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Last week i had the opportunity to facilitate a workshop on developing a social customer care strategy at the annual conference for SOCAP the association for customer care professionals. Many of the conversations took me back to a past life where I worked on a reservations knowledge management solution for a large air line.

A key dilemma customer care professionals face is that good service and bad service generate word of mouth. It just spreads farther and faster via social channels. To illustrate this point i ran a quick report. On one extreme I used “awesome customer service” and on the other “customer service sucks”. As you can see it was nearly split down the middle.

So what does this mean. Well according to Forrester “good customer service experiences boost repurchase probability and long-term loyalty,” while bad experiences lead to defections and negative word of mouth.

To make the conversation a little more lively and get a pulse of the room we did a real time poll. “Who should own the social media strategy”.

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What I am about to say is going to be confronting to some of you. To others this may be obvious, common sense. The days of total control over message are over. If these days ever existed, they are no more. Social media has created a world where a brand no longer gets to push out its message on a passive audience. Instead, through social media folks are engaging in conversations about brands with and without the brand.

The question then becomes: Is a brand present in the conversations that are happening about it and therefore able to share its point of view? When a brand is not present, there is a much slimmer chance that their point of view will be heard. This is true of social media in general and I hope to explore the impact of this in different spaces in the weeks and months to come. However, today I wanted to explore the question of how this relates to governments and Wikipedia.

Earlier this year, the European government found itself in a conundrum. A newspaper published a story which quoted the European Commission Vice-President Antonio Tajani as saying that tourism is a human right. Shortly thereafter, Wikipedia picked up this third party information and stated it as a truth. When his team tried to correct the information on Wikipedia by adding the text of his speech, the page moderators blocked them. Given Wikipedia’s construct, the third party information was considered more reliable than the original source. Thus the conundrum. The information was incorrect. However, Wikipedia strongly discourages organizations from editing organization-related articles, citing conflict of interest.

If there are factual errors, organizations are asked to:
a. Leave a note on the article’s talk page
b. Post a comment on the help desk
c. Contact Wikipedia via email

If an organization insists on editing an article directly, the organization must declare their interests on their user page(s) and on the talk page of the article they edit. The conflict of interest guidelines must also be adhered to, as must the neutral point of view and verifiability. As it relates to verifiability, the changes must be backed by reliable sources, which in the Wikipedia world means third-party sources. That is why in this case the original speech was not considered a reliable source whereas the newspaper article was.

What then is the solution? In my opinion, the solution is as follows:

1- Establish long-term relationships with a grassroots community who will contribute the missing positive information to the article.

2- If an organization is very keen on immediately changing information that is not factually correct said organization could leave a note on the article’s talk page. They could also post a comment on the help desk and they could contact Wikipedia via email.

Wikipedia is supposed to be a grassroots tool that collects information from reliable, impartial sources. In theory, if a brand has invested time engaging folks and having conversations about its win with the grassroots, this community in turn will be posting said information onto platforms like Wikipedia.

Is this a silver bullet?

No.

However, in this modern age of online WOM I truly believe that this is the best way to ensure that social media tools like Wikipedia reflect the brand’s point of view. A brand, government or otherwise, is in effect present in the conversation about it by engaging the community, making a long term investment in it and ultimately handing over control.

Women and Healthcare Blogging

Women remain (arguably) our most influential consumers - especially in the healthcare space. Not only do women make up a significant portion of consumers overall, they are also a driving force and key influencer behind many of the purchases men make. When it comes to healthcare, this is no exception (and if the men are anything like me it may even be more of the rule). As a result, marketers spend a lot of time studying how women make these buying decisions, and social media channels are providing an avenue women actively use to make these decisions.

I wrote a few weeks ago about the importance of choosing the right social media platforms when marketing healthcare solutions online, and decided to take a deeper dive to into the role blogs play for women looking to make healthcare decisions or learn about diseases.

Given that I’m a guy, I couldn’t presume I knew anything about women[i] so I turned to a recent study by BlogHer, iVillage and Compass Partners examining women’s media habits. What I found is that in the healthcare arena, blogs are an avenue that should not be ignored. They are an influential source to women, crucial to observe for feedback and provide an understanding about products/therapeutic areas, even if they are not appropriate avenues to use to actively engage women.

According to BlogHer, the number of women who regularly read or write blogs is staggering. Of all women surveyed, 22.7 million (55%) said they read them, with 12 million (29%) engaging on them (posting/commenting), and 8 Million (19%) creating content by publishing their own blogs. And health/wellness places within their top five interests.

According to the study, 49% of women who read blogs - approximately 11 million women - are interested in health information. In fact, it ranked higher than some surprising topics (to me), including fashion/beauty/shopping (42%), sex/relationships/dating (31%), and parenting (27%). This makes it a great place to provide content about health and see what women are saying.

Women in the survey noted they aren’t just reading passively - they are turning to blogs over social networks (such as Facebook and MySpace) to actively digest. Of women who read and/or post to blogs, 64% do it to “get information”, compared to just 32% of those who participate in social networks. When you factor in that 43% of women read blogs to “seek advice and recommendations” it becomes clear that they aren’t seeking that information as impartial news sources — they want information with a point of view. This means that if women are on a blog for information about a product or condition - or your product/condition area - they don’t want a balanced account - they want to know about an experience with the product to help them develop their own point of view. This means making sure that influential bloggers not only know about your product (or campaign) but that they receive your point of view and have a positive experience along the way.

Lastly, what I found interesting was that women of all ages, across generations, are participating on blogs. While Millenials (age 18-26) have the highest percentage of their generation participating (73% - 9.7 million women) Generation X (age 27-43) and the Boomers (age 44-62) combined form the greatest number of women participating in social media - approximately 28.7 million women. Meaning blogs remain an importance influence for women of all ages. It isn’t just for the younger audiences.

So, if you want to know more about what influences women to make a particular healthcare decision, turn to the blogosphere - the answers may be clear on blogs.

It was during the summer of 2006 when I sat down with my first McRib. Over the next two weeks, I ate at McDonald’s seven times, downing eight rib-resembling sandwiches (I clearly wasn’t having the best day on one of those visits). Despite the obsession, the McRib hasn’t crossed my mind often in the four years that have passed. Until ten days ago as I was browsing my Twitter feed …

McDonald's confirms the McRib's triumphant return on its official Twitter account.

The McRib will be gracing menus in less than two weeks and fans have wasted no time leveraging digital media to celebrate its resurrection. There’s the handy McRib Locator to map sightings, @McRibWatch on Twitter for real-time updates while on the hunt, and more than 200 Facebook groups dedicated in some way to the elusive sandwich – all unofficial. All this for a sandwich available for a limited time “because people get tired of it,” according to the McDonald’s U.S. president.

Parables of cross-country travel and sandwich-smuggling have framed the sandwich as a cult product, appealing to a cadre of obsessive fans with most consumers left to smirk (or gag). However, in an era of heightened word of mouth and social media broadcast, a growing group of McRib fans is finding its voice. While McDonald’s’ most infamous sandwich has a history of online success spurred by farewell tours and a “Save the McRib” campaign, this is the first opportunity social media users nationwide have had to be vocal.

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In the wake of Gap’s recent misstep in crowdsourcing its logo, brands should be advised to tread lightly when crowdsourcing. Truth be told, there are some things that a brand should never crowdsource - like its name, culture, or point of view. But brands can incorporate the fresh perspective of the public without sacrificing its brand quality.

Here are five ways brands can effectively crowdsource:

1) Poll the crowd first to identify brand affinity. If you are considering a major brand overhaul, it would be fatal to do so without first gauging your audience. But try and do so early on, and determine if you need a total brand overhaul, or just some minor improvements. The age-old adage, “If it ain’t broken…” is totally applicable here.

When Time Warner Cable split from parent company Time Warner Inc., it embarked on a journey to find a distinct identity. [Full disclosure: Time Warner Cable is a client]. But after 18 months of research, the company decided against a total identity overhaul, opting instead for an update.

“We are giving ourselves a brand identity refresh… so you’ll see a new logo, new colors, new photography, new graphics, and a new ad campaign,” said Marissa Freeman, Time Warner SVP of MarketingCommunications in a video posted on the company’s blog, twcableuntangled.com.

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It seems like just yesterday that I was sitting in my dorm room sending my college roommates links to YouTube videos and someecards on Facebook. Fast forward four years later; I never expected I’d be starting a career in social media. In those four years social media revolutionized communication, and a career in the field means the opportunity to be part of one of the most exciting, rapidly changing areas of marketing and PR today.

For new college grads, we’ve been using the Internet as another social layer of our lives since high school, and the lines between personal and professional use can often be blurry. When pursuing your career, it’s important to make sure that your passion for sharing content via the social web will help you get hired — not turn employers off. Here are a few things I’ve learned to keep in mind:

1. Be careful of your online footprint. Don’t underestimate what employers will be able to find about you online. Be aware of what results search engines return, and keep this in mind whenever you post updates, upload photos, or comment online. Make sure what employers find reinforces a positive impression of who you are, from anyone’s perspective. Creating a personal website or public resume on LinkedIn, starting a Twitter handle with your full name in the profile, or blogging about your professional interests can be good ways to control the information that comes up about you in search.

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Today is my birthday. As I sit back, reflect on life and take stock of the years, I can’t help but marvel at how far things have come.

In the Fall of 2003, I left a corporate job in management with Eastman Kodak Company to work on a Presidential Campaign.

I took a 2/3 pay cut and traded in an ocean front view apartment in Miami, Florida for a sleeping bag in a four-person home in Little Rock, Arkansas.

You might ask, “Why?”

I know my mother definitely did.

The answer is simple. I was inspired by the promise of an accountable and open government by, for and of the people.

This move was my first foray into the world of new media. Many of you might have heard of the Dean campaign and the technological innovation that the techies there made. The same was true for the techies involved with the Clark campaign. They were a passionate group of folks inspired to use technology for the good of a better government, by, of and for the people. This was something that they were making real in the campaign space but the vision that many of them had was to see this transcend the campaign and brought into office by the candidate once elected.

Seven years later, I found myself having coffee, reminiscing about what got me into this space (new media) with someone who I consider to be a leader in the Gov 2.0 space. Seven years later the Obama campaign - itself brought into office in no small part because of technology - was the administration that brought with it the Open Directive. And though it is true that this movement may not have started with the Obama administration, for me it has been inspiring to see the growth that has happened in the course of the last few years.

This transformation has taken the work of many unsung heroes.

It is an iterative process and change does not happen overnight but I am inspired by what I have seen to date. I truly believe that this is only the beginning.

That twenty something year old who left the rat race of corporate America for the promise of what could be possible in government with inspired leadership, still exists.

The opportunity is huge and this is only the beginning.

I’d like to take a moment and use this thread to honor some of the unsung heroes. Who are some of the people that you know who are making a difference in this space?

If you haven’t noticed, mobility in the healthcare space has gone through an evolution. From those “I’ve fallen and I can’t get up” LifeCall alerts, to the common beepers for quick and short updates and now to mobile devices!  Things are changing, slowly but steadily.

As we’ve seen in the past, adapting to the times is not so easy in regulated industries, especially one so heavily regulated as the medical industry but an area that has been the “hotspot” and continues to grow rapidly is mobile usage among medical professionals.

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Tomorrow marks the first day of SES Chicago 2010. In earlier parts of our SES Chicago interview series we chatted with Chris Long about B2B marketing tips and Hollis Thomases about Twitter and automation.

For part III of our interview series, I had the opportunity to connect with Robert Murray, CEO of iProspect, a search engine marketing firm. Robert will be on a panel of speakers discussing the future of search tomorrow. During our interview Rob provided great insight on changes in search and what the future of search holds.

Brian Camen (BC): I’ve noticed there’s a wide spectrum of knowledge when it comes to paid advertising campaigns. Many people either know very little or have a full grasp on paid campaigns. What are some misconceptions businesses have about paid search advertising campaigns?

Robert Murray (RM): The biggest misconception about paid search is the degree to which it can be automated. Many marketers perceive it to be something that can be done with the push of a button. Big retailers are especially prone to this thinking.

But the reality is that paid search relies heavily on human thought and judgment. An automated bidding system is just a tool that employs rules. It won’t develop a strategy for you. Nor will it devise a series of tests. And it certainly won’t develop your ad copy.

While there are definitely parts of paid search that can be automated, it is not something that you can just set and walk away from.  In fact, you can have the best tool in the business, but if you don’t have savvy and strategic search marketers “driving the bus,” it won’t get you too far.

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Call ‘em the Click-Change Artists. A new social media movement centers around the notion that doing good no longer requires rolling up your sleeves at the soup kitchen or seeking out neighborhood artists to support (though we’d certainly never disparage such types of old-fashioned philanthropy). The web now offers a new way for too-busy types to donate their time — and bucks — to feel-good enterprises. And, judging by the response, social media enthusiasts are more than happy to oblige.

Case in point: Social media phenom The Pepsi Refresh Project — where webizens vote for what social causes they think should receive a donation from the soda giant — has now garnered more votes than the last Presidential election. Other sites like mammoth microlending facilitator Kiva.org allows Bob in Boise to pledge a small sum (starting at $25) to a fledgling businessman in rural Africa — and nearly 800,000 people have forked over $160M on the site to date. Later this year, Facebook co-founder Chris Hughes expects to launch non-profit-focused networking site Jumo.com, aimed at directly pairing up regular people and hard-working organizations on the ground in needy spots like Haiti.

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