Just ask Betty White...
If you think for a second you're not ready to develop a social
media strategy, ask Betty White what she thinks of that. No
story in recent memory better illustrates the impact of social
media than Betty White's recent Facebook success. Thing is,
Betty White wasn't even involved. A group of fans took to Facebook lobbying Saturday Night Live to
ask Betty White to host an upcoming show. And after almost a
half million fans joined the Facebook movement, an awesome thing
happened. On Sunday, March 7th, 2010, Betty confirmed to
People that she agreed to host an upcoming episode of
SNL. SNL listened!!! How cool and what a testament to a brand
paying attention to its audience's requests. I mean, isn't
that what social media's all about?
So what does this mean to marketers? It means that the
only way to succeed is to create a product people want and like.
And you better pay attention when they ask you for something. Some
brands are. Starbucks, for example, has taken it to the level
where they are creating products based on their consumers'
requests. Embracing the dialogue has landed them over 6 million
fans on Facebook. And then you look at brands that haven't
paid attention to consumer demands, like that airline who didn't
listen to musician David Carroll when he complained their luggage
handlers mishandled and broke his guitar. David's video has already achieved over 8
million views on YouTube. Looking at the comments, not caring about
their customer, or at least not listening to their customer, has
not favored so well for that brand.
I've said it so many times it's beginning to sound cliché, but I
will say it again. THE CONVERSATION ABOUT YOUR BRAND WILL
OCCUR REGARDLESS OF WHETHER OR NOT YOU JOIN THE CONVERSATION!
So just ask Betty White. There's nothing better than having a
lot of fans-Fans you can call your friends. Your friends will
support you. They will go so far as to fight for you if they
believe in you. So give them a reason to like you.