A: Are you going fishing?
B: No, I am going fishing.
A: Aha, I thought you were going fishing.
Interesting and meaningless to hear this ridiculous conversation, right? Because the two men are to old to hear each other clearly and they are reluctant to admit their listening disability. The joke also evokes the importance of listening in a conversation.
What can we learn from the joke?
Doing business is launching a conversation with customers. Without careful listening and fully understand what customers have said and what they need, it is impossible to achieve ultimate business goal. Before social media came into the equation, people do share their thoughts and ideas among friends, colleagues and sometimes directly to the company as well. This kind of interaction is more personal related and have a certain kind of influence among customers. Nowadays, with the explosion of social media sites, listening has a more profound meaning and played a more important role in business activities.
Why is listening important?
"Your brand is whatever your customers say it is. And in the groundswell where they communicate with each other, they decide."
--- Charlene Li & Josh Bernoff
Groundswell
Your brand resides within the hearts and minds of customers. It is the sum total of their experiences and perceptions, some of which you can influence, and some that you cannot. A strong brand is invaluable as the battle for customers intensifies day by day. It's important to spend time investing in researching, defining, and building your brand. After all your brand is the source of a promise to your consumer. It's a foundational piece in your marketing communication and one you do not want to be without.
This short video also illustrates the importance of listening to customers.
--- Smarter Marketing: Having Public Conversations
How to listen to the groundswell?
Everyone has the experience of being buried in the massive information online, it might be interesting for individuals to generate their knowledge by clicking the mouse all the way. But when it comes to business plan, efficiency has been put under spotlight. It is necessary to define what the goals are and what to get out of it. There is difference between reaching out for new customers and keep track of existing ones. This is important as you want to identify keywords and phrases that you will use when searching for conversations.
Free social media monitoring tools can extremely helpful. Such as Twilerts, Backtype, Social Mention and so on.
There are other small aspects need to be taken into consideration when listening on the groundswell. As the old saying goes, Success depends on details.
- Involve Others
- Build Relationships
What influences it might have when listening to the groundswell?
By paying more attention to the best customers, the biggest advantages, and the power of the business’s story, it has the potential to build upon the strong points and achieve outstanding results.
While there may be exceptions, the vast majority of businesses rely on current customers to introduce them to new customers. Whether it’s through personal recommendations, posts on social media, or even online reviews—there are a number of ways current customers can help you reach a wider audience.
Consistency in listening to the groundswell will give business agency a more comprehensive idea of what customers think of them and will lead to a better policy making in the future. In the end, this short video provide more optimistic ideas of social media marketing.
Social Media Marketing in 3 minutes
More information available to help with listening on the groundswell:
Guide to monitoring social media conversations
The Future of Search Marketing for Small Business
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