Social Media Influence

Social Media Influence
Only 10 percent are influencers or opinion leaders. It takes time, committment and an ability to communicate to be an influencer

The concept of opinion leadership - that 90 percent of the world is influenced by the other 10 percent - came out of a study conducted by Lazarsfeld, Berelson and Gaudet.back in 1944. Chasing the Influencers is the search for that 10% and has long been a part of a PR and marketing.

In that early study opinion leaders are defined as people who are more influential within their social networks than others. Isn't that interesting - within their social networks. The more things change the more they stay the same.

They consider themselves experts in a specific area of interest and are asked for advice in this area. (Katz and Lazarsfeld 1955.) Now that sounds familiar - did I see a recent study that showed that word of mouth and peer reveiws are the top influencers prior to decision or purchase?

Opinion leaders select information in these areas and then pass it on to others. In the process of reporting to others they more or less consciously modify the items of information they transmit.

A study conducted at Hamburg University looked into what opinion leaders really know and if they have the competence to influence others. Their view? 

There might be different types of opinion leaders: those, who know a lot, influence others and are asked for advice; and opinion leaders with comparably low levels of information, but good communicative skills to compensate.

In Edelmans' whitepaper on measuring social media influence they speak about "meme starters" and "meme spreaders".

So what makes someone an influencer today?.

1. Knowledge - and that has not changed.
2. Good communication skills. Look at the Forrester Social Technographics Scale and you'll see that only 13 percent are creators of content online.  
3. A platform and an audience.  The Internet has made it possible for everyone to have the power of voice, but some rise to the top.But we've moved from 'how many' to 'who.'  The size of your readership does matter, but in many cases who you are reaching and how much they trust you matters more 
4. Good content is still the attraction.
5. Who links to you. Google pays attention to this and so does Technorati. And it is one measure of influence.
6. Activity in Social Networks. Search Engine Land has a post about social  media success that made me weary just reading it. Being an influencer takes a lot of work.

And there is one big caveat for PR and marketers in all this research - the Internet has changed what we know and how we access information. We are no longer willing to sit pasaively by and be fed marketing messages. Individuals who speak from the heart might be influencing their audience. It's not likely to be done by a corporation.

 

See Also

• Read the PRoactive Report
  If you need a guide to the tricky waters of social media the PRoactive Report covers one aspect in depth each month

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PR's get the theory of blogging, but need guidance on implementation
A survey done late last year reveals PR pereceptions about blogging

PR's as a general rule 'get' blogging, but a new survey shows some big gaps in knowledge of how to implement a blog successfully.

PR's do understand the benefits of blogging and are very aware that as a form of communication to stakeholders it can be very valuable:

• 94.4% agreed or strongly agreed that blogging can humanise a company.
• 93.8% disagreed or strongly disagreed with the statement ‘corporate blogging is a failure if it does not improve sales or increase a company’s share price’

And they do get that there are 'rules of engagement' when blogging:

• 96.9% said that being open and honest about your company in a blog is vital if the blog is to be successful

However, although PR's clearly understand the theoretics of blogging, there is still some way to go in the implementation of this theory. A large number of PR's are still sceptical of the potential for blogging, they lack trust in their clients and are reluctant to relenquish control.

• 50% said that ghostwriters could be used to provide the content for corporate blogs
• 50% of PR's stated that employees should only be allowed to blog if there was a formal set of guidelines which they had to follow
• 50.8 % said that they would not trust their clients to blog without their direct input
• Just 3.1% said that bloggers should have no restraints on their blogging practices.

Web 2.0 is a new medium. Some of the old rules do apply, but some definitely don't. Knowing which ones to use when means learning new skills.

Social media should be a part of your PR strategy in 2008. People do want to have a conversationj with you and they want to contribute ideas and opinions. Heck, your evangelists will even do your marketing for you, if you give them the right tools.

But before you rush in and make mistakes, get social media training and blog coaching and do it right.

See Also

• Full PR and corporate blogging survey data, methodology and results
  Background literature and survey data on this study is available here

Conversational Marketing is Actually a PR Technique
PR Can Learn From Successful Online Ad Campaigns

In a recent post about who is in the conversation John Batelle that while the  online conversation has very obvious benefits for the users, one of the troublemsome spots has been how do we keep it going and still pay the rent?  Or the hosting, in this case.

Most writers who have a following online write because it's a passion. Readers/viewers come back because the content is compelling and they value the conversation.

Batelle makes the case that advertisers who are joining the conversation - those who are brave and innovative enough to learn the grammar and language - get the most bang for their marketing buck.

He cites some good examples in this long post about Conversational Marketing

Advertisers who use the medium to actually talk to their readers and get their  feedback?   Now where have I heard the phrases 'establishing and maintaining relationships with your audience' and  'creating a climate of mutual understanding between an organization and its publics'?  Oh yes, it's in the definition of public relations.

Seems the ad folk are using PR tactics, And it's working.  

Take a leaf out of their book. Figure out where the your particular pilgrims are pitching their tents and learn the language and grammar of their conversation.

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SEO and Marketing Basics Are Top of Mind for 2008
Two thirds focus on basics and almost half plan to do SEO

A survey of 1700 MENG (Marketing Executives Networking Group) members conducted by Anderson Analytics, shows  key areas for 2008 are:

• Marketing basics (60% "Very Important") which include specific concepts such as customer satisfaction, customer retention, segmentation, brand loyalty and ROI were of greatest interest.
• Search Engine Optimization (42%) had relatively wide appeal, and cut across marketers in all fields.
• "Green Marketing" (32%) was another important emerging concept and it was identified as the trendiest marketing buzzword.

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• Marketing Execs Say Basics Are Most Important in 2008
  This is the first of a series of studies by MENG which will make a major contribution to the growing effectiveness of marketing.

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