Content Sparks Conversation
I do not see
this as a one versus another debate. This is how I see the relationship between
the two— you must bring great content to the conversation, and this will
hopefully bring the conversation to your great content, and then your products,
brand and company.
Greenburg (2009)
states that “without content, there is not a whole lot to talk about” and I agree
with this statement. Content is what lights the spark of conversation in social
media. If content, including writing, photos, video and audio, is not
interesting and relevant to readers, it will not spark too much conversation
because no one will have anything to say about it. On the other hand, if
content is well-targeted to readers, interesting, relevant, and useful or
entertaining, some people will be moved enough to comment, reply to or like
your content. Content sparks conversation.
The conversation
itself is important as well when trying to build relationships with customers
in this new social era we are all operating in. People post comments and
questions on social media, talking to a company, and expect to be answered in a
timely manner by someone with the company. And not just anyone at the business,
someone that actually has the authority to fix their problem.
Responding to
all user posts and mentions on social media is something all companies should
be striving for. Not responding on social media is equal to ignoring someone on
the street talking to you, which we all know is rude. Yet some companies ignore
customers on social media every day. If a business is trying to start a
conversation around its brand, products or company, goal number one should be
to respond to all mentions that are questions or inquires.
Content Consumption on Mobile Devices
I think the
real question communicators should be asking is—how must our content change to
adapt to mobile? Smartphone and tablet usage has continued to grow exponentially
since 2007 when the iPhone was first launched. The adoption and usage of mobile
devices has shown no sign of slowing down. Currently, 119 million people, or
51% of the U.S. populations own smartphones (Flosi, 2012). Businesses need to
accept the fact that mobile is an essential part of future content consumption,
and figure out how to create a positive user experience for their content on
mobile devices.
Many content
marketers still do not have a mobile website or mobile app. I get so annoyed
when I see a headline in my Twitter feed on my phone that I really want to
read, and I click through to read the article, and I cannot see the text because
it is so small, or even worse, the mobile website is not even functional. I have
literally given up on some well-known blogs and websites on my phone until they
create a mobile version (which many of them have not done yet).
The mobile
traffic to the Forbes website has grown from 10% to 25% in just 10 months, and
Chief Product Officer Lewis D’Vorkin says “there’s no question that our mobile
traffic will continue to rise” (O’Regan, 2012). This is just one of many
examples of the huge growth in mobile content consumption. According to
ComScore (Flosi, 2012), 54% of smartphone owners use mobile apps, 52.6% use the
browser, and 39% access social networking websites or blogs from their mobile
device. Companies must starting preparing, testing and trying to figure out
mobile content consumption now.
References
Greenberg,
M. (20 October 2009). Content is King of Social Marketing. Multichannel
Merchant. Retrieved on 11/2/12 from WVU eCampus.
O’Regan, R.
(19 September 2012.) 3 Reasons to adopt a “mobile first” strategy. Emedia
Vitals. Retrieved on 11/12/12 from http://www.emediavitals.com/content/3-reasons-adopt-mobile-first-strategy
Flosi, S. (2
November 2012). comScore Reports September 2012 U.S. Mobile Subscriber Market
Share. ComScore. Retrieved on 11/12/12 from http://www.comscore.com/Insights/Press_Releases/2012/11/comScore_Reports_September_2012_U.S._Mobile_Subscriber_Market_Share
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