@ is the Universal Sign of Engagement

							@ is the Universal Sign of Engagement
By Brian Solis, industry-leading blogger at BrianSolis.com and principal of research firm
Altimeter Group, Author of the highly acclaimed books on social business The End of Business
as Usual and Engage!




For decades, companies were very good at pushing messages into markets and talking at people
rather than with them. Now companies are embracing the idea of two-way interaction. Monitoring
conversations is becoming standard procedure as small and enterprise businesses alike make
substantial investments in tools such as Radian6, Sprial16 and Brandtology. And, not only are
companies monitoring conversations, they’re adopting social media management systems (SMMS)
such as Seesmic and CoTweet to operationalize conversations and platforms such as Objective
Marketer, PeopleBrowsr and Buddy Media to automate engagement campaigns.


(cc) Brian Solis, www.briansolis.com - Twitter, @briansolis
There’s a difference between monitoring and listening and there’s certainly a difference between
conversations and engagement. How social media is employed today promotes monitoring as a
reporting function and conversations as a symptom of reaction. In many ways, the state of social
media is eerily reminiscent of traditional marketing. We’re fooled into a sense of collaboration and
co-creation because people can respond. But programs are not measured by functionality, they are
valued by the value customers take away from the experience. It begs the question, is social media
in actuality anti-social?

New media philosophies, while rich with good intentions, are confined by the culture of the
organization they’re designed to help. Corporate culture is pervasive and planted. It is not anything
that will change suddenly because of the popularity of Twitter and Facebook no matter how strong
your case. Culture shock takes place because a business is subjected to the harsh reality that
customers no longer support the way business is conducted.

Value is not Stated, It’s Delivered…and It’s Felt

Social Media offers a window to the future and a means to earn relevance, nothing less, nothing
more. It is an enabler to reinvigorate the mission and vision of the company and extend its value only
when the purpose and value have been redefined for a new generation of consumers. This is where
it all begins. Otherwise, your engagement strategies activate a timer that counts down the journey to
irrelevance.

People have choices. They have options. They can make decisions with or without you. How they’re
marketed to today is the beginning of the end of social media 1.0. Social streams are brimming with
information, promotions, and friend requests that compete for a finite amount of attention. Something
more is required and it’s needed now.

Brands are doing well at building communities in social networks once they realize that there’s an art
and science to engagement, content, entertainment, and community activation. But a community is
only as strong as the aftereffect that’s produced when it is tested. For example, do customers click
through to landing pages? What happens when they get there? Are referrals active and how do they
pan out? Are individuals addressing the problems or challenges of their peers when you can’t be
there? Or, are they merely interacting with each update within your domain because it’s easy to do
so?

@ and Found

The future of social networking lies in conveying value and delivering against the brand promise not
only within your communities but also in the communities you do not own and are not present. I refer
to this as the “@ and Found” formula for engagement. Businesses are getting better at monitoring
conversations where the brand name is mentioned. Some are proficient in comparing mentions to
the volume and reach of competitors. Mastering the cycle of monitoring goes beyond reporting
however. It must be supported by a conversation framework that pushes important opportunities to
engage or learn through the organization to return a response or trigger change or adaptation within.

A conversation framework has a beginning and an end with various pathways to business units and
functions in between. Responding to opportunities and communicating the act of listening and
adapting form a solid “@” quotient in this equation.

These individuals represent would-be advocates for your brand. If they’re happy with the product or
brand experience they are candidates for an ambassador or advocacy program. Note, advocacy



(cc) Brian Solis, www.briansolis.com - Twitter, @briansolis
programs require different engagement techniques than that of influencers. Advocates operate from
a genuine passion for what you do. Influencers operate from a basic perspective of, “what’s in it for
me.” They are most likely not customers or users of your product or service today.




As referenced in the image above, MarketingSherpa found that outside engagement represents a
greater degree of difficulty but equally offers a greater level of effectiveness.




(cc) Brian Solis, www.briansolis.com - Twitter, @briansolis
Responding to mentions is just the beginning. It’s the low hanging fruit of conversational marketing
and social media in general. The “Found” side of the calculation is where the future of brand
relevance takes shape. It’s not about who you engage with today or those that engage with you, it’s
about those who don’t. These prospects are active in your markets, your brand is just not an option
for whatever reason. It’s your job to figure out how to earn attention and significance among them
and the communities in which they populate and influence.

While advocates are discoverable by brand-related keywords, the “Founds” are identifiable by
keywords related to markets and interests.

- They define communities of opportunity
- Recommend other products and services
- Answer each others questions
- Share experiences
- Earn authority on subjects tied to your industry

Listening to what they say and understanding the challenges and opportunities they face provide
intelligence to inspire a meaningful engagement program. Once activated, the responses will funnel
through the existing listening and conversation framework to ensure continued engagement,
resolution and closure.

While the “@’s” represent an opportunity for advocacy, the “Founds” reveal potential influencers.
Earlier I mentioned a difference between conversations and engagement. Influencers do not gain
value from random acts of conversation. They do however, respond well to informed engagement
where value and mutual benefits are inherent in the outreach.

The next era of social media is not based on a one-to-many model but instead a one-to-one-to-many
continuum that naturally triggers a measurable social effect. Indeed, 1 + 1 = Many.




(cc) Brian Solis, www.briansolis.com - Twitter, @briansolis
We are situated in a market that is in transition. Operating with what we know must be balanced by
learning what we don’t know and then applying it to the mix based on the needs and expectations of



(cc) Brian Solis, www.briansolis.com - Twitter, @briansolis
our customers. Doing so may push us outside of our comfort zones, but in the end, it is how we earn
relevance today and over time. Welcome to the end of business as usual.

Connect with Brian Solis on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook



___
The New ENGAGE!: If you’re looking to FIND answers in social media and not short cuts, consider
either the Deluxe or Paperback edition




___
Click here for the Conversation Prism, Twitterverse, Behaviorgraphics, and Social Compass
posters…




___
Image Credit: Tristan Savatier – www.loupiote.com




(cc) Brian Solis, www.briansolis.com - Twitter, @briansolis
Brian Solis is principal at Altimeter Group, a research-based advisory firm. Solis is
globally recognized as one of the most prominent thought leaders and published
authors in new media. A digital analyst, sociologist, and futurist, Solis has studied and
influenced the effects of emerging media on business, marketing, publishing, and
culture. His current book, The End of Business as Usual helps companies rethink
business strategies to lead, not react to, the new consumer revolution. His previous
book Engage, is regarded as the industry reference guide for businesses to build and
measure success in the social web.




Connect with Brian Solis on Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook | Google+ | Youtube
---
Subscribe to the BrianSolis.com RSS Feed




(cc) Brian Solis, www.briansolis.com - Twitter, @briansolis