On October 11th, we introduced the idea that Winning in a Down Economy does not start with blindly cutting costs. Instead we outlined a strategy for 'tuning in' that market leaders have adopted. In the ten weeks that follow, we're covering the ten steps to getting your organization aligned quickly to a new market reality. This post is the seventh of ten. Steps 7-9 address the action plans you can take to create a quick win and better alignment to your market.
Step 8: Leverage Your Social Network
"If content is king, then conversation is queen." -- John Munsell, CEO of Bizzuka
How big is your network? More importantly, how powerful is your business network? No, I'm not talking about the Verizon network but the idea is the same. When your business hits a down cycle, you need a network you can trust. One that helps you connect quickly to the issues that matter and to the opportunities that will create meaningful conversations with buyers.
The very best source is a strong social network.
Our research for Tuned In found that businesses that created resonators enjoyed an unfair advantage. Not just on the performance side we talked about -- they grew twice as fast, had 31% higher profits and 20% higher customer satisfaction rates -- but also in smaller unseen ways. When we looked at how they built, launched and sold in the market, we found a 'bright light' shining across all three departments. They had lots of supporters. In sales, they reported that more than 70% of the business came from referrals. That is, buyers called them to buy! What a novel business concept.
What's really powerful is what they are doing with this network right now. These same companies are not 'hunkering down' to try to ride out the storm, they are making offers with new value to their social network. Utilizing the foundation of bloggers connected, Facebook groups, YouTube, Twitter, Linked In and many other sources, they're finding some fascinating things:
- More conversations about them than they ever realized were occurring in these forums. One company reported that they were astonished to find 'millions' of them ... including buyers they had no relationship talking with friends, influencer's and even competitors.
- Conversations about comparisons of their products to competitors.
- Conversations about their category and why people were buying (or not).
- New ways to create relationships by providing thought leading content to fuel more conversations and make them more relevant in the communities of interest.
- After 30 days, monitoring these kinds of programs was their best source of leads, providing a 4:1 ROI advantage over other communication programs.
You've no doubt invested significantly by now in Search Engine Optimization for keywords that matter to you. Your 'Google' program is dialed and produces lots of visitors. This is valuable but it still requires a selling cycle to create a transaction. And it's largely a one way communication.
Now is a great time to take the next step. Did you know that the #2 search engine today is YouTube? And that Facebook is #5. What all this means is times have already changed. Your social web is a multi-dimensional business asset. Correctly configured, it can add leverage across your business, helping you build more meaningful products and increasing your marketing effectiveness. Those who've embraced the network completely report back to us that they feel very 'tuned in' during a new product development process and that they spend 50% less and get more leads that are better qualified than ever before.
In a down economy, the economics alone make this relevant. But, the real issue is authenticity. The buying process (notice I didn't say selling process) simply works best with its 3rd party endorsed. Whatever network you have today, tap into it, nurture it, and help it grow. Your business will grow profitably right along with it.
