Understand customers' social behaviours

robin.grant

Following on from my last post about Forrester’s new social technographics ladder, Charlene Li and Jeremiah Owyang have put together this great deck about understanding your customers’ social behaviours:

As Charlene explains:

Beware of plans or proposals that start with “Twitter Strategy” or “Facebook Strategy” Instead, they should have a “Customer Strategy” that focuses in on how customers behave – not on the ever-changing toolset. As a result, companies should first understand how their customers use social technologies before they choose the tools.

  1. Where are your customers online? First, find out where your customers are online, knowing which Web sites they are participating at, this will reduce guessing.
    Don’t aimlessly approach social networks without knowing if they are there, if they are in Hyves, Mixi, or Facebook, go there. Fish where the fish are.
  2. What are your customers’ social behaviors online? How do they use social technologies? Do they share? Comment? Create their own content?
    Which social features should you deploy. Example: if they frequently like to comment on Web sites, allow them to leave their comments.
  3. What social information or people do your customers rely on?
    If they rely on their friends, facilitate a marketing program that encourages customers to share with friends, this data helps with determining resource allocation on advocacy programs.
  4. What is your customers’ social influence? Who trusts them?
    If your customers are trusted by others, highlight your customers in front of their community. For example, teens may share information with each other, spreading their influence to others. Example: Walmart’s 11 Moms blogger program is a platform for customer voices.
  5. How do customers use social technologies to learn, make decisions, and support your products and services?
    Be confident in your resource allocation by understanding when customers rely on social tools or their peers in pre-sales, awareness, decision making, implementation, or support of a product.