The Community Brand
It has long been said that a brand lives in the mind of the consumer. With the advent and increased use of social networking, it seems more that a brand lives in the mind of the masses.
Social networking has, in essence, done what the marketing industry has struggled to do on its own. It has established a community of conversation and interaction, a place where ordinary people can and willingly participate in personifying, evangelizing, and building a brand.
Brands of all shapes and sizes are realizing social networking’s influence and getting on board. Some have been more successful than others. Many have launched their own initiatives, but most others are leveraging existing and popular networks like Facebook, Twitter, Digg, and even MySpace.
Compared to viral marketing, which operates under the ideal of “if you create and deploy, they will share your story,” social networking actually allows brands to be found, celebrated, and shared. Sure, with viral marketing, someone may spend a few seconds watching something and pass it on, but what happens after that? Most likely, nothing. Too often, its designed as pure entertainment, to draw hits rather than advance a brand’s position.
The beauty of social networking, compared to other forms of marketing, is that it offers more than a reason to watch. When done correctly, social networking provides a reason to engage. It allows for dialogue between customers and brands and for brands to learn from their customers. Most importantly, from a brand perspective, social networking offers a window into the minds of the consumer.
So, what makes some brands more successful at creating community than others? Which platform is most effective? Perhaps, we should think about it differently.
For a brand, using social networking is about creating a space to connect with customers and, in effect, building community. Brands may already have fans, friends, and followers, but before social networking, they lacked a common place to congretate and interact with the brands they support. Furthermore, social networking sites offer customers opportunities to connect on a personal level with a brand that might otherwise feel too corporate or commercial to engage with, or trust. Opening this line of communication builds that all important trust between a customer and a brand.
The challenging part for a brand is engaging its fan base. Putting up a Facebook page is easy, but getting visitors to participate is another story. To increase participation, it’s important to remember that social networking is not simply an outside-in approach, in fact, it’s the exact opposite.
Effective social networking is driven by dialogue between and among a brand and its followers. ‘Among’ is what matters. After all, social networks are communication hubs if they’re anything at all — a place, or network rather, to share ideas that matter. To engage visitors, a brand has to offer something to the community; it has to initiate the dialog to begin the conversation. In other words, it’s all about content. In order for fans to take interest, you have to give them something to be interested in.
Let’s look at an example. Take a local success story Yards Brewing Company for instance. (Full disclosure, if you don’t know already, they’re our client.) Through its Facebook page, Yards has amassed quite the army of brand ambassadors who regularly check-in to learn about what the Yards guys are doing. Whether it’s new beers, new events, or questions surrounding availability of certain beers in certain locations, Yards’ Facebook is more than a fan page, it is a forum for fans to ask questions, get answers, and interact with the brand they believe in and support.
Sure, from a content standpoint, you’ll find similar information on yardsbrewing.com. Yet when it comes to organic interactions and authentic, colloquial conversations, Facebook provides the forum. Since people are already logging onto Facebook and have integrated it into their daily routine, Yards is able to reach out to its customers in the place where they are already engaged. Further, Yards is providing its customers with the kind of information they seek. Yards’ Facebook page is a tool of convenience, a vehicle for it to build a community.
Even outside of its own fan page Yards can tap (no pun intended) into a growing audience of people who like good beer, or a certain bar, or even a certain music band. And it is.
It’s not to say that a brand’s website isn’t relevant. Given the fickle nature of the flock, it’s increasingly important to manage your message through your corporate web presence. Still, it’s okay to allow your fans to have their say in shaping your brand. Remember they’re the ones who support it through their purchases and participation. And whether you request it or not, they’re subscribing to your brand. Sure, with social networking there’s no immediate cash transaction, and there may not even be an eventual cash transaction, but the fact that they care enough to monitor your movement is impressive and powerful to say the least.
With all that’s been said, it’s important to add, or remember, that some brands will fit into the social networking environment better than others. Many, in fact, have little reason to operate there. So, don’t go out and hire that Director of Social Networking, put up that Facebook page, and establish your Twitter account just yet. But should you approach the arena, or if you done so have already, realize it’s not necessarily a direct means to an end.
Instead, think of social networking as an opportunity to connect with your audiences and gain insight into what they’re thinking. Focus on delivering relevant and meaningful content and authentic interaction that helps to build a community around your brand. Think of it as public public relations. By making the most of these vehicles, you’ll empower your fans and customers and more importantly, you’ll empower your brand.