Moderator:
Todd Steinman, COO m80
Panelists:
Elisabeth Osder, Senior VP, Audience Development, Buzznet.com
Bryan Taback, Senior Manager Ad Solutions, Flickr/Yahoo!
Kari Hooper, Online Video and Display, YouTube/Google
Rebecca Keen, Account Manager for Showtime, Outrider
Alex Norman, CEO, LiveWorld WPP
The panel represented both social destinations from the engines (Flickr and YouTube) and vendors who offer advertisers a social platform to build a brand experience. While there may have been some members of the audience unsure whether social marketing belongs in their marketing toolbox, the panelists of the Social Marketing session left no doubt that not only does it belong, but it's also the key to harnessing the most engaged segment of your audience.
m80's Todd Steinman tossed some thought provoking questions at the panel including where and how social marketing fits in the search marketing mix. Panelists shared stories about advertisers who are successfully leveraging social marketing, but most of the panelists agreed that the social space can require a different set of metrics.
Bryan Taback from Flickr said he believes the industry needs to come together on metrics. Kari Hooper from YouTube said that while Google is ROI driven, YouTube and FeedBurner are different animals. She said she believes YouTube is a brand accelerator and that the metrics are currently best aligned with upper funnel objectives like brand awareness. Meanwhile, Alex Norman from LiveWorld said that the metrics depend on the goals of the client. He pointed to a case study of ebay who wanted to save money on CRM and used LiveWorld to build QA forums for power sellers. An independent study from Harper Business Review was able to show a 54% increase in revenue from power sellers who used the QA forums.
Where Should Social Content Live?
Steinman asked the panel where is the best place for social content to live -- on yoursite.com or in the social space? To maximize traffic, Hooper said to place the content in both places -- on YouTube and embedded on your website. But she advised that you plan the next step you want them to take. Do you want them to continue to digest video content, participate on your branded YouTube channel or would you rather lead them back to your site so you can collect registration information.
Social Search Strategies
Delving into social strategies, Rebecca Keen from Outrider related her experience successfully combining paid search with social on a campaign for Showtime. Keen reported that their campaign goal to generate viewings of video previews for the Tudors was engineered by showing teaser videos on YouTube, distributing content via RSS and using a paid search campaign which went “outside the box” by targeting keywords related to English architecture, the monarchy, the lead actor and the royal family.
Closing Points and Advice
- Taback: Graphical ads on Flickr are new. Few advertisers are taking advantage. Advice: Plan ahead for a viral campaign (at least 2 months) so you'll have time to plug in any technology needed to support it.
- Hooper: They are working with Google to improve YouTube search functionality and get more "Googley." Advice: Advertisers can help visibility through optimization of titles, description as well as promotion to increase participation (views and ratings). Biggest mistake is believing that all you have to do is post something on YouTube to make it viral.
- Osder: Create rich, authentic experiences. Take full advantage of the passion of the community and power of the platform. Advice: Create free, compelling, shareable content and promote the hell out of it. It's work!
- Norman: Content in multiple destinations is important to drive traffic. To create a premium brand experience you want to drive people back home. User generated content (UGC) requires moderating, compliance and standards policing.
Q&A:
Can brands mitigate risk?
An audience member asked how a "polarizing" brand can enter the social space with little risk. Steinman replied that it's important for clients to understand that when working in social space you lose all control. What’s not apparent to them he said is that “control has already been lost.”
Norman responded that for brands with controversy there's already a conversation online, it's just outside your turf. He asked why wouldn't a brand want to join the conversation -- to invite the influencers both pro and con onto their turf, "... or do you let the conversation go into the wild, wild West?"
What social opportunities are there for B2B?
- Steinman: B2B is no different. Make sure that the content you are creating has great pass-along value to the target audience and that you use relevant tools to promote the spread.
- Hooper: Private channels can be created on YouTube for something like training videos. It can be an effective way to train a remote sales force.
- Taback: B2B companies can set up private group on Flickr too. Companies can use tools like Delicious for community bookmarking to share internally or with clients and distributors.
- Lisa
