Being Peter Kim

BzzAgent: Is WOM a Form of Social Media?

The word-of-mouth experts over at BzzAgent have taken an idea of mine and run with it.  Which I love, because it helps shed light on how to make the prior work even better.

A couple months ago, I posted a framework for measuring social media.  BzzAgent has taken the concept and published some thoughts on how to use the framework to measure the socialness of media, in addition to success in areas of attention, participation, authority, and influence.

The end of the report includes a framework that would pair nicely with The 22 Step Social Media Marketing Plan to help you plan and launch your social media strategy.

To learn more, check out Is WOM a Form of Social Media? over at BzzAgent.

How to set an ego trap

I've been thinking lately about what I call the social media ego trap.  In a nutshell, social technologies use game mechanics to get users hooked on participation.  People often get addicted to ego-stroking system feedback, until they can temper their usage (addiction?) in terms of utility vs. serendipity.

But what if you've got something to sell?  What if you want to set an "ego trap" yourself?

Let me show you a few traps that have already been sprung, maybe we can learn something from them.

Andy Sernovitz is a word-of-mouth marketing genius.  He also set a perfect ego trap to promote a marketing workshop for his company, Gaspedal.  Andy recruited a network of bloggers to promote his event.  For free.  Who fell into the trap?  Stowe Boyd.  Susan Bratton.  Tara Hunt.  Steve Hall.  And 28 others.  If you look at the related posts, all of these bloggers are promoting Andy's "special event" that's "limited to 50 people" and "not usually offered to individuals" and "this low of a price."  (If this seems silly, you need to click through the links and read the offer in context.)  Damn, I wish I'd thought of this idea.

So why did it work?  The offer was simple.  It was personalized.  Andy is credible; he's one of the founders of WOMMA.  It was positioned as a scarce resource that bloggers could offer their readers, with a discount.  By the way, I've heard Andy speak - his seminar is well worth the price.  (Be sure to use a discount though!)

Dave Balter happens to be a word-of-mouth guru as well.  Coincidentally, he and Andy don't get along very well - maybe it's an ego issue?  (I digress.)  Dave set a great ego trap recently to promote his new book, The Word of Mouth Manual: Volume II.  Dave recruited a network of bloggers to promote his book.  For free.  Who fell into the trap?  Rohit Bhargava.  Tom Peters.  John Moore.  John Jantsch. And 15 others. (Yes, there were 20 bloggers total.)  If you look at the related posts, almost all of these bloggers are promoting Dave's book talking about how they're in a select group of 20 people.  Those posts aren't about you - they're about how important the bloggers themselves are.  "Look, I'm in a hand-selected group of 20 bloggers who are going to promote this book for free on Dave Balter's behalf.  I am special."  (If this seems silly, you need to click through the links and read the posts in context.

So why did it work?  The offer was limited.  It was relevant to the bloggers and their readers.  I haven't read the book and probably won't, because I prefer to read hard/soft covers, not PDFs.  But don't let me stop you from downloading the book for free and gaining some knowledge.  You can even join the special 20 (now 28) by creating a unique URL to promote the book on your own site.

One last example:  The Power 150.  Originally a hand coded list by marketer Todd Andrlik, it was purchased by Ad Age.  Todd set an unwitting ego trap by ranking "the top marketing blogs in America."  Who fell into the trap?  Many, many bloggers - including Todd himself.  At one point, he appealed to his own readers to help boost his ranking on the list.  Today the list ranks 826 blogs.  Presumably, the other 676 just aren't as powerful.

Why did it work?  Game mechanics - competition and a somewhat objective comparison scale (except for "Todd Points."  I may lose some of my 12 after this post.)

OK, let's review.  Here's how to set an effective "ego trap" with your own offer:

• Keep it simple.
• Make it scarce.
• Personalize it.
• Use numbers.
• Appeal to the head...and the heart.

Steve Rubel sums it up:  "I actually like the thrill of the chase and serendipity. I want to be first. This is something that has fueled the egos of reporters for years - partly because it sells. Heck, count me in."

The old saying tells us, "the way to a man's heart is through his stomach."  Let's update that for today's world and recognize that the way to a blogger's keyboard is through their ego.

Why social media sites want "users," not just "customers"

What if you own and operate a social media property, like recent commentor C.H. Low of Orbius?  Well, it's true that people will always be "people."

But owner/operators are actually looking for "users."  Some people detest the term user, but the analogy fits.

O'Reilly's Jimmy Guterman blogs, "...there are only two industries that refer to their customers as users:  high tech and illegal drugs."  Now, I've never dealt illegal drugs.  (Except for playing Dope Wars on my old Palm Pilot.)  But I can surmise how the industry works, primarily from watching American Gangster and reading Malcolm Gladwell:

• A dealer uses the product, but only to ensure that it works
• Mavens provide peer-level affirmations of quality.  Connectors help publicize and expand distribution.  Salesmen are, naturally, salespeople.
• A dealer must protect the franchise.  They set up territorial boundaries and reselling only happens with authorization.
• Users do not share in the profits of the operation.  Their benefits are limited to product use.
• A dealer wants a user to become addicted, i.e. locked in.  But not to a point of overdosing and thus generating zero future value.  However, if this happens, markets are large enough to find new customers.  Sometimes territories must expand to fuel the franchise's growth needs.

Brands must be careful to not become unwitting distributors of dealer content.  That's why you don't need a "Facebook strategy" or a "Twitter strategy."  You need a business plan and marketing strategy instead.

Individuals must be careful to not develop addiction to either technologies or applications.  Unfortunately, addiction is very real and not limited to grey areas like gambling; can you step away for a full day from your Blackberry, checking your blog stats, or jumping on Twitter?  Staying focused on utility will help.

And owner/operators must stay in tune with their users to create a positive environment.  We've already seen examples like Facebook changing Beacon's opt-out approach, MySpace working with state AG's to protect children, and Twitter curbing spam accounts.

Sites having users works, as long as a healthy value exchange ensues.  I'm a grocery store customer and a potato chip consumer.  But I'm a social technology user, and I'm OK with that.

The known, knowable, and the unknown

When I was in business school, my strategy professor Jeanne Liedtka introduced a framework for strategic thinking that I use quite often, based on Fitch's paradox of knowability:  any issue can be broken into three distinct parts:  the known, knowable, and unknown.

This may seem like a simple framework, so let's apply it to something you understand pretty well, like your company.

There are things that are known.  But knowledge can be difficult to distribute.  In theory, markets are transparent; in practice, today it's nearly impossible to tap into the collective intellect of an organization's ecosystem (i.e. employees, suppliers, customers).  It takes good tools to capitalize on the known.

There are things that are knowable.  Research can help convert these into the known.  Building bridges and opening communication conduits can help unclog knowledge arteries and spur information flow as well.  It takes the right process and culture to be successful.

And there are things that are unknowable.  Time is often the only solution here.  But as Pasteur said, "chance favors the prepared mind."  Having the right strategy and structure in place will ensure your company is ready to embrace and act on whatever outcomes emerge from the passage of time and introduction of new market data.

So maybe not so simple after all.  You can apply this to social technology adoption, evaluating a job opportunity, or trading for Manny Ramirez.  Decisions are rarely black and white, but using a good filter will help you eliminate as much grey as possible.

Now's the time, the time is now

Today is my last day at Forrester Research.

On Monday, I'll officially be joining Jeffrey Dachis to build a new company focused on enterprise social computing.  You may have heard about this venture a few months ago.

Why am I leaving?  Because I believe this new company offers both professional and personal growth opportunities.  I've learned a lot at Forrester over the past 2.5 years about effective writing and public speaking/presenting; along the way, I've won internal "Best Research" and "Top Keynote" awards.  And there are other skills I've acquired elsewhere that will now be put back into play, e.g. strategy formulation, project management, technology development, and budget/staff management.  Now I'll refine and develop new skills like business development and entrepreneurship.

Things are going pretty well for me at Forrester. George Colony is one of the smartest CEO's I've worked for.  At Forrester, an analyst can reinvent her/himself and stay refreshed, challenged, and engaged.  So now, sitting near the top of my 2nd career development S-curve at Forrester is a great time to contemplate both internal and external directions - from a position of strength, affording time for patience, introspection, and due diligence.

That contemplation has led me to my decision to ramble on.  My work experience includes a lot of companies you may recognize:  General Electric, Prudential Securities, Deloitte & Touche, Arthur Andersen, Coopers & Lybrand, Andersen Consulting, Fidelity Investments, Razorfish, PUMA AG, Stride Rite/Keds, and Forrester Research.  So why join a company that has yet to be named, without decades of brand history?

Because I believe the market opportunity is huge.  And we get to build this one exactly how we want.

At a macro-level, businesses must adapt to a new world of work.  As digital-born natives enter the workforce and all consumers assimilate new digital behaviors, organizations have no choice but to evolve from their legacy operational models, built on principles from the industrial revolution.  We are now in the social revolution - a Groundswell of change.  The idea of "command and control" has been turned upside down and the enterprise must avoid being crushed by the inverted pyramid.

Over the past two-and-a-half years I've been focusing on two major concepts:  social computing and customer centricity.  They fit very well together; becoming "socially successful" today requires that companies use process and technology to facilitate internal and external alignment.  Your market is calling for this in a voice that gets louder every day.  Unfortunately, many companies try to ignore what they're hearing - and I see an opportunity in helping enterprises listen, learn, and take action.

Our yet-to-be-named firm will help companies and their new leaders unlock value from social computing within the enterprise, driving customer-centricity and effective engagement.  The evidence of success will be found in culture and profit.

We will be hiring, partnering, building, and advising in the near future.  If you're interested in working with us to help change the world of work, email jobs at dachisco.com.

Tweet

Should we talk about the weather?

I'll admit that I'm a big fan of the Weather Channel.  I've got two channels at home (regular and weatherscan), web bookmarks for frequent travel destinations, and two mobile bookmarks (regular and iPhone).  Earlier this week, the brand/channel agreed to an LBO of $3.2 billion, less than the original target of $5 billion, and will be managed by NBC Universal.

I'm not in the weather business (just a fan), but I think this deal makes sense beyond the eyeballs and ad revenue that media outlets seem to be reporting on.  See, earlier this month at one of my speaking gigs, I had lunch with someone from NBC, who gave me a different perspective on this [potential at that time] deal than what you may be reading about today.

Before we go there, let's take a step back.  The other buyers involved were Time Warner, CBS, and Comcast.  Two publishers and a MSO moving boldly into content.  So NBC seems to fit in the former category.  But that's only a slice of the picture.  From a media perspective, adding the Weather Channel makes sense, but their problem is that consumers don't spend a lot of time spent on site/channel. However, they get lots of eyeballs, meaning lots of ad impressions/revenue.  (An old/traditional model way of thinking.  In other words, doomed.)

Back to lunch.  So we're talking about weather and advertising and some of the possibilities when you combine the two.  Like an airline with banner ad inventory that could show skiing ads to someone who looks up a ski destination, or a Caribbean vacation ad to someone seeing snow in the forecast.  [yawn]

It would take a whole lot of uber buttons, 30" spots, and mobile text banners to make that $3.2 billion pay off.

Who's NBC's parent company?  Oh yeah, General Electric, the world's largest conglomerate.  So here's where things get interesting.  The potential value behind the Weather Channel lies within using its data to improve all of the other businesses within GE.  Sure, all of those advertising applications are interesting, but there's a lot of money in helping the transportation, energy, aviation, finance, etc. businesses more intelligent by better understanding the weather and how it impacts businesses on a current and forecast basis.  (Get the Corporate Audit Staff on this one right away, Jeff.)

At least that's the opportunity, "weather" or not its full potential is realized.  I wonder, is there any data that you have hiding in plain sight that could help dramatically improve your business?  It could come to you as simply as making small talk about the weather.

It's what's on the inside that counts

This isn't going to be a long post, although I've been thinking about the subject for a while.  I could probably spend the next few years on the topic, so instead I'll keep it brief for now.

The use of social computing has evolved over the past ten years (c. Cluetrain) and hockey-stuck over the last four.  Now blogs are the "new traditional" social media, morphing from their early ugly duckling status into slow-moving and elegant swans (overtaken by higher velocity, short-form channels).

But a small problem is starting to emerge along with the mainstreaming of social media.  Although there's a lot of talk about it - and more businesses feel the need to do something about it - most businesses are not internally prepared to make social media work.  I see this quite a bit when I'm working with clients, reflected in the questions I am asked:

• What happens if we accept customer suggestions but then don't make any changes?
• Why doesn't our blog have any comments?
• How am I supposed to formulate a strategy when our IT policy blocks access to social media sites?

Growing up, I must have heard the phrase "it's what's on the inside that counts" about a thousand times as I searched for an identity.  Today, brands are experiencing growing pains as well, figuring out how to create relationships with their customers.  And they're discovering that they need to understand how these things work before engaging successfully with the outside world.

We have hope, because individuals within firms have personal social media experience - and more enterprises are waking up to the fact that they need to put resources in place now, because just like e-commerce 15 years ago...social media isn't going away.  Instead, it's becoming the new way that things work.

Otherwise, brands co-opt social media and fill microblogs, RSS readers, and social networks with clutter, interruption, and irrelevance.  Same as advertising ever was.

An Agency's First Step To Getting "Connected"

When queuing up this entry, I noticed that there's no category for "agency" related posts.  That's OK because Mary Beth Kemp, my colleague and co-author of The Connected Agency report, has taken the lead on a new Forrester blog called Agency Futures.  So I'm cross-posting this, there.

A lot needs to happen before agencies get Connected.  The clear first step for most shops is building digital acumen.  So I've published a new piece called "Agencies Must Build Digital Skills To Survive" - pretty much to the point, eh?

Here's a [long] excerpt:

Traditional advertising agencies -- marketing services providers that have built global brands through mass media -- need to prove their digital mettle now more than ever. Although late 90s startups like Scient, Viant, and ZEFER flamed out, firms like Critical Mass, Organic, and Avenue A|Razorfish have risen high above the dot-bomb wreckage and are well-positioned for success today.

Clients are shifting business to digital shops, and consumers have turned away from media channels that built the agency industry and toward emerging Internet media. Ad agencies must build new interactive competencies quickly in order to succeed. How? They must build digital skills with a three-tiered approach of establishing digital commitment at the executive level, retraining existing staffers, and building a pipeline of future talent.

So what's the secret to success?  Hire a chief digital officer?  Tell all your staffers to get on Facebook?  Go 2.0 with your web site?

Maybe all that and more...

P.S. Our Forrester Marketing Blog Feedback Survey needs your feedback just like that first cup of coffee Monday morning.

Setting up a home office - any advice?

I've been busy with a lot of things, haven't had much time to blog.  One of those activities has been moving into a new house - and now I have an empty home office to fill.

If you work from home - what advice can you give on setting it up well?  Your insight is appreciated.  Thanks!

Some smart money bets

I had lunch with Cue Ball Group last Friday, a Boston-based VC firm.  You may be aware that there's quite a bit of money out there sitting on the sidelines.  So I'm interested when I hear where people are placing bets and why.

Here are some of the portfolio companies we discussed:

• Miniluxe (think Starbucks meets nail salon)
• Cruxy (if MySpace had kept it real)
• Knovel (it ain't sexy but it works)
• Epic Burger (soon to open in Chi-town South Loop, organic burger joint)

And some interesting ideas they're keeping tabs on:

• 23AndMe.  For only $999 discover to whom you're genetically linked.
• radiusIM.  Think Twitter with GPS.
• Naver.  A Google-killer in action - it's the localization.

Cue Ball was founded by Tony Tjan, who founded digital strategy firm Zefer back in the dot-boom; Red Herring wrote a case study series on them.  Not sure whatever happened to the other management team members.