providing extensive intelligence, across multiple platforms.

2.    The platform not only reports on numbers of mentions, but provides analysis regarding the ‘sentiment’- good, bad, or neutral.

3.    Social Mention identifies the social media users who are talking about your organization the most – therefore you can focus on either neutralizing their message or, if they are positively inclined towards your organization, share relevant messages that they can ‘amplify’ on your behalf.

Crimson Hexagon

While I am a big fan of ‘free’, sometimes paying upfront is a better bet and ultimately has a higher payoff.  Crimson Hexagon is an 'Enterprise Social Media Monitoring and Analysis Software’ that no-doubt comes with a massive price-tag, and it could be argued that many of the features that it provides are available via other services. But Crimson Hexigon does it all bigger and better – using patented technology invented at Harvard, it listens globally (its ‘language agnostic’, so whether the tweet is in English or Japanese its gathered and analyzed) and provides detailed, sensitive analytics that provide remarkable insight.

The value of Crimson Hexagon

1.    Crimson Hexagon provides best-in-class social media monitoring and analysis – which means better understanding of an organization or brand’s public and their issues.

2.    Advanced technology developed by Crimson Hexagon allows for analysis of the entire social internet – including blog past, forum messages, Facebook posts, and tweets.

3.    The monitoring platform provides in-depth analysis of data, mapping out consumer sentiment on various parameters

4.    Such detailed intelligence can be used to identify new product opportunities, head-off crisis, identify competitive advantages.

Social media is changing so rapidly, monitoring platforms are being launched, bought, merged, and abandoned in record time. As the social media landscape expands, stabilizes, and matures, some social media platforms will adapt and some will become extinct.

1.       http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/j/jiddukrish132525.html. Access March 24, 2013.

Module 9 - Attention, Attitude, and Action

 Attenton, Attitude, Action!

Social media/web represents a breakthrough for PR practitioners, no doubt about it, but social media tactics must still adhere to the concept of SMART Objectives - Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Results-oriented, and Time-bound.  Organizations demand demonstrated ROI – if they are going to invest in social media, they need to be assured that they will see measurable results. But social web initiatives aren’t quite like anything that came before. Previously, PR practitioners pushed out their messages – largely one way communication -- with their publics remaining fairly passive receivers. Social web represents a seismic shift – suddenly, the public is actively involved in the conversation and has become a conduit for information transfer.

Traditional media is fairly one-dimensional and is often measured based on Gross Rating Points (GPR), i.e. how often a message is communicated to the target audience. Social media is considerably more complex and multidimensional, which requires a different set of measurement parameters – attention, attitude, and action.

‘Attention’ represents the number of followers or ‘likes’, as well as the frequency of interactions with the social media property i.e. retweets and posts. The parameter is probabably roughly equivalent to a traditional GRP – it relates to views and interactions, but the key is to ensure that the interactions are aligned with the stated goals.  ‘Attitude’ is probably the most unique parameter versus traditional media – measuring the engagement and perception of the organization. According to Kami Watson Huyse of Scribd.com, to measure attitude use the three ‘Ss’ - sentiment, satisfacton, and surveying. Lastly, ‘Action’ provide the most concrete data for ROI calculation – sales, registrations, or donations.¹

Take for example a university fundraising campaign incorporating a Facebook page, YouTube channel, LinkedIn group, and a Twitter account. The effectiveness of the campaign may be calculated based on the following.

 ‘Attention’ – the number of afluent alumni that ‘follow’ the university Twitter account and how many re-tweets are generated.  The number of Facebook ‘likes’, and posts, as well as YouTube channel followers, and video views. Number of members and interaction within LinkedIn group.

‘Attitude’ – measurement of how the public percieves the university and the value of its financial needs

‘Action’—a measurement of the number of qualified potential donors who register to attend an alumni reception, request more information about planned gifts, and/or contact the university Major Gifts officer.

While some senior managers still perceive social media as rather nebulous, in reality it can, and should, be carefully measured and judged based on its ROI.

 

1.    http://www.scribd.com/doc/74280110/Commonsense-Framework-to-Measure-Social-Media

 

My musings on all things infographic - aka Module 4

OK, you have to LOVE google... pop in “Content Strategy Infographic” and dozens and dozens of images miraculously appear. The downside is...quantity doesn’t necessarily translate to quality. Infographics are clearly the tactic d' jour (and yes, I've capitalized on this hopefully impressing my new colleagues with my social media savvy when I recommended an infographic in a brainstorming session this week). I viewed a multitude of images – some good, some not-so-much, some confusing, some just really trying way too hard. And in the process I also discovered that a Content Strategy is defined in many different ways but, in my opinion, none quite so clearly and concisely as the infographic provided in our notes.

The beauty of the infographic is its ability to communicate information in a manner that is memorable and engaging, using simple visuals and icons to demonstrate the relationship between different factors – intersecting data, hubs and spokes.

Here are a few examples of The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly of infographics.

The Good.  I like this infographic – it provides a plethora of information, groups data together in visual  ‘buckets’ and demonstrates their relationship to each other. It’s visually appealing and accessible. I get it...

 

The Bad.  While I was initially drawn to this visual (colourful, lots of arrows, thought bubbles, AND little green men), ultimately, I don’t think that it delivers. What makes me think that?  Well,  it could be because I found that after much study and thoughtful consideration, I determined that the only way I actually understood what the heck they were trying to communicate was when I read the list of actions? Aren't infographics supposed to REPLACE the list of words?

 

The Ugly. While I like the idea of the ‘honeycomb’, this visual is far too complicated and not nearly engaging enough. Infographics need to be accessible and you shouldn't need a magnifying glass or an advanced degree to understand them!

 

One of my favourite things about infographics is their propensity for whimsy... so here is my last example – check out the Icons of the Apocalypse. ENJOY!

 

 

Module 3 - Foursquare and QR Codes!

As a consumer, while I’ve heard of Foursquare and obviously seen QR Codes on various materials, I can’t say either had been of much interest to me until now. While I love my social media, I discovered a substantial ‘barrier to adoption’ with each of these apps. Single biggest learning – keep it simple – if gaining access is too complicated, users will abandon the effort before they get to the good part!

Several months ago, I started the process of signing up for Foursquare – I know this because when I went to sign-up earlier this week, the system noted that I already was registered. That said, the process of actually downloading the app was laborious and time consuming to say the very least. I guess if I had kept my iPhone operating system up to date it would have been far simpler, but it took me hours to upgrade and download the app – it’s only available on iOS 5 or iOS 6. As it turns out, it was so very worth the wait! I immediately checked out the ‘Explore’ feature and selected ‘Specials’. I was thrilled to find myself the ‘mayor’ of a local spa and offered a complimentary OnTheGo facial! I found myself scrolling through local listings – gathering great ideas, as well as special offers, for future nocturnal adventures. I loved to see the names people came up with to label their homes – I named my location ‘Deco Dame’ (my apartment is a 1931 art deco building). While I can certainly see this SM platform taking off (I’m definitely selling my ‘yellow-pages’ stock!?!), it hasn’t reached critical mass ... yet. I found very few ‘friends’ were registered, but the interesting thing to note is that from a marketing perspective, the platform is effective even in the absence of critical mass – the geomapping in combination with incentives were enough to keep my interest. However, from a PR perspective our objective is to garner ‘earned’ media and amplify messages. Once Foursquare gains more members, and reaches a certain level of active users it will represent a great new tactic in the PR practitioner’s toolbox. That said, I believe that there may be a risk that users may access it more for its local listings and incentives, and ignore the social media features. There may be some parallels with the ‘Groupon’ and ‘Social Living’ discount programs. They were developed based on the concept of users promoting offers to ‘connections’ and therefore reaping increased rewards. I don’t know the statistics, but while I have signed up for a number of these programs, and take advantage of their offers occasionally, I never ‘refer friends’ or ‘share’ – not sure I want my network to know I’m getting bargain botox – even if it means I might get mine free!

Once Foursquare increases its number of active users, I could see it used to build awareness of mobile blood donor clinics, pop-up seasonal stores, or local fund-raising events. The feature that allows users to take a photo to accompany their ‘check-in’ could be particularly effective for driving traffic and building awareness.

QR Codes were far less complicated. I understood how QR Codes worked – access to additional information -- but simply never felt compelled to download the required app (the app is built-in on many devices, but interestingly, not in the ubiquitous iPhone). The only time I was ever tempted to take the additional step to obtain the app, was when it was included on a ‘for rent’ sign and I was curious to see more – but not that curious, I didn’t bother in end.  Mostly the QR code merely takes the user to information they could access just as easily via Google!   The uninspiring B&W symbol, compounded by the need to download an app, plus the process of scanning, makes me think that the QR Code may be of limited use to PR practitioners. The novelty has worn off.

My feeling is that AR may supplant the QR code. The TNW article lists a number of new AR applications, which will allow users to scan objects (rather than boring B&W symbols) with their phones, incorporating (or ‘augmenting’) fictitious visual elements into the real-world visuals. An example of use in PR might be fundraising for a new museum wing – the user scans the building and a time-lapse visual of the wing being constructed would appear. Another example might be to scan the museum and a list of the day’s special exhibits or lectures could appear. My father is a huge fan of old airplanes – the Hamilton Air Museum could incorporate a feature into its exhibits that allow users to scan the plane and see AR visuals of the famous pilots that flew them.  A drug company could incorporate AR into a convention display – a user would scan their image as it appears in a mirror – the program would then show the effects of disease on their organs. The key is to provide easy access to additional, relevant content!

CDPR 108 - Module 2 - Promoted Tweets, Accounts, and Trends

 Twitter social networking and microblogging service launched publicly on July 15, 2006.¹ Four years later, on April 13, 2010 Biz Stone, one of the founders, announced the launch of Promoted Tweets, stating  “Over the years, we've resisted introducing a traditional Web advertising model because we wanted to optimize for value before profit. The open exchange of information creates opportunities for individuals, organizations, and businesses alike. We recognized value in this exchange and planned to amplify it in a meaningful and relevant manner.”... “Stubborn insistence on a slow and thoughtful approach to monetization—one which puts users first, amplifies existing value, and generates profit...”.²  In short – they needed to reach a certain level of critical mass and credibility before plunging into “monetization” – exploiting their massive network for profit. Hence, the beginning of Twitter’s ‘Promoted’ advertising opportunities, including Promoted Tweets, Promoted Accounts, and Promoted Trends!

Promoted Tweets appear at the top of user’s Twitter feed and/or search results and represent messages from organizations that the user doesn’t necessarily  follow.  Twitter assesses all of the organization’s Tweets, identifies the most popular and then ‘promotes’ that tweet to a specified targeted public, which may include the organization’s followers and/or users similar to their followers, within a specified geographic area.³ In return for promoting their Tweet, the organization agrees to pay Twitter on  a ‘Cost Per Engagement’ (CPE) basis – a set fee for each re-tweet, click, favourite or reply. The CPE rates have been reported to be between $0.75 - $2.50, with a minimum 3-month commitment of $15,000 - $25,000.⁴

Promoted Accounts appear at the top of selected user’s  (identified by Twitter as similar to the organization’s followers) ‘Who to Follow’ list.  The organization pays based on a ‘Cost Per Follower’ rate – reportedly $2.50 - $4.00, again with a minimum 3-month commitment of $15,000 - $25,000.⁴

Promoted Trends appear at the top of all user’s Trending list. The cost for this premium placement has been reported to be as much as $120,000 per day.⁵

In my opinion, Twitter.com Targeting Options -- Promoted Tweets, Trends, and Accounts, represent substantial potential value for public relations practitioners.

Promoted Accounts and Promoted Tweets, allow organizations to pay only for actual responses. In the case of Promoted Accounts, the one-time CPF ($2.50 - $4.00) rate allows organizations gain on-going access to their target audience.  Promoted Tweets offer the opportunity to substantially amplify the message – the one-time cost per engagement may result in additional followers as well as multiple incremental engagements (my understanding is that the organization pays for the initial engagement, but not follow-up engagement i.e., if a user Retweets via the promoted Tweet, the organization would pay the fee, but any following engagement by the user’s followers would not result in additional payment ). It should also be noted that with Twitter’s targeting, users are receiving messages that are highly relevant to the user.

Additionally of note are user’s attitudes towards promoted tweets. As of August 2011, a substantial percentage of users were positively inclined to interact with Promoted Tweets.⁶ Attitudes towards Promoted Trends and Promoted Accounts could potentially be extrapolated.

Twitter Trends, while it comes with a very high daily cost of as much as $120,000, the reach is substantial enough to warrant the cost. As of February 2012, some 15% of online adults use Twitter, and 8% do so on a typical day.⁷ $120,000 to have millions of your public not only seeing your message, but engaging and interacting with it, seems like relatively good value versus the cost of say, a Superbowl TV ad?

It should be noted that the minimum investment required by all three promoted products, necessitates a solid, long-term social media strategy to ensure positive ROI.

It should also be noted that, like most communication tactics, the success is dependent not just on the distribution channel, but the content.  The success of the Virgin America Twitter campaign is an excellent example.⁸

https://business.twitter.com/optimize/case-studies/virginamerica/

The Virgin Airlines campaign represents a perfect fit for Twitter– a company with a substantial twitter presence, coupled with a time sensitive, value-added offer. Virgin used Promoted Trends and Promoted Tweets to launch a one-day sale, with a donation going to cancer charity for each booking. The campaign resulted in one of Virgin’s top five sale days ever, a 25% increase in sign-ups for their loyalty program, and $50,000 raised (the stated maximum) for cancer.


References:

1.      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twitter 2.      http://blog.twitter.com/2010/04/hello- world.html 3.      https://business.twitter.com/en/smallbiz/ 4.      http://mashable.com/2011/12/06/cost-of-twitter-follower/5.      http://www.nbcnews.com/technology/technolog/twitter-promoted-trends-cost-120-000-day-1227866.      http://raventools.com/blog/advertising-on-twitter-is-it-right-for-your-brand/7.      http://pewinternet.org/Reports/2012/Twitter-Use-2012.aspx

 

 

Great Article on Must-have Plugins

http://www.jeffbullas.com/2012/03/13/10-must-have-wordpress-plugins-of-2012-every-blogger-should-know-about/

But question -- are these plugins appropriate for other blogging platforms i.e. blogspot? Will find out I guess!

Examples of Great and Not-so-great Social Media Use!

Earlier this week, I was watching the Marilyn Dennis show (please don't judge me ;-)!). It was the weekly 'Home' show where the focus is on home renovating and decorating and viewers have the opportunity to submit (in person or via Twitter) their 'decorating dilemmas' to guest contributors. This week's guest was well known media personality and 'brand' Debbie Travis. A viewer submitted photos of her living room, provided details regarding the furnishings, and asked for advice regarding paint colours. Ms Travis's response to the request for advice -- a very glib "Move!" -- insinuating (on national TV) that the room was beyond help. She continued to be unnecessarily critical of the viewers newly purchased light fixtures. As a viewer, I found her attitude condescending, insulting and, to be honest, nasty.

I might normally have left it at that, perhaps relating the story to a sister or two, and maybe even thinking twice about purchasing her products. But...we live in the 21st century and, hey, I'm taking a Social Media in PR course and the original request for submissions was conducted via Twitter. So.... I took to Twitter to express my displeasure -- “Wondering if Debbie Travis is lacking the internal ‘edit’ function – a bit mean spirited!”. I wondered how adept she and her team were at ‘listening’ to her public. Turns out, she really was listening! In short order, I received a response tweet “Just my British sense of humour, sorry U don’t get it”. She did well by listening and responding quickly, but clearly missed the mark. Rather than apologizing or demonstrating any level of contrition, she turned it back to my supposed lack of humour.  Personally, I don’t believe that publicly insulting a viewer’s home is funny in any culture and I suspect that many others would agree.

I observed a few factors in this exchange.  1. I’m far more outspoken in tweets and emails than I would ever be in person. 2. Most people are more assertive, including media personalities (let’s face it, they’re people first and ‘brands’ second). I can see how ‘Twitter’ exchanges can escalate – everyone wants to have the last word, but brands need to remember that these exchanges are very public!

My second experience was far more positive. As I was checking my Twitter feed, I noted that VP Biden was moments away from speaking  live via Google+ Hangout on the topic of gun control. A simple click and I had the opportunity to view, in real time, an online town hall meeting where Americans throughout the country, from the comfort of their homes, representing both side of the debate, could express their opinions and ask VP Biden specific questions. Brilliant use of Google+ Hangouts. Hey – does this mean I can say I’ve ‘hung-out’ with Joe?! Now that we're pals, maybe he can introduce me to Barack? But don't tell Michelle!