Social media is an invaluable tool for marketers, but it’s important to remember that it’s not magic. It’s just a tool, nothing more. Starting an account on Twitter or building a Facebook fan page is pointless unless you also reach out and engage the people behind the curtain, the ones who actually make the magic happen-your influential customers. While each and very customer is valuable and it’s important to treat all of them with respect, as Jay Baer pointed out the other day, when it comes to social media, some customers are more equal than others, both more inclined and better equipped to advocate for your brand.
In fact, a study by Forrester Research shows that when it comes to “influence impressions” generated on social networks like Facebook and Twitter, 6.2% of online adults are responsible for 80% of those impressions. When it comes to “influence posts,” such as blog posts and posts on review sites, 13.4% of online adults create 80% of the posts. So, while you obviously want to treat all of your customers right, it’s worth making a special effort to keep these folks engaged and talking about your company. But how do you know who they are?
Jay Baer recommends targeting your marketing efforts toward those demographic groups which contain the highest numbers of influencers, and that’s not a bad way to get started. However, wouldn’t it be nice to know exactly who your most influential customers are, and to be able to reach out them and reward them personally? That’s one of the things that Dukky allows you to do-pinpoint exactly which of the customers responding to your direct mail or email campaigns are sharing your offer with their friends and families, as well as showing you which of your respondents’ were able to generate the most responses for you via social sharing. With our technology, you can watch in real-time as your offer travels across Facebook and Twitter, as well as by email and SMS.
Once you’ve found out who your most influential customers are, it makes sense to try to reward them. After all, if someone is bringing you a lot of new customers, giving them a little something back is simply a good business practice.
