We will follow a product or service recommendation of a friend or colleague, but not one from the organization that makes or provides that product/service, why?
Trust. We have more trust in our friends and colleagues because we have a human relationship with them. Rapport has been built over time with them (the length of time doesn't necessarily matter). Often with a friend or colleague, there is not an agenda to sell something to each other from the onset of the relationship. That allows some level of vulnerability and/or candor to enter into the relationship building process over time, which helps accelerate and solidify trust. Brands are often interrupting one's attention and priorities to force an opportunity to build a relationship. This is true even in the most consultative of selling processes. It often doesn't work because if the desire to build a trusted relationship of any kind is not mutual, the balance of power between the parties is off, and the "interrupted" party will be guarded in their interactions with the other. A creators' output is subjective.
When a fandom begins to grow around a creator and their output it’s still subjective. However, when those fans continue to support that creator it’s an objective observation that the subjectivity of the creator/their output has real value. ![]() User Generated Content (UGC) works. Why? Because there is an immediate genuine connection between the person sharing their story and the person listening to that story (consuming that content). The two parties are bonded by a similar need, or the seeking of a similar solution. One has identified and experienced a particular solution and the other (the one consuming the content) is usually seeking such a solution and wants to see themselves in the person sharing their story -- do they have a similar situation to mine, do they think about the need in a similar way, have their struggles to find a solution been similar? If yes, the UGC will likely resonate in a far more effective (and less-biased) way than if the company making the product the content is talking about would have created that same content. Thus, the content will likely be better at provoking action from the viewer/reader/listener, ideally toward a sale. I don't often talk about consumer products and customer marketing advocacy (CMA) tactics as most of my CMA experience is in the B2B world, but the fundamental reason it works overlaps either realm, though the execution is often a bit different. I thought I'd share an example (see image) that speaks to my own interests, guitars. Glarry guitars are entry-level instruments that are surprisingly good for their low price point. What Glarry does well, in my opinion, is they don't shy away from UGC right on their website. In fact, they encourage it. People who purchase a guitar from Glarry are provided the opportunity to share a review of the product that ends up right on their site, and Glarry even encourages people to do unboxing videos and share their opinions about their products -- good, bad, and beyond. These reviews -- and especially the video reviews -- are helping Glarry extent their brand marketing reach (as most reviewers providing a video review have that same video on their YouTube channel), and these reviews are driving new sales. It helps that the product is good enough to get more positive than negative reviews. P.S. I actually own this Telecaster-style semi-hallow body electric guitar with a humbucker neck pickup, and for the price it's a really fun little guitar with some great tone. Plus, I was able to find it for cheaper on Amazon here: https://amzn.to/45vAOru (affiliate). The following are the elements we need to make a digital customer advocacy program work well. Strategy Identify ongoing value for customers so there is a reason they want to participate and it becomes a way to build a relationship with them over time. Ongoing Customer Recruitment Have a multi-pronged approach to consistently add new customer members to your program. This means enabling all customer-facing teams to help, create new customer onboarding procedures, and even empowering current members to easily refer their coworkers. Provide Consistent, Relevant Content and/or Value Understand your membership, what they find valuable and what will help them in their individual roles and careers. Then keep providing such value and they will come back and engage. Give, Give, Give, before you ask to Get. Care. Be Human. Find Ways to Help or Connect People Focus on the individual vs. their org. Help them navigate their roles, their career, the general professional landscape and most importantly, help them network or facilitate connections that can provide real benefit to their role or future career. Be as Expedient in Responding to People As You Can (Self-explanatory) Celebrate Your Members Everyone wants to be seen and heard. Recognize the individuals in your membership. Most individuals don't even get recognition for their work within their own companies, which is sad but true. Recognizing someone's hard work and contributions goes a long way toward that individual offering up further discretionary effort. Easily Empower Customer Members to Advocate for Your Brand The path for customers to advocate should have little friction, and the benefit to them of advocating should ideally outweigh the effort required to be involved. If you've done the above, this last line item will be made a lot easier, and produce more of the results you're after with your program. Connect with Nick on LinkedIn |
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December 2024
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