The buzz surrounding social media is palpable, but most retailers are struggling to figure out how much of it generates actual value and how much is just a fad. Beyond the basics â€" set up a Facebook page, listen for your brand on Twitter, etc. â€" there is confusion about how much effort retailers should make with social media, and a lack of understanding about why that effort is worthwhile.
To answer the "Why" question first: Social media represents one way â€" not the only way, but one way â€" to differentiate the customer's shopping experience, which takes place around the clock and is distinct from the buying experience. Customers are interacting with retail brands at all times and in many different places â€" on the iPhone at the dinner table, on the computer at work, watching ads on television. Social media attempts to touch shoppers at many of those points.
The data bears out that this is worth doing. Recent research from Forrester Research revealed that one out of five adults ages 18 to 24 spend a fifth of their online time at social media sites; when you look at ages 25 to 34 that percentage drops to one tenth, which is still significant. Among the total population, a third said they visit social networking sites at least one per month.
Here, then, are five real-world examples of retailers that are using social media in intelligent and creative ways, and creating customer ambassadors in the process.
Bloomingdale's uses Twitter to deliver old-school customer service
We all can remember anecdotal stories about how great customer service was in the old days â€" the retailer who knew your grandmother by name and always had her order ready, or took back a return with no questions asked. Smart use of social tools like Twitter empowers retailers to deliver that kind of one-on-one service today, in a way that scales much better.
Beth is dismayed that a dress she has ordered isn't in her hands yet, so she tweets about it. Bloomingdale's notices this, and proactively jumps in, asking for her order number in an effort to help. Beth replies with good news that the dress arrived, and the retailer wraps up the dialogue with a kind word. That's an incredible, memorable customer experience that will foster word-of-mouth, all at no cost to the retailer other than a little bit of time and effort.
Staples Tweet Team uses multiple agents
Office supply retailer Staples has built a "Tweet Team," five customer service agents that patrol the Twitterverse, push out promotional offers, answer customer questions and more. To minimize confusion, and to create personality, each of the Tweeters uses a dedicated tag at the end of their posts to indicate who is talking.
MySears, MyKmart leverage shopper opinions to build content
Online reviews are a great way to generate search engine friendly content for e-commerce sites. Getting users to write reviews can be tricky (link to previous story), but Sears and Kmart have hit upon a successful formula with their interactive sites MySears.com and MyKmart.com. The sites launched in March 2009, and so far have more than 400,000 registered users.
And online reviews are increasingly important for e-tailers: According to Forrester, 64 percent of online buyers find user reviews important when making a purchase, and 47 percent of online users overall say that information provided by other consumers is more important to them than information provided by marketers.
Best Buy "crowd-sources" with IdeaX
Best Buy is one of the more innovative retailers when it comes to social media â€" witness Twelpforce â€" and they're pushing the envelope even further with IdeaX, a proprietary social platform that asks shoppers to suggest ideas for the retailer, then allows other shoppers to vote those ideas up or down.
IdeaX points to one of the most important points to be made when talking social media, and that is the need to be genuine. During one recent visit, one of the popular ideas on the site was to "stop ripping people off with computer 'optimizations.'" Here is a branded Best Buy web property, containing text that alleges the company is ripping people off. But removing such content will immediately brand a company as hypocritical in the eyes of the community, and frankly, if you don't have the stomach for negative feedback, you probably need to reassess your tolerance for social media entirely.
Target builds a youthful world on Facebook
Target recently built an environment on Facebook dedicated to its "Reality Check" program, which markets products needed and wanted by college students. The area is segmented into different regions, one of which contains webisodes of a humorous show, another contains ads for Red Bull drinks and compact refrigerators, while another offers up a quiz. Prominent in the environment is the call to action to sign up for email alerts.
The message is clear and inviting: Target wants people to have fun inside its social media presence, not just look at products. That's an approach that will bring people back time after time, and again, it will foster positive word of mouth.
Cross Posted from the Seamark Intl. blog by Melika from her blog link, ed.
The following is derived from the presentation "Social Media and Retail: Essential Practices for Today and Tomorrow," delivered at this year's NRF Convention. If you're interested in viewing the complete presentation, please connect with me on LinkedIn.