4 Lessons from a Google Plus Hangout Moderator

On Selection Sunday (here’s a Wikipedia link for non-sports types), I had the privilege of moderating a live Google Plus Hangout hosted by Notre Dame Athletics. During our 50-minute chat, we discussed Notre Dame’s Men’s Basketball program, the NCAA Men’s Basketball tournament, and had the privilege of chatting with head coach Mike Brey, Jack Nolan (the radio voice of ND Basketball), senior captain Scott Martin, and assistant coach Martin Inglesby.

What is a Hangout?

A Hangout is a feature of Google Plus (G+) that provides live audio & video conferencing for up to 10 people, similar to a Skype format or WebEx video conferencing. One key advantage of Hangouts is that they can be broadcasted publicly in real-time (on either G+ or via YouTube) so that many more can view — and these live chats can be recorded for future playback.

Since G+ launched in June 2011, one of the most prominent public G+ Hangouts featured Barack Obama fielding questions from individual citizens. When Google & Notre Dame Athletics (one of the top-ranked universities using social media) partnered to trial a public Hangout and asked me to moderate, I gladly accepted the opportunity to see how this technology performed.

My Impressions of Google Hangouts

• First, this product is still in Beta (or Alpha). Google committed a couple folks Notre Dame’s campus to work through any glitches, and the G+ integration with YouTube is far from intuitive at this point. I believe Google will commit resources to streamlining this process, but organizations looking to stream live Hangouts on YouTube will probably run into some snags.
• Headphones & microphones are a must for participants. Any time there are more than 2 people in a Hangout, background noise (typing, papers rustling, etc) is magnified with open-air microphones and speakers and creates a cacophony of feedback. Headphones & microphones eliminates background noise and enables the Hangout platform to isolate the audio/video on the featured speaker.
• You should commit resources in the same way you would arrange a live press conference or TV event. While I was moderating the discussion among the 5-7 active online participants scattered around the country, we had 2 people on-location prepping featured speakers and communicating with me via backchannels (in this case, Google Chat) as to who was coming up next so we could streamline conversation and eliminate dead air.
• Analytics are still a work in progress. Right now, it’s my understanding that the only way we can measure viewers is to see who’s actively commented or viewed the playback, which doesn’t help us capture how many people view the Hangout live. Again, I presume that Google is working on creating analytics to track visitors to G+ Pages, live Hangouts, etc.

 

To get a sense of our Hangout, here’s a 4-minute clip of our interview with Coach Mike Brey:

 

Have more questions? Leave a comment and I’ll be happy to respond!

Digital Atlanta Presentation: Should I Add Google Plus to My Social Media Diet?

Should I Add Google Plus to my Social Media Diet? on Prezi

Digital Atlanta 2011: Monday Takeaways

Digital Atlanta is a week-long conference held in and around Atlanta, November 7-11, 2011. Check back each day for summary updates & perspectives.

Ted Wright of Fizz gave a great opening keynote. For those of us who are veterans in presentations, panels, SXSW, social media, public relations, and marketing, the “skeptic filter” is finely tuned to spot imposters and fluff. Ted provided great content on word-of-mouth marketing, and fittingly discussed that consumers also have their “skeptic filters” on & operational. For businesses to create and sustain relationship with their audiences, they need to shift away from broadcast marketing and embrace word-of-mouth.

• 76% of consumers believe that companies lie in ads
• Conversions from word-of-mouth recommendation approaches 90%. Broadcast (mass-market) media conversion is at 3%. Businesses who shift their approach will sustain growth.
• An individual would need to spend 18 hours each day to fully process all the advertisements presented (billboards, TV, online, radio, etc). Instead, we tune out information that’s not relevant.
• 19% of sales can be tied back to a word-of-mouth recommendation.
• 76% of Americans discuss at least one brand each day
• 15% of  conversations daily reference a brand
• Influences discuss twice as many brands as the average American
• 10% of word-of-mouth “conversations” occur online; 71% occur in-person. Use online and mass-media content to generate offline conversations for your audiences.
• A brand’s sustainability is in its story. Products without a storyline are fads.
• Individuals share stores that are relevant, interesting, and authentic
• Influencers are not motivated by new experiences with friends, not by money
• 90% of any population/demographic follows the recommendations & advice of the influential 10%
• Influencers will share stories — a manageable “soundbite” is 32 seconds. Can others recap your brand’s unique story or core identity quickly?
• Not all influencers are talkers
• Word-of-mouth (influencer) campaigns typically take 4-7 months to see measurable results, and those results will often be curious or unexpected. Behind this data lies the key to who understands and influences your business’ identity through word-of-mouth.
• 2 Rules of Engagement: Never interrupt. Never intercept.
• Public relations adds velocity and validation to word-of-mouth efforts
• Fans, followers, and Likes are suboptimal metrics. The average person has 4 people who they trust with their life, 9 people who they trust with their children, and 123 people who they influence.
• What’s important: #1 The Story, #2 The Influencer, #3 The Conversation

 

Want another perspective on Digital Atlanta? Check out Ogilvy’s PR blog.

Faking Facebook, Part 2

This is the second of a two-part guest post from my colleague, Susan Barry, who explores some interesting ethical and practical questions in the social media sphere. Did you miss Part One? Read it first, then come back. We’ll wait. [--GK]

Wait, what?

My client is satisfied, and the rapidity of the fan count increase has (mysteriously) slowed somewhat, although it is still growing much more quickly than before. I, however, am not satisfied. The resolution of this dilemma has created more questions than answers for me. In an industry (profession?) that is so new, there aren’t hard and fast answers to ethical questions. Which means we have to decide what our ethics look like. I’d love your take.

Are we naïve to think that social media can and should stay “pure?” I love Jay Baer’s quote about social media; he says something like, “It’s about making your company more like a person and less like a machine.” I might scream if I hear the word “transparency” at another panel, but it really is true that we expect people and brands to be authentic on Facebook (or Twitter, or wherever). We don’t have the same expectations in other marketing or advertising formats. No one thinks that a television ad is supposed to be transparent, an honest representation of a brand; we expect a company to put its best foot forward and woo us with witty copy, amazing images, etc.

Do the ends justify the means? Does it really benefit a brand that much to hit the 1,000 fan mark? Mr. T tried to tell me it would help with Edge Rank on Facebook, but I can’t find any evidence and don’t have any experience to support that. In my (albeit limited) understanding of Edge Rank, one’s Edge Rank is driven by engagement, and fake fans don’t engage. I kind of agree with him that the more fans a page has, the more legitimate it looks, and it takes a long time to build a large community in some sectors (such as Ms. X’s). So maybe it doesn’t matter if you pad your fan count with fake profiles if the goal is to use them to get real fans. What do you think?

What is Facebook’s role in policing fake profiles? Companies like Usocial have gotten cease and desist letters from Facebook in the past, but there’s no evidence that this is a real area of focus. And yet, when I tried to set up a dummy account on Facebook so that I could see my new timeline the way an outsider would see it (you know, for science), I got totally denied. I can’t remember the exact wording, but the response was something like, “Nice try, dummy, but we can tell this is fake. Get out of here.” Now, granted, I made absolutely no effort to be at all stealth, but if they can bust me, why can’t they bust whomever it is that is creating these fake profiles? Unless, and here’s where I’m going to go all conspiracy-theorist on you, unless Facebook is creating the fake profiles to count as “likes” for the sponsored stories they are selling?

Last, what can or should social media companies guarantee their clients? The first red flag popped up for me in this situation when Mr. T guaranteed Ms. X 1,000 fans in three months. Now, I’ve created campaigns that resulted in 1,000 (or more) fans that quickly, but I would never guarantee it. I guarantee a set of deliverables that relate to my work outcomes, but I never guarantee a specific number of fans – because I don’t think that matters. Or should matter. But maybe I’m just being naïve?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Social media practitioners of the world, weigh in. What do you think of all this? Am I crazy, naïve, dumb, or what? What do you think?

Faking Facebook, Part 1

This is the first of a two-part guest post from my colleague, Susan Barry, who explores some interesting ethical and practical questions in the social media sphere. [--GK]

I recently uncovered a plot to fake Facebook, and I’m still having a hard time unraveling it.

Here’s the short version of what happened: My client, Ms. X, participated in a pilot program being tested by her parent company. The pilot program was designed to make Facebook work better for the individual franchisees by increasing fan count and, ultimately, engagement. The parent company hired a consultant to work on the project, and my client signed up. The consultant, Mr. T, told Ms. X that he would increase her fan count from its current 130 to 1,000 in three months. He also said that her Page wouldn’t work until she got to 1,000 fans.

Ms. X was intrigued. She paid up.

I asked Ms. X what Mr. T’s methodology was to increase the count. Because she didn’t know, she connected me with him. We emailed, and he told me he was using Facebook Sponsored Stories and pay-per-click advertising. I started watching the number of fans of her Facebook Page go up. There were 66 new fans in one day; many more in the next 48 hours.

I started worrying that I had missed something huge on Facebook, some obvious and easy way to drive fan count that Mr. T had mastered and I had not. I was concerned that I had failed to stay in the loop and gotten left behind.

So I started digging.

I looked at every one of the 66 fans that were new that first day. I clicked around on their profiles over and over again, trying to figure out who they were and why they had liked the Page.

What I discovered was that the fans were fake.

All of Ms. X’s new fans had similar problems with their profiles. Here’s what I found:

• There were no current cities or home towns listed. By contrast, I looked at 20 random profiles, and 17 out of the 20 list a town of some sort.
• An unusually high percentage (50% of my sample) identified themselves as liberal Catholics, much more than the general Facebook population.
• No friends showed up on the left side of any of the profiles. (This was pre-Timeline).

Most damning, none of them ever posted anything or completed any activity on Facebook. Their Walls all said, “There are no more posts to show,” and no activity was listed. With people who haven’t posted in a long time, the Wall is blank with a link that says “Older Posts.” With people whose privacy settings are on lock down, you can still see some activity, and there is some indication that privacy settings are preventing you from seeing. It says, “Kelly only shares some information with everyone. If you know Kelly, add her as a friend.”

So, I presented my evidence to Ms. X, who directed me to present it to Mr. T. Mr. T replied by rapidly traveling through the stages of grief.

Denial – You have no idea what you’re talking about. Those are not fake. I’ve done this many times before, and it works, and they are not fake. Also, they aren’t fake.

Anger – If you weren’t so terrible at everything, I wouldn’t have to do this. (Mr. T also hung up on me as part of his anger phase).

Bargaining – Listen, don’t spend too much time worrying about this. It doesn’t matter either way, because we are only working with Ms. X for a short period, and then you can do whatever you want.

Depression – {This stage was handled privately by Mr. T. And by that I mean, he did not feel depressed because he had her money already.}

Acceptance – After he hung up me, Mr. T called back to discuss further. He basically said that, while he didn’t directly purchase fake fans for Ms. X, he doesn’t care whether they are fake or not. In his view, the ends justify the means, because legitimate potential fans will take her more seriously and thus be more likely to join her community with more fans.

So, there you have it.

[END OF PART 1]

What questions would you ask of your client or Mr. T (not this Mr. T)? How would you proceed?

Last Year at Digital Atlanta: 3 Takeaways from Friday

NB: this is a repost of my daily recap of Digital Atlanta sessions I attended last year, with some minor edits. RSVP to hear me speak at Digital Atlanta on November 9, and you can view the entire 2011 schedule here.

There were three panel discussions Friday. I’ll review the sessions I attended — feel free to post highlights from other discussions below:

Understand the hidden cost of social media
Most social media networks are free to participate — but organizations should invest time and resources into connecting with audiences and curating relevant content.

Content and expertise is your business — not social media
If you’re an artist, create art. If you sell a product or service, iterate & improve continually. Merely talking about other artists, services, or products will not achieve long-term results if you are not driving your own development offline.

The volunteer team who organized Social Media 2010 deserve a hearty round of applause
Many thanks to the panel speakers, sponsors, host sites…as well as organizers. They’re too numerous to list here and I’m afraid I’ll omit someone. My suggestion: If you attended a panel or chatted with an organizer or volunteer during the week, shoot them a quick note of thanks…and spread the word for Digital Atlanta 2011!

Follow on Twitter: @DigitalATL or #digATL

Read my other 2010 posts

A sampling of the rockstar presenters from Friday:

@tessa
@jonathan_baker
@centerstageatl
@richsullivan
@chadrad
@joshjackson
@TNicolePR
@lilacina
@davidclinchnews

Questions? Comments? Did I miss some insights? Leave a comment below…

Last Year at Digital Atlanta: 5 Takeaways from Thursday

NB: this is a repost of my daily recap of Digital Atlanta sessions I attended last year, with some minor edits. RSVP to hear me speak at Digital Atlanta on November 9, and you can view the entire 2011 schedule here.

There were several overlapping sessions Thursday. I’ll review the sessions I attended — feel free to post highlights from other discussions below:

Individuals trust recommendations from someone they know
Your organization’s social efforts will increase loyalty and yield new customers if you connect them with their friends.

Social media conversations are just the beginning
Social media should impact the behaviors of loyal fans and prompt action from new customers.

Individuals have a voice that extends beyond the end of their driveway
You must monitor what people say about your brand; the image and perception is no longer controlled within your walls.

Connect with your audience on all 4 screens
Connect with users on television, computer, tablet, and mobile. Engage uniquely with audiences, and watch the shift as these screens begin to overlap and consolidate.

Add value & content and audiences will find you
Be a hub of information and your organization will increase in influence in impact.

Follow on Twitter: @DigitalATL or #digATL

Read my other 2010 posts

Read Olivia Patrick‘s recap of her moderated panel: Generation Y & Social Media

A sampling of the rockstar presenters from Thursday:

@dorothea007
@scott_regator
@iRollo
@yvettevans
@wildfireteam
@jbeisner
@dave360

Questions? Comments? Did I miss some insights? Leave a comment below…

Last Year at Digital Atlanta: 6 Takeaways from Wednesday

NB: this is a repost of my daily recap of Digital Atlanta sessions I attended last year, with some minor edits. RSVP to hear me speak at Digital Atlanta on November 9, and you can view the entire 2011 schedule here.

There were several overlapping sessions Wednesday. I’ll review the sessions I attended — feel free to post highlights from other discussions below:

Facebook features are a moving target — sometimes that’s a good thing
Facebook Pages receive upgrades every few months. A recent (good) innovation: Reveal Pages. For new visitors, admins can create a call-to-action. Existing fans/likes can be routed directly to more interactive or premium content.

Finding social media champions within an organization is critical
Your organization’s employees (or volunteers) best know your products and services. Channel their passion into publicity so they can connect with target audiences.

Decision-makers listen to metrics
When making a case for social media adoption, hard analysis will always rule the day. Tracking metrics & resources to garner sales/engagement is persuasive. Your organization’s executives may be even more receptive if you can show how competitors are seeing tangible successes from social media.

Decide how online feedback is internally processed
Good flowcharts exist on responding to online comments. Suggestion: assign threat levels to online comments and delegate these responses to various individuals within your organization. For example, interns can handle all basic social media responses, but legal/managerial/executive should respond to product recalls or crisis communication issues.

Pick a social media strategy that’s best for you
Some strategy options:

• Increase brand awareness
• develop e-commerce
• troubleshoot customer problems
• customer retention

Know what types of conversation are appropriate for various social media channels

• Facebook is a pub
• LinkedIn is a trade show
• Twitter is a cocktail party (or bazaar)
• YouTube is Times Square on New Year’s Eve

Follow on Twitter: @DigitalATL or #digATL

Read my other 2010 posts

A sampling of the rockstar presenters from Wednesday:

@jacquichew
@somediastrategy
@tuanhpham
@jasondominy
@willedmond
@douglehman
@notesfromkris
@60secondtweets
@benag

Questions? Comments? Did I miss some insights? Leave a comment below…

Last Year at Digital Atlanta: 5 Takeaways from Tuesday

NB: this is a repost of my daily recap of Digital Atlanta sessions I attended last year, with some minor edits. RSVP to hear me speak at Digital Atlanta on November 9, and you can view the entire 2011 schedule here.

On Tuesday we had many overlapping sessions. I’ll review the sessions I attended — feel free to post highlights from other discussions below:

Measure your effectiveness
Eighty percent of companies do not measure their return on investment (ROI) in social media. Money & resources will flow to areas where decision-makers can see cost-per-customer.

Know your audience(s)
Begin by understanding your audience demographics, geographics, likes, and interests. Different segments will respond to different messages. Don’t be afraid to produce equally compelling (yet different) content to multiple groups.

It’s never too early to develop content & community
For startups, put sweat equity into building a loyal community of followers – they can provide encouragement and offer feedback. Established brands should, at the very least, drive thought leadership in their industry – this can lead to further innovation.

Measure social stats — but don’t stop there
Track your trends on connections, views, friends, and likes…but stay focused on long-term engagement and traction.

You need help. Ask for help.
It can be an agency, an outside consultant, internal experts, or interns. Find people who are passionate about your product & who can help you reach your business objectives. If talented voices are speaking for and about your brand, you can be sure spirited conversation will follow…and attract the right kind of attention.

Follow on Twitter @DigitalATL or #digATL

Read my other 2010 posts

A sampling of the rockstar presenters from Tuesday:

@jeremyporter
@radrice
@lance
@laura_nolte
@whiskawaynic
@sadevries

 

Questions? Comments? Did I miss some insights? Leave a comment below…

Last Year at Digital Atlanta: 9 Takeaways from Monday

NB: this is a repost of my daily recap of Digital Atlanta sessions I attended last year, with some minor edits. RSVP to hear me speak at Digital Atlanta on November 9, and you can view the entire 2011 schedule here.

If you weren’t able to attend Monday’s events, or if you spent too much time in the Newell Rubbermaid gift shop and missed the presentations, here are some key takeaways:

Word-of-Mouth = credibility
3/4 of people believe companies lie in advertising.

What does this mean for your business? Individuals will rely on word-of-mouth recommendations from people they trust to inform their purchasing decisions. Word-of-mouth occurs offline 90% of the time, but your organization’s online presence and engagement can influence how people reference you in face-to-face conversations.

Make word-of-mouth sustainable
Listen first, and gather information — one size does not fit all your customers.

Customers purchase based either by necessity or to feel good
Sell the passion of your employees and your customers rather than your widgets. Find passionate users, then give them a voice and influence to spread their passions to others.

Expose flaws & be transparent
The age of controlling your brand’s perception in the marketplace is over. Listen & respond to what users say. Incentivize feedback by resolving customer complaints or questions.

Give a Rallying Cry
Your organization should be visible and strong online — passionate conversations will gather around the spaces you’ve established, and core users will champion your organization’s mission.

Focus on deeply engaged “friends” — not just “fans”
These can be internal as well as external: look for experiences that deeply bond employees and customers. Organizations can accomplish this goal with specific events…but also when consistently exceeding expectations.

“Free” is powerful
Rather than discount or devalue the full-price of a product, create an offer around “free.” Requiring specific customer actions to earn “free” can deepen loyalty.

Facebook Ads work best for specific events
There’s a 10-14 day shelf-life before effectiveness declines substantially.

If it’s not on Twitter, it probably doesn’t matter
A quick and dirty way to monitor your organization’s need for crisis communications.

Follow on Twitter @DigitalATL or #digATL

Read my other 2010 posts

A sampling of the rockstar presenters from Monday:

@jakrose
@spikejones
@socialfresh
@jenecclestone
@nickjayres
@dawndevirgilio
@tomwilson
@jeffhilimire
@gracokelly
@thefoxtheatre
@ithinkk
@engle
@ebrookes
@justinkistner
@davekerpen
@bwdumars
@chadestes
@matchsticblake

Questions? Comments? Did I miss some insights? Leave a comment below…

Promotional Video: Digital Atlanta, November 7-11

Digital Atlanta is coming soon…and I’ve been approved as a speaker! Signify your interest here, and we’ll keep you posted on updates. The whole week will be fantastic, with many smart folks presenting and networking. Cue the promotional video!

You’ll notice someone familiar in this video. It seems the production staff thinks my visage makes a compelling final image and will drive attendance. Hopefully they’re right.

Replacing Facebook Places: New Page Feature Highlights Check-Ins

Businesses with a physical location, take note: Facebook is updating how Pages display their location-based service (LBS) offerings.

What’s new for Businesses on Facebook Pages

Facebook’s blog highlights recent changes for individual users, but Pages have received an unpublicized upgrade: the integration of location-based profiles within the Facebook Page format. From what I can tell, this is limited to Foursquare, Gowalla, and SCVNGR.

Your Page's linked LBS profiles will be directly below your Page Favorites

In the coming weeks, expect to see Facebook integrate location-based profiles into the left-hand navigation menu of all Facebook Pages. In spite of the inconsistent appearances across all businesses, I’ve reached the following conclusions:

• LBS services limited to Foursquare, Gowalla, and SCVNGR
• Some LBS profiles listed on Facebook Pages have been claimed by the business
• Some LBS profiles listed on Facebook Pages have not yet been claimed by the business
• A claimed LBS profile does not necessarily ensure its appearance on a business Facebook Page

This change highlights both the visibility of LBS options and the importance of claiming profiles on a variety of services. While Facebook Places was unsuccessful, I believe LBS adoption will continue to increase among individual users. It is of increasing importance for businesses to claim their profiles across a variety of services because visibility and adoption can change quickly (and, as in this case, with limited notice). Moreover, you can learn important insights about your new and loyal customers by the analytics and data provided to administrators.

 

Contact me if you have further questions about location-based services (LBS) or to claim your business profiles across a variety of social media platforms.

 

To enable/disable LBS displayed on your Facebook Page, go to “Edit Page” or “Edit Info”
Under the “Basic Information” tab, check/uncheck the Widgets box

Facebook Page administrator detail

 

At this time, it’s not possible to edit individual LBS entries — Pages can display all or none of the LBS links. If Facebook does adjust this setting, it’s almost certain any changes also go unannounced. As Facebook continues to roll out this feature to more Pages, I will update this post with additional details and administrator options as they become available.

 

History

Just a year after launching Places, Facebook announced they’re scaling back the Places check-in feature, made popular and familiar by sites such as Foursquare, Gowalla, and SCVNGR. But with the continued growth in popularity and funding of Foursquare and less than 10% of Facebook users adopting the Places function, Facebook has shifted their efforts.

Dislike Facebook Spam? Beef up your account's security

Lots of spam is making its way around Facebook, and it would be wise not to click on mysterious links. But there’s another measure that can protect your account and information: HTTPS advanced security.

Yes, I know Facebook changes things without our input or consent. Yes, adjusting settings can be confusing. If only you knew someone who kept track of all these social media changes…

Step 1: Are you secure?

Take a quick peek at your URL address bar as you head over to Facebook. Does it say “https”? If not, you’re operating with a standard connection.

This is the goal we'd like to achieve.

 

Step 2: Make the correction

If you don’t see “https” (indicating a secure http connection), you’re just 5 clicks away from Fort Knox. Head to the top right and click “Account” and select “Account Settings”

Note: Your profile picture may not be as handsome.

 

Step 3: Opt-in

You’ll want to change your Account Security settings. Unfortunately, Facebook requires all users to opt-in to greater security. In my opinion, this runs contrary to intuition, but you know what they say about common sense…

Yes, I omitted my email address. There's a contact form on the website.

Step 4: Prevent unwelcome surprises

Ensure the appropriate radio boxes are checked. The important one for today’s purposes is the one marked HTTPS, but review the others as well.

 

Step 5: Click Save

Also, feel free to share with your unenlightened friends.

The Difference Between Cost, Price, and Value

At SXSW last month, I attended a session entitled, How to Abolish the Hourly: How Value Pricing Wins Clients, by John Lax and Lee Dale. Solo PR Pro asked me to write a guest blog post. Here’s an excerpt:

Envision a scenario where a client hires you for a revenue solution that yields $5000 in new sales…that takes you just 1 hour to implement.

Traditional hourly pricing disconnects the cost of a consultant’s time from the value the client receives. Most solo entrepreneurs (and even consultants and larger agencies) who maintain a fixed hourly rate risk devaluing their own expertise — and future revenue — by billing the above solution at one hour.

The traditional solution? List more deliverables, bill for “scope” and “research,” justify a higher invoice amount, and…you get the picture. Is there a better model?

Read more on the Solo PR Blog

5 Social Media Lessons from Istanbul’s Grand Bazaar

Reposted at Speakeasy Media

I recently had the good fortune to travel to Istanbul, Turkey, where I spent a day negotiating for wares in the Grand Bazaar, one of the oldest and largest covered markets in the world.

For me, traveling and experiencing foreign cultures challenges me to observe customs that differ from my own. While it is easy to conclude different = bad, I found myself intrigued by the tactics employed by the vendors. Clearly, the Grand Bazaar has been profitable for hundreds of years, and I began to see time-tested business practices that I can apply as a social media strategist.

Know the language of your customers

All the good vendors in prominent locations spoke more than one language, and I frequently observed vendors listening for snippets of a conversation among a group so they could address the passers-by in their preferred tongue.

In social media, listening before speaking is essential. Megaphone marketing is becoming less effective every day, and individual conversations aren’t productive until we understand what our audience will comprehend and understand. Moreover, listening to target audiences before speaking gives seller confidence to establish a genuine connection.

Host the conversation and provide exceptional hospitality

Once vendors discerned that we were interested in their goods, we were often ushered into a private room or space away from the teeming masses. For us, this meant a comfortable seat in a quiet, climate-controlled environment away from the crowds. For the vendors, moving the conversation from the public thoroughfare to their own private space gave them the maximum leverage to complete the sale — an opportunity to deliver a individualized sales presentation & ensure they resolved any/all customer questions.

As Comcast and other social companies have demonstrated, taking customer complaints offline to provide individualized attention and solutions is an effective way to create positive word-of-mouth in the long-run.

First one’s free

There has been much written on how free gestures inform our social interactions, and without fail, Grand Bazaar vendors had apple tea or Turkish coffee on hand for us as we perused their offerings. The hope was, and is, that an unexpected token gift will engender loyalty and increase the likelihood of a sale.

Is your organization offering a Foursquare special or badge for customers who check-in? How about a Yelp offer? Need a coupon that appears when someone searches for your business on Google Maps? Are you providing thought leadership on your blog, website, Twitter, and Facebook?

Email me and I’ll provide you with a free quote on how I can help you set any (or all) of these up for your organization. See what I did there?

Asking questions is always a good strategy

Many organizations are confident they know what their customers want, and they ignore all information that doesn’t fit to their customer profile…even the protests of their own customers.

For whatever reason, I’ve never been a fan of woven rugs. Many of them are empirically and aesthetically beautiful, but they just doesn’t fit with my personal design preferences. But rug vendors were excited to hear that I was American because they were sure I wanted/needed a top-quality Turkish carpet in my home in America…and they were perplexed at my disinterest. To save us both time and trouble, I began answering all sales pitches from carpet vendors in Spanish. This seemed to help.

I advocate that organizations should test assumptions intermittently over time. We may experience some “failures” — those data points that do not align with prior expectations or behaviors — but through social media tools we are able to discover genuine customer feedback as tastes and demographics change.

All businesses are social

Profitable and growing organizations are social because their customers are social. Customer loyalty implies a relationship that goes beyond a single transaction.

Perhaps my favorite anecdote from my day at the Grand Bazaar after I unsuccessfully tried on a variety of leather jackets:

Vendor: “What else are you looking for? How can I take your money?”
Me: (amused at the vendor’s bluntness) “I didn’t like any of your jackets, but do you have any leather bags?”
Vendor: (excitedly) “Ah! You must meet my cousin! He has the finest bags in the whole city!”

We were then escorted through the winding streets of the Grand Bazaar to an expansive leather bag vendor. Our vendor-turned-tour-guide spoke a few Turkish words to this new vendor, introduced us to his cousin, and we were prompted ushered in to the back room and offered more tea and coffee…and hundreds of leather bags for sale.

For all the smiles and politeness, the Bazaar vendors know bottom-line business is about ROI and relationships. It didn’t matter to us if these vendors were actually blood relatives. They understood we had unique preferences, they asked the right questions, and they offered exemplary hospitality.

As you probably have noticed, I haven’t spent any time discussing the smartphones or social networks of the Grand Bazaar. Often, businesses are enamored with “social media” as a cure-all. Social media is a tool and a channel to reach customers. It is only effective if businesses employ time-tested practices and solid marketing principles.