Archive for the ‘Best Practices’ Category
Monday, April 30th, 2012
 Kyle Lacy - Principal, Marketing Research and Education, ExactTarge By Allan Maurer
Today’s world of digital marketing is not a nine-to-five job. “It doesn’t matter when you’re working, it matters when the customer is buying and using your product,” says Kyle Lacy, principal for marketing reserch and education at ExactTarget, which sells interactive marketing solutions.
“If you’re a retailer and you are not following and using social media on a Saturday, one of the biggest retail days of the week, do you have an issue? In my mind you do. If I’m having a bad experience and tweeting about it in your store but I don’t get an answer until Monday, you missed an opportunity.”
Lacy is the author of two critically acclaimed books, Twitter Marketing for Dummies (2nd ed) and Branding Yourself (2nd ed). Prior to ExactTarget, Kyle co-founded a marketing technology company, helping over 350 clients build and deliver digital marketing experiences. He is one of dozens of top speakers at the upcoming Digital Summit in Atlanta May 9-10.
At the event he’ll focus on stories about clients who used email, social, and mobile channels to attract new customers, build community, and increase sales performance.
The rise of media where people can send a live message to millions in a split second has destroyed the traditional idea of marketing communications, Lacy says.
Branding Yourself
In his book, “Branding Yourself,” Lacy explains how business owners and employees can tell a story that applies specifically to the business or owner “So people remember you for what you’re good at.”
Lacy says, “We all have stories that are unique to us and no one else can tell that story.” To tell it, he adds, “You need to understand what you do best.”
He recommends starting by writing a one-sentence pitch. “What do you do best and and want people to remember? If someone asks us what ExactTarget does, they not going to remember we’re an interactive marketing hub, so we tell a story about how a specific client uses us to generate more business.”
To be effective, you have to make your story personal and memorable. “It’s like those old sales videos where they tell you if you see a bass plaque on the customers wall, be sure to talk about fishing. It’s the same idea.
We discussed the way marketers are using Twitter, which some reports say is not a particularly good channel for sales.
“How you use Twitter depends upon your company and your strategy,” Lee says. “It can be used for lead generation and our research shows it does drive traffic. The question is whether social drives traffic to lead generation opportunities such as webinars and such. “It’s a quick communication channel we’re seeing more and more companies use for customer service or education. It’s valuable if your customer is using it.”
Tags: branding yourself, Digital Summit, Exact Target, facebook, Kyle Lacy, Twitter marketing
Posted in Best Practices, Business advice, Events, Georgia, Internet/New Media, Marketing, Mobile, social media, Twitter | Comments Off
Friday, April 27th, 2012
 Laurie Hood - VP of Product Marketing, Silverpop By Allan Maurer
We’re always hearing that print is dead or that email is dead or that direct marketing is dead, but “Nothing in the marketer’s bag of tricks dies. Some just become less important,” says Laurie Hood, vice president of product marketing at Atlanta-based digital marketing firm Silverpop.
When it comes to email, a Silverpop focus, “Social is where people are having the conversation, but email is still where they are converting,” Hood says.
Hood is one of dozens of participants in the upcoming Digital Summit in Atlanta May 9-10. Fewer than 100 seats remain for conference, which includes sessions on Social, Mobile, Usability, Video, Search, Analytics, Email, Ecommerce, Data and more. It includes speakers from Google, Klout, Twitter, Pandora, The Onion, Huffington Post, myYearbook, Turner, Mashable and Adobe.
You have to be multichannel
Hood says that today’s marketer needs to be multi-channel. Some people may long for that time 20 years ago when you had a folder with product brochures and if fancy, a CD and, Hood says, “That was your whole world.”
Today’s prospects and customers, however, “Are multi-channel. So you have to figure out where your customers are and then what your participation in those channels will be.”
She adds, “You can’t not be in social channels and we see our clients using them as acquisition or for conversion connections, but ultimately, if you’re selling something, use email.”
Marketers have to analyze all the channels and decide on a strategy, she says. “Your CEO is going to read an article on Pinterest and come in wanting to know what your Pinterest strategy is.”
Still, she notes, “People are still struggling to find a return-on-investment through social channels.” Some vendors have even shut down their social storefronts.
Social channels do have their uses. Social sign-ins via Facebook or Twitter, for instance, make it much easier than filling out a form to subscribe to a newsletter, opt-in to a service, or register to receive offers.
Hood notes, “Seventy-percent of people prefer social sign-ins over forms.”
Three tips on multi-channel marketing
Hood offers the following advice on multi-channel marketing:
First, she says, “Grow your email database using your social networks. Add email opt-in and lead generation forms to your Facebook page.
Next, “Design campaigns around the idea of social sharing using buttons and that underlying technology. Think of content that’s going to be suitable to share on social networks.
And then, she concludes, “You’ll want to understand the social sharing patterns of your customers and prospects. Identify key influencers and provide them with specific offers and content to share in their social channels.
Tags: Allan Maurer, Atlanta, Digital Summit, email, facebook, influencers, Laurie Hood, multi-channel marketing, Silverpop, social
Posted in Best Practices, Business advice, Events, Facebook, Georgia, Internet/New Media, Marketing | Comments Off
Thursday, April 26th, 2012
 The most common management mistake has an easy remedy: don’t keep employees in the dark. In a new Accountemps survey, 41 percent of chief financial officers (CFOs) interviewed said lack of communication between staff and management is the most frequent misstep companies make in managing their teams.
Lack of recognition and praise was cited by 28 percent of respondents.
The survey was developed by Accountemps, the world’s first and largest specialized staffing service for temporary accounting, finance and bookkeeping professionals.
It was conducted by an independent research firm and is based on interviews with more than 1,400 CFOs from a stratified random sample of U.S. companies with 20 or more employees.
| CFOs were asked, “What one mistake do companies make most in managing their employees?“ Their responses: |
|
| Lack of communication between staff and management |
41% |
| Lack of recognition and praise |
28% |
| Lack of training, development and/or educational opportunities |
11% |
| Lack of flexibility in work schedules |
8% |
| Lack of authority given to employees |
6% |
| Don’t know/no answer |
6% |
|
100% |
“Employees want to be kept in the loop and feel appreciated,” said Max Messmer, chairman of Accountemps and author ofHuman Resources Kit For Dummies 2nd edition (John Wiley & Sons, Inc.).
“An organization can only be successful if its employees have the information and support they need to do their jobs well and a forum for two-way communication.”
Accountemps highlights five things managers should say to employees on a regular basis:
- “Here’s what’s happening.” Whether it’s updates on the company’s financial performance, department initiatives or group projects, keep staff abreast of organizational information that affects them and their responsibilities. Keeping people in the dark will lead to tension and rumors.
- “Do you have what you need?” Take the time to find out if your team members have the right resources to perform their work effectively.
- “Thank you.” Thank and praise staff who go above and beyond. Call attention to successes by highlighting them in staff meetings and sending a groupwide email recognizing those who helped and copying relevant managers.
- “What challenges are you facing?” Often, employees are hesitant to voice concerns when problems arise. It’s essential to proactively ask staff members what’s going on and how you may be able to help.
- “How can we improve the company?” Invite staff members to suggest things they can do to help achieve business objectives. You may be pleased to discover how innovative and resourceful your employees are.
Tags: Accountemps survey, Best Practices, Business advice, flexible work schedules, lack of communication, most common management mistake, recognition and praise
Posted in Best Practices, Business advice, Studies, surveys, reports | Comments Off
Wednesday, April 25th, 2012
More than twenty percent of IT organizations that manage between 2-7 TB of data suffered a data loss in the past year—in fact, more than half of this group suffered 2-3 costly data losses, according to cloud backup and recovery firm EVault.
Each had an estimated average cost of 2-5 percent of total company revenues, according to new survey released today, commissioned by Cloud-Connected backup and recovery leader EVault Inc., a Seagate Company (NASDAQ:STX).
Survey participants from the US Northeast put this figure as high as 10 percent.
“Companies are not only consolidating their backup sites, they’re also decreasing the distance between them. This is a red flag for companies whose DR sites are close enough that they could be affected by the same disaster.”
“As we peeled away the layers on this research, a troubling picture emerged: The level of data loss is huge, and only a few organizations are employing data protection best practices,” said Terry Cunningham, president and general manager of EVault.
“When largely preventable data loss conservatively costs businesses hundreds of millions of dollars annually, it is time to rethink your priorities. Our survey reinforces that protecting digital assets can bring far-reaching benefits well beyond that of securing a competitive advantage – it can also prevent significant economic loss.”
According to the EVault study, the key drivers for adopting data protection were company best practices combined with competitive differentiation —for the first time edging out the long-time favorite, regulatory compliance.
Cloud-Based Disaster Recovery an SMB Opportunity for 2012
Widespread lack of data protection readiness is highlighted in a related report from an independent Forrester Research Inc. report, “State Of Enterprise Disaster Recovery Preparedness, Q2 2011,” published May 18, 2011.
According to Forrester, “Companies are not only consolidating their backup sites, they’re also decreasing the distance between them. This is a red flag for companies whose DR sites are close enough that they could be affected by the same disaster.”
“We’ve seen the benefits that remote, Cloud-connected storage and disaster recovery services provide to an organization, and moving data to the cloud is a very practical and cost-effective way to manage and secure those IT assets,” said Cunningham.
“There are still huge opportunities for companies to improve their overall disaster recovery strategies by incorporating off-premise solutions and integrating mobile devices into the equation. We believe we will see greater adoption in both areas in 2012.”
Organizations with over 1,000 employees are more likely than smaller businesses to have a remote disaster recovery plan in place. US companies outperformed their international peers in similar occurrences.
The Threat to Mobile Data: So Many Users, So Few Protections
The difficulty of protecting company data residing on mobile devices stood out as one of the more serious threats from the survey. Although 95 percent of US organizations said company information resides on employees’ mobile devices (laptop computers, tablets and smart phones), 40 percent of these have no plan to deal with this potential vulnerability.
Expertise and Awareness: Key to Channel Growth?
The survey reveals that more than half of US respondents, 54 percent, utilize at least one service provider to support data recovery, while 21 percent opt not to.
Good news for the reseller channel: 25 percent of survey respondents said they would like to use local providers but are unaware of any with the relevant expertise. If they could find providers with the right expertise, 42 percent would consider outsourcing their backup and recovery needs.
IT Decision Makers Dread Giving Bosses Bad News
On a lighter note, almost half, 48 percent, of all respondents noted that they would rather perform a solo of Lady Gaga’s Poker Face at their company holiday party than inform the company’s senior leadership that vital company data has been lost and is unrecoverable.
Furthermore, 17 percent of those surveyed would rather have their teeth pulled without using painkillers than inform their bosses of the loss of critical data.
Tags: data loss costly, Evault, security survey
Posted in Best Practices, infographic, Internet/New Media, Security, Studies, surveys, reports | Comments Off
Wednesday, April 25th, 2012
 Market Strategies International released its inaugural Social Media Brand Index, which provides a rigorous view of how top brands across different industries succeeded in social media in 2011.
We’re not surprised to see many of the names on the top 20 list from the index. Starbucks has been a leader in the use of social media marketing from the start, as have Amazon, Disney, Google and Nike.
The Index also shares five insights every marketer should consider when analyzing social media investments.
“Companies are swimming in web analytics, but they often have no idea where they are in relation to other swimmers,” said Theo Downes-Le Guin, a consultant to Market Strategies and its former chief research officer.
“Our Index rank orders nearly 150 leading brands across industries as well as the most social brands by industry.”
Here’s the top 20 most social brands revealed by the index:
Market Strategies specifically built this Index to address the effect of sponsored – not just “naturally occurring” – social media content and interactions. The underlying premise is that four elements drive a successful brand presence in social media:
- Volume: The number of conversations that contain a consumer opinion, emotion or behavior.
- Net Sentiment: The ratio of positive to negative sentiments expressed about a brand.
- Positive Emotions: The number of content items that are identified as having positive emotions.
- Sponsored Presence: The number of “likes” on a company-sponsored Facebook page, the number of followers on a corporate-sponsored Twitter account(s) and the number of subscribers to sponsored YouTube channel(s).
Downes-Le Guin added, “We’re still very early in the game in terms of understanding and analyzing social media marketing efforts, and we’re years away from an agreed-upon ROI model. But, we believe social media will remain an important part of the marketing mix and our ability to validly demonstrate that importance will grow over time.”
Five key takeaways emerged from the study that may be instructive for marketers who struggle with how to support their brands using social media:
- Diversity of social channels and tactics is critical to success.
- Every industry has a different “right” level of social.
- Reach without positive sentiment is a short-term win.
- Not all sponsored channels are equal.
- Measuring success requires mashing up data sources.
Download Market Strategies’ 2011 Social Media Brand Index to see full rankings and learn more about the key takeaways.Read more at FreshMR.
Tags: Adidas, Apple, Blackberry, Canon, Coca Cola, Ford, Google, Gucci, Honda, IBM, Market Strategies International, McDonalds, Microsoft, Nike, Panasonic, RIM, Samsung, Starbucks, top 20 social brands 2011
Posted in Amazon, Apple, Best Practices, Google, Internet/New Media, Marketing, Microsoft, social media, Studies, surveys, reports | Comments Off
Wednesday, April 25th, 2012
 New professional and managerial level employees face a make-or-break ‘race for impact’ as businesses demand more from staff during the tough economic climate, according to a global study from recruitment solutions company, Futurestep.
The good performance of a new employee at this level is three times more valuable than retention. And three quarters (76 percent) of those surveyed now measure the impact of new recruits within their first 12 months.
The inaugural Futurestep Global Talent Impact Study 2012: Understanding the Race for Impact surveyed over 1,500 HR professionals across five continents*, and examined their views of the impact of professional and managerial talent and how they measure it.
Only five percent of respondents believe that an employee at this level has the greatest positive impact after three years, reinforcing the short term focus of businesses.
Futurestep found that the most successful new professional and managerial hires demonstrate three ‘golden keys to success’:
- Decision quality - Makes accurate and good decisions
- Action oriented - Is quick to take initiative
- Customer focus - Is dedicated to meeting customers’ needs and expectations
But businesses’ focus on the short term means many organizations risk overlooking the valuable contributions this employee group makes over the longer term. Despite three quarters of them measuring performance in the first year, over a third of these (36 percent) admit that employees make the greatest impact after year one when they are actively contributing to the team and understand their organization’s culture and the over-arching business environment.
Highlights a risk
Byrne Mulrooney, CEO Futurestep said, “The study highlights a risk that employers may lose interest in new staff after twelve months, overlooking the fact that if they continue to develop and measure the impact of talented individuals, they can contribute to the long term strategic success of the business.”
“Fundamentally it’s about understanding how to unlock this potential beyond the honeymoon period. It’s crucial that businesses not only identify the competencies required to make an impact from day one, but also cultivate the skills that will continue to deliver benefits in the medium to long term. Businesses that adopt a more future-focused approach to measuring the impact of talent will be best placed to grow and prosper.”
To be successful in the long term, new hires need to:
- Show decision quality in year one – making good choices and importantly not making bad ones (18 percent viewed this as the most important skill if you are to make an impact in the first six months)
- Have good relationships with peers and your boss. This becomes more important in the medium term with 26 percent of respondents viewing poor relationships with bosses and 37 percent regarding peer relationships as reasons for limiting career progression
- Be able to motivate others (32 percent viewed this as having the greatest impact on the team) and demonstrate integrity and trust (20 percent said this was most likely to positively impact peers and stakeholders)
Mulrooney added: “To maximize the impact you make on the business, you need well thought out decisions, great ideas, and the ability to build good relationships with bosses and peers – these are the golden keys to success.”
He concluded: “The big challenge for organizations is to successfully spot these attributes in candidates and help them develop to their full potential beyond the first year. The research also suggests our industry is too often focused on the immediate performance of individuals as the main indicator of a successful recruitment process.
“Instead, we need to work together to develop and adopt more holistic approach to understanding of the value of HR in the long term and in driving business growth.”
For Byrne Mulrooney’s insights on the Global Talent Impact Study 2012: Understanding the Race for Impact¸ please watch the video here: at http://youtu.be/QyZJokrEL9s.
Tags: Futurestep, Global Talent Impact Study 2012, HR pros, tips for new hires
Posted in Best Practices, Business advice, Studies, surveys, reports, TechJobs | Comments Off
Tuesday, April 24th, 2012
 Establishing business credit first requires that your business has its own identity—separate from your personal identity, notes CreditDonkey.
For example, setting up a legal entity for your business, such as an LLC or corporation, is a like giving your business its own name and birth certificate. Instead of a using your social security number for a sole proprietorship, get your legal business entity its own tax ID (or EIN number).
Then, your business must operate entirely though its own identity. It’s that simple. The rest is all in the details.
Keep in mind the following tips for small business owners:
- When using a line of credit through a supplier, make sure you pay invoices on time. Doing so will usually help your business credit score.
- Be aware that not all suppliers report your line of credit or your payment history.
- Using business credit cards responsibly will also have a positive effect on your business credit history. Paying your entire balance each month will also help you get the most out of your rewards, like cash back, airline miles and travel perks.
- Remember to regularly check your business credit report to make sure it’s correct and up to date.
CreditDonkey created this infographic on how to build business credit:
Courtesy of: CreditDonkey
Tags: Business advice, CreditDonkey, How to build business credit, legal business entity, licenses, tax ID number4
Posted in Best Practices, Business advice, infographic, Money | Comments Off
Tuesday, April 24th, 2012
 A PC software survey by Embarcadero Technologies showed that 72% of information workers find their productivity reduced by having to search for, install and upgrade software on their PCs. Embarcadero, which just launched its AppWave store, conducted this survey online with 1500 North American Information Technology workers.
Personally, we’re independent contractors and do our own IT, so we encounter this problem as well. It can kill and afternoon or require evening or weekend work to find and install the right app for our needs – and particularly finding upgrades. Enterprise app stores may help solve that problem.
According to 84% of survey respondents, the ability to have self service, on-demand, one-click access to PC apps would be valuable. Almost 50% said having one-click access to PC software would be very or extremely valuable. A quarter of respondents said their company is looking at an Enterprise App Store, with 6% indicating their company is an early adopter and already has an Enterprise App Store in place.
Experience out of sync with expectations
“The whole experience of PC software is widely out of sync with how today’s workers want to interact with their software. We have all become familiar with the instantaneous process of accessing apps on our mobile phones and now, we want that on our desktop computers,” said Michael Swindell, senior vice president of product management and product marketing for Embarcadero.
“Today’s workers spend too much time in the antiquated method of acquiring software and installing it on their PCs and maintaining licenses. These methods have to change to keep up with today’s technologies. The growing trends of BYOD (Bring Your Own Devices) and the Consumerization of IT are pushing the need for “iTunes-like” app stores more than ever before,” said Swindell.
It is typical for IT departments to acquire software for most employees. However, the survey results show that the BYOD trend is occurring with 47% of respondents using alternative ways of acquiring their apps besides traditional IT installation.
Sixty-two percent of respondents have 16 or more applications on their PC at work, and fifty-six percent of information workers say they experience compatibility issues between various PC software applications.
According to IT research firm Gartner, “Enterprise app stores have the potential to improve business productivity by providing a broader variety of applications that better suit the variety of user needs,” in its February 1, 2012 report by Ian Finley entitled “Enterprise App Stores Reduce Risk and Improve Business Results.” Finley reports “Enterprise app stores can help software asset managers lower administration overhead and drive accountability and efficiencies through automation.”
Productivity Lost Equals Money Lost
The implications of this productivity loss impacts companies economically. On average, the reduction in productivity the respondents said they experienced translates to 67.1 hours of wasted time, costing their company $2,851.75 per employee, per year.
If you project that the dollars invested in each employee should produce a three to one return, than the impact to the revenue line of the company would be $8,555.25 per employee, per year.
Further information about the survey results can be found at
http://www.embarcadero.com/appwave/pc-software-survey2012.html
Tags: business productivity, BYOD, embarcadero, Enterprise app stores, IT workers, Michael Swindell
Posted in Best Practices, Internet/New Media, IT, Studies, surveys, reports | Comments Off
Tuesday, April 24th, 2012
 We’re always amazed when large, technologically sophisticated companies experience massive security leaks that end up costing them substantial amounts of money. But a new report suggests why they remain vulnerable despite putting significant cybersecurity measures in place.
Veracode’s annual “State of Software Security Report” reveals that 84 percent of web applications from public companies were deemed unacceptable when measured against the OWASP Top 10, a widely used industry standard list of critical and most frequently exploited web application vulnerabilities.
Non-web applications such as backend operational systems and desktop commercial applications in use at public companies also showed a poor performance with a 63 percent failure rate when measured against the CWE/SANS Top 25 – an industry standard list of critical non-web application vulnerabilities.
Unlike previous Veracode State of Software Security reports, this feature supplement hones in particularly on the vulnerabilities in the software applications of publicly traded companies, following new SEC guidance issued in the US last year relating to disclosure of cybersecurity risks in company filings.
Regulators looking at company cybersecurity
“Companies – particularly public ones – are beginning to be measured by regulators and investors on the strength of their cybersecurity solution and ability to protect intellectual property and customer data. This is a fundamental shift,” said Chris Wysopal, founder, CISO and CTO, Veracode.
“Companies can put all of the other cybersecurity controls in place but if there are application weaknesses, hackers have the will and time to find and exploit them. The issue simply can not be neglected anymore.”
He adds, “Over the last year some of the most prominent breaches that were carried out against the most preeminent names in business took advantage of weaknesses in software applications to infiltrate traditional perimeter defence security controls. This should be a wake up call. Particularly in public company disclosures, the issue needs to be discussed in much more detail.”
Public companies fare no better than companies at large on software security or developer knowledge: Despite public companies having greater compliance requirements and usually more funding, only 16 percent of public company web applications passed initial testing compared to 14 percent for all companies at large – as measured by compliance against the OWASP Top 10 industry standard.
Performance worse for public firms
The performance for non-web applications is worse for public companies, with 38 percent passing against the CWE/SANS industry standard opposed to 42 percent from all companies.
Reliance on third-party applications is widespread, but formal risk assessments are not: With many applications being bought as commercial-off-the-shelf applications, custom developed outsourced projects or software-as-a-service, managing the risks inherited from third parties is an important factor.
However, only one in five public companies has performed a formal verification on a third-party application, suggesting they are operating under a false sense of security or making an assumption that software procured from third-parties is secure upon entry.
New vulnerabilities being introduced
Flat prevalence rates since 2012: With the two most frequently exploited vulnerability types – XSS and SQL injections – showing a statistically flat incidence rate from the first quarter of 2010 to the fourth quarter of 2011, the results suggest that new vulnerabilities are being introduced at the same rate as known vulnerabilities are being remediated.
Many companies defining custom policy chose to measure applications against PCI: Over 40 percent of public companies who defined a custom policy chose to measure their application against PCI or the OWASP Top 10 standard which underpins PCI. The main focus is on vulnerabilities that are most frequently exploited such as SQL Injection and Cross-site scripting.
Tags: "State of Software Security" report, commercial apps, cybersecurity risks, desktop, public companies, software vulnerabilities, Veracode, web apps
Posted in Best Practices, Business advice, Internet/New Media, IT, Security, Studies, surveys, reports | Comments Off
Tuesday, April 24th, 2012
 Personal mobile devices used at work can present a security problem. A poll of ForeSee federal government clients shows that one-third of e-government websites currently has a functional mobile site or mobile app and more than half (53 percent) are planning or developing a mobile site, app, or both, providing evidence that federal government agencies are beginning to recognize the benefits and opportunity of the mobile channel for serving citizens.
The new findings come as part of the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) E-Government Satisfaction Index, a quarterly report on the state of customer satisfaction with e-government, which customer experience analytics firm ForeSee produces in partnership with the ACSI.
“Consumers are adopting smartphones and tablets in droves, and these mobile devices are transforming the way people access the Internet,” said Larry Freed, president and CEO of ForeSee.
“Mobile is the next frontier in e-government satisfaction. It is commendable that some federal agencies are budgeting for mobile platform development when they are facing other hurdles—like tighter security requirements and budget cuts—that private-sector companies do not necessarily have to worry about.”
Meanwhile, the quarterly update of the ACSI E-Government Satisfaction Index, also included in today’s report, shows that satisfaction with federal government websites remains high. The E-Government Satisfaction Index scores 75.2 on ACSI’s 100-point scale.
More than 300,000 survey responses were collected during the first quarter of 2012 to produce the Index. Satisfaction, though high, has hit a plateau and hasn’t varied more than 0.3 from the current score over the last seven consecutive quarters.
Satisfaction with government websites drive government efficiency by increasing the likelihood that citizens will turn to the website before other more costly channels. High satisfaction also increases the likelihood of positive word of mouth recommendations.
As smartphones and other mobile devices continue to proliferate, government agencies will have another efficient channel with which to serve its constituents .
“The online sectors of the economy generally outperform all other sectors in the ACSI, in part because the web is convenient and provides access to a plethora of information and options at the click of a mouse,” said Claes Fornell, founder of the ACSI.
“Mobile has the opportunity to take that convenience a step further because few people leave the house without their cell phone. They are as ubiquitous as your keys, and smartphones are still proliferating.”
“Federal agencies are lagging the private sector in building their mobile platforms, but federal employees are smartphone users, too, and e-gov webmasters are among the more tech savvy government employees,” said Dave Lewan, vice president of public sector business at ForeSee. “They see how mobile affects their own lives; how could they not see it in the future of citizen engagement?”
Tags: ACSI, American Customer Satisfaction Index, e-government, E-government satisfaction index, ForeSee, moible, smartphones
Posted in Best Practices, Government/Defense, Internet/New Media, Mobile, smartphones, Studies, surveys, reports, Tech life/Culture, Telecommunications | Comments Off
Tuesday, April 24th, 2012
 Contact centers can be noisy places to work. The sound and disruptions from the many calls taking place at the same time can result in missed sales opportunities, misunderstandings and reduced productivity.
A recent study conducted by Jabra and leading analyst firm, Frost & Sullivan, found that 73% of contact center managers surveyed rated quality headsets as the number one factor for creating a satisfactory work environment.
The study polled contact center managers in five countries around the globe to research the connection between a good sound environment, employee satisfaction and increased productivity in the contact center.
Noise disturbances a most prevalent issue
“One of the most prevalent issues reported by contact center managers is the noise disturbances that prevent ‘good conversations’ between the customer and agent from taking place,” said Kelly Myers, senior director of marketing, Jabra North America. “Our headset solutions not only allow contact center employees to clearly communicate with customers but they also provide the freedom to focus on the task at hand and therefore increase productivity.”
Distracting sounds that break the concentration of a contact center agent are an issue within both outbound and inbound contact centers. Ninety one percent of the contact center managers surveyed actively strive to reduce sound disturbances by removing background noise caused by loud coffee machines or copiers away from the active work area and by laying carpets over wooden floors. Just as important, 89% are working on improving the sound quality of the actual conversations.
Reducing noise is crucial
Reducing background noise is especially crucial for large contact centers with 500 or more agents. According to the survey, 95% of these managers were acutely aware of sound disturbances and, in addition to helping reduce the background noise, have chosen to implement headsets with noise cancellation features in order to optimize the sound quality of conversations.
Seventy three percent of managers polled responded that a quality headset was the most important factor in creating a good work environment in the contact center. That number jumped to 91% in large contact centers where managers said that a quality headset is key to reducing stress and increasing employee satisfaction – and thereby productivity.
“We firmly believe that contact centers of all sizes can realize the many benefits that a high-quality headset provides,” saidBrendan Read, industry analyst, Frost & Sullivan. “As our survey shows, the noise cancelation features of a quality headset are top of mind with contact center managers across the world.
The added values of call clarity and reduced sound disturbance will eventually lead to improved customer conversations, greater productivity, fewer distractions, and compliance with noise-at-work regulations.”
Tags: Call Center productivity, Jabra, noise cancelling headphones
Posted in Best Practices, Business advice, Digital Devices, Internet/New Media, Marketing | Comments Off
Tuesday, April 24th, 2012
Have you struggled trying to figure out what’s best for you with Facebook and Google privacy policies and settings? Despite considerable noise raised about the privacy policies of both companies, most people still find them confusing.
A new survey released today by global strategic branding firm Siegel+Gale (www.siegelgale.com) revealed confusion and frustration among consumers regarding Facebook and Google privacy policies. The survey of more than 400 respondents found that users have little understanding of how Facebook and Google track and store user information and activity, and how information is shared and with whom.
On a scale of 0 to 100 (with a score of 80 indicating good comprehension), respondents who reviewed Facebook’s and Google’s privacy policies scored 39 and 36, respectively, demonstrating low comprehension.
After reviewing the policies and answering questions through the Siegel+Gale SimplicityLab™, a proprietary quantitative research tool, many respondents said they might reduce the amount of information they give to Facebook and Google. Thirty-six percent of Facebook respondents and 37 percent of Google respondents said they would change their online behavior by using these sites less, adjusting their privacy settings and clearing their search histories.
Despite Google’s recent consolidation of its various privacy policies, survey respondents expressed more discomfort after reading the new, condensed policy. Forty-seven percent of respondents said they feel less comfortable with how Google collects and stores information about user activities than they do with Facebook’s practices.
Key findings include:
- Google and Facebook privacy policies are more confusing to users than credit card agreements and government notices. In similar studies, on average, 70 percent of respondents correctly answered comprehension questions for government notices and 68 percent of respondents provided the right answers for credit card agreements, far more than the percent of readers who correctly answered questions about Facebook’s and Google’s privacy policies.
- After reading the privacy policies, 47 percent of respondents felt less comfortable with how Google collects and stores information about activity. Only 33 percent of Facebook users felt comfortable.
 Facebook
- A major comprehension issue is requiring users to use an Application Programming Interface (API) to understand how their information is used. Less than 40 percent of Facebook users understood how an API can be used to access and view public information.
- Only 15 percent of users correctly understood what happens to their accounts after they’re deleted on Facebook.
- Just 20 percent of respondents could correctly identify how to block outside applications and websites from accessing their information on Facebook.
 Google
- Twenty-three percent of Google users understood that their profile is visible to anyone online.
- More than half of Google users interviewed were not aware that the privacy policy also applied to their use of Google Talk, Google Maps, YouTube and Blogger.
- Only 38 percent understood that Google connects search activity to a user’s IP address whether or not they sign into a Google account.
“The survey shows that there is an urgent demand among users to have greater access to succinct and transparent policy information,” said Thomas Mueller, global director of customer experience of Siegel+Gale.
“Respondents thanked us for conducting this survey and clarifying the content of the privacy policies to them. People want to know how their personal information is being collected, stored and used.”
Irene Etzkorn, executive director of simplification of Siegel+Gale, said, “This complexity erodes trust and jeopardizes online privacy. Clearly, Facebook, Google and other online service providers operate based on consumer trust, and failure to address privacy concerns in a meaningful way will lead to consumer disenchantment and additional regulatory restrictions.”
Siegel+Gale suggests Facebook and Google can improve online privacy policy documents by:
- Succinctly conveying what information is collected, how the information is stored and shared, and how a user can manage their privacy. Consolidation is not the answer, nor is asking users to read detailed information intended for web developers, as Facebook does when it directs users to information about the Graph API.
- Standardizing policies so that users can more easily understand privacy implications. A good example is the nutrition facts labels used on food and beverages. Using a standard model, people would more quickly understand privacy implications and compare services. Current policies take dedicated readers hours to review because of their length, numerous links and complex wording.
- Designing a feedback loop into digital interfaces. This would inform users instantaneously of potential privacy issues as they occur and enable users to make wiser choices about sharing information.
- Allowing users to opt in to share and publicize information. By setting the most conservative privacy settings as the default and letting users decide to expand how their information is tracked, shared and stored, service providers would meet the stated needs of users. Between 70 and 80 percent of survey respondents agreed with the Obama administration’s plan to make it easier for users to control online tracking of consumer personal information.
Mueller added, “It’s time for these online giants to recognize that their policies bring an unacceptable web of complexity and risk to the lives of their users. The lack of understanding of online privacy is pervasive. Bringing greater simplicity to what web users read online will engender trust among users and only benefit Facebook’s and Google’s reputation.”
Review the full survey results here: siegelgale.com/privacy
Tags: API, Blogger, confusing privacy poliicies, facebook, Google, Google Maps, profile visibility, Siegel+Gale, YouTube
Posted in Best Practices, Blogging, Facebook, Google, Internet/New Media, Security, Studies, surveys, reports | Comments Off
Monday, April 23rd, 2012
 ‘Business writing’ is writing for business purposes. This includes articles, blog posts, press releases, emails, letters, reports and resumes.
Each of these different types of writing has its own rules and preferred format. However, the main point is that business writing has little to do with creativity; you are not writing a novel, a friendly missive or a chatty family newsletter.
Whether on paper or online, business communications are read by people who are busy. Your readers generally have neither the time nor the interest to wade through complex sentences and lengthy paragraphs to try and discern your message.
Business writing is about effective communication and this means getting to the point quickly. Since concentration spans are notoriously short, it is essential that you maintain your readers’ interest by whatever means you can.
#1 – Keep it brief. Be concise; avoid the temptation to use three long words where one short one will do – you are not trying to impress your readers with your knowledge of vocabulary. Make every word count – read through your completed efforts and ruthlessly delete any unnecessary words.
#2 – Vary your sentence lengths but err on the side of short, rather than long. Too many short sentences make your writing choppy and annoying to read. Long, complex sentences have a place in academic writing but for business purposes they can be irritating. If your reader has to re-read a sentence to establish the meaning, it is too long. Varying the length of your sentences keeps your writing interesting.
#3 – Write for your audience. If your audience is specific and limited to people in the same field as you, then jargon is acceptable. However, if you are writing for a wider audience, try to avoid jargon that may not be understood by all.
#4 – Use paragraphs appropriately. Start a new paragraph whenever you move to a new topic. Breaking your writing into paragraphs makes it easier to read, both on paper and on screen.
#5 – Make your point quickly and move on. Avoid the temptation to repeat yourself or belabour the point.
Tags: blogging, email, letters, Prompt Proofing, reports, resumes, tips for more effective business writing
Posted in Best Practices, Blogging, Business advice, Internet/New Media, Viewpoint | Comments Off
Friday, April 20th, 2012
 Women were more likely than men to see the benefits of taking their meetings online, with a majority of U.S. adults (77%) saying that online meetings are on the rise, according to TeamViewer, which provides remote and online meeting software.
We’ve had more online meetings in the last five years than we’ve had in person ones, a situation we applaud. Online meetings generally stick to business and require less actual meeting time, not to mention completely eliminating travel.
In the TeamViewer survey, women came out ahead in seeing the benefits of online meetings, but they also proved more demanding than men in what they expect from meeting hosts.
Specifically, women were statistically more likely than men to say:
- They could save money in transportation costs – (78% vs. 71%)
- You don’t have to waste time traveling to meetings – (77% vs. 71%)
- Online meetings are less nerve-wracking – (37% vs. 26%)
- People are less distracted – (22% vs. 16%)
Surprisingly, Generation X/Baby Boomers (ages 45-54) were more likely than young people (ages 18-34) to say they think online meetings save money in transportation costs (80% vs. 71%) and don’t waste their time traveling to meetings (80% vs. 68%).
When asked about the characteristics most important for an online meeting host to have, women proved much more demanding than men in almost every category, including:
- Organization (81% vs. 68%)
- Fast-paced (64% vs. 52%)
- Respectfulness (60% vs. 50%)
- Fair (57% vs. 51%)
- Decisive (40% vs. 34%)
- Clever (17% vs. 12%)
Some women even said they thought online meetings hosts should be passionate (15%), attractive (5%) and blunt (6%).
“These findings demonstrate that women are on the cutting edge of technology and are having a big impact on the way the modern office is evolving,” said Holger Felgner, General Manager at TeamViewer. “TeamViewer 7 gives them the freedom to do just that, providing a platform for online meetings at any time and on any device.”
Tags: online meetings, TeamViewer
Posted in Best Practices, Internet/New Media, Studies, surveys, reports, Tech life/Culture | Comments Off
Friday, April 20th, 2012
 How do successful viral videos like the dramatic prairie dog, nyan cat, and OK GO do it? Learn how to make a viral video with a free report from VideomakerMagazine, How to Make a Viral Video: 11 Tips to Create a YouTube Sensation.
Every videographer dreams that their work will go viral, that they will shoot something that so speaks to people that it spreads like wildfire over the Internet.
A viral video is a great way to bring attention to your business or show off your video-creating talents.
And while it’s impossible to predict what will go viral, there are certain things that you can include in your videos to increase the odds that you’ll have a smash Internet hit on your hands.
A viral video is any video that becomes popular by being passed from person to person via the web. Marketers, entertainers, and videographers spend a lot of time trying to create videos calculated to “go viral” sometimes with great success.
How to Make a Viral Video: 11 Tips to Create a YouTube Sensation is the free report from Videomaker that will show you how to do it. It includes 11 proven tips for increasing the likelihood that your video will go viral. The free report requires providing your email address and name to the company.
Learn the reasons behind the popularity of some of today’s hottest videos and how you can use the same ideas to catapult your own way to video stardom.
There’s no telling what videos will take the Internet like wildfire, but we’ll show you some easy ways to better your chances of success.
See: http://www.videomaker.com/r/609 to download your free report, How to Make a Viral Video: 11 Tips to Create a YouTube Sensation.
Tags: tips on making viral videos, Videomaker magazine, YouTube sensation
Posted in Best Practices, Business advice, Internet/New Media, IT, Marketing, Studies, surveys, reports, Tech life/Culture, video | Comments Off
Friday, April 20th, 2012
 Acton says that successful lead generation and nurturing requires the ability to address different stages of the lead lifescyle based on “unique wants, needs and situations of each prospect.”
Tags: Acton, lead generation & nurturing, Lead lifecycle analytics, sales
Posted in Analytics, Best Practices, Business advice, infographic, Internet/New Media, Marketing | Comments Off
Friday, April 20th, 2012
By Blake Patton
 Blake Patton Entrepreneurs put a lot of time and effort into crafting a great pitch for their startup. Unfortunately, startups often fail to put the same effort into creating their financial plan. That is a big mistake.
Like your pitch, your financial model tells a story. It’s an opportunity to demonstrate your business model and highlight the more complicated details of the venture. And like a pitch, you should get plenty of help and go through several revisions before you share it with potential investors.
Prepare a “bottoms up” plan
Investors in early-stage companies know the only certainty in a financial model is that it is wrong. They use this model to estimate the scope of the opportunity, evaluate key drivers and assumptions and determine the cash needs of the business over the next three to five years.
Rather than starting with what you think they want to see and working backwards, you should prepare a ‘bottoms up’ plan. Start with base assumptions broken down to basic economic units and build from there.
To do this, create tabs in an Excel workbook that you can later link to your financials, making it easier to revise down the road. Tabs might include:
Pre-Revenue – the phase before you have paying customers, such as the R&D or prototype phase. The financial model for this stage is essentially a budget that includes people, rent, office supplies, equipment, servers, etc.
Revenue models
Revenue models – based on assumptions of how to get customers. If you are a SaaS B2B business, you might start with how many customers a sales rep can generate and how many users a typical customer will have and model it based on your sales hiring plan. If you are an eCommerce business, you might highlight online marketing efforts and build revenue assumptions based on realistic conversion metrics.
Cost of Goods Sold – the costs that directly go into creating the products or delivering the services that you sell. For a manufacturing company, this would include materials and assembly labor, while a SaaS company might spend on application hosting and monitoring, labor for implementing customers and customer support.
Expenses - all other functions required to run your business such as research and development, sales and marketing, and general and administrative costs.
Now you are ready to translate your model into financials. If you are comfortable with financials and know Excel well, you can obtain a template and modify it to fit your business. More than likely, you will need help doing this.
Make sure you get that assistance, even if you have to pay. There are CPA firms and ‘rent a CFO’ services that can help.
The financial plan should include:
- A profit & loss statement (often called an income statement) tells you what you need to do to turn your hobby into a business. If you build your model with the right detail, you’ll be able to link to the appropriate revenue and cost items in the financial statements.
- A cash flow statement shows where cash is going and where it’s coming from. It essentially reveals how much money you’ll need to run the business. It can be broken down to three buckets: operations (payroll, payments, receivables), investing (capital expenditures), and financing activities (debt, equity financing).
- A balance sheet shows the company’s assets, liabilities and the owner’s equity. Unlike the P&L and cash flow statements that reflect periods of time, the balance sheet shows a particular point in time such as the end of a month or year. The assets always equal liabilities plus owner’s equity. The balance sheet is the most difficult to put together, so if you aren’t knowledgeable about integrated financials, you will probably need professional help.
Playing basketball without a scoreboard
Don’t underestimate the power of a solid financial model. After all, it’s not just for raising money – it’s a critical tool for managing and tracking your business.
To ignore it would be like playing basketball without a scoreboard. If you want to build a successful business, put the time and effort into creating a solid financial model.
An Entrepreneur in Residence at the Advanced Technology Development Center in Atlanta, Blake Patton has 20 years of leadership experience in startup, venture-backed, and publicly-traded internet, software, payments and financial services technology companies.
Tags: advice, ATDC, Blake Patton, startup financial plans
Posted in Best Practices, Business advice, Columns, entrepreneurship, Startups, Viewpoint | Comments Off
Thursday, April 19th, 2012
 Jaynie L. Smith What customers value most changes constantly, and the pace of change has increased exponentially with the economic recession, says marketing/management expert and author Jaynie L. Smith.
“The businesses who become relevant by addressing what customers really value at any given time will be the first ones out of the recession,” says Smith, whose newest book, Relevant Selling (www.smartadvantage.com), is now available.
“One year ago, people were looking for financial stability in companies they were purchasing from because of all of the business closings,” she says, citing surveys conducted by her company, Smart Advantage Inc.
“Now, on-time delivery outranks that because so many businesses cut back their inventory during the worst of the recession. With demand increasing, customers have more difficulty getting what they want on time.”
Smith’s company analyzed more than 150 customer surveys to learn why customers buy particular products or services from particular companies. It’s an essential practice for any business owner during any economic cycle, Smith says, but most don’t do it.
Her analysis of 10 years of double-blind customer market research for more than 100 businesses revealed that, 90 percent of the time, most businesses do not know their customers’ top values. They are often shocked to learn what is at the top of the customers’ value list.
Smith offers these tips for getting to know your customers – and potential customers – so you can deliver what they want and adjust your sales and marketing message to become more relevant.
• Customers are usually looking for “how” things are sold, not “what.” For most products, there are any number of suppliers. If someone wants to buy a camera, a doorknob, a car, they can drive to the nearest store or order from the first company that pops up on Google. But they don’t.
Why? Because there’s something else they value more than the product itself. It may be product durability, the company’s reputation for customer service, or safety features.
“If you don’t value what you bring to the customer, they won’t value it either,” is Smith’s mantra. Very few companies know how to effectively articulate what differentiates them, so price often becomes the tiebreaker.
• Understand that existing customers and prospects usually have different values. Smith’s company research analysis shows that 70 percent of the time, customers and prospective customers differ in what they most value. When that happens, your message to customers should be different than your message to prospects.
Very few companies make this distinction in sales and marketing messaging. Existing customers may have come to depend on your top-notch help desk. It’s what they’ve grown to value most about your company. Prospective customers haven’t yet used your help desk so they don’t know how essential this benefit is yet.
• Use what you learn. If you find customers most value speedy responses when they have a problem, and your customer service department is slow, then fix customer service. Make sure to tell the customer service employees that customers have rated fast response time as their top priority.
When you’ve got stats you can brag about – brag away: “98 percent of customer calls are returned within 30 minutes; 2 percent within 1 hour.” Now you’ve used that information in two valuable ways: to make your company more relevant to customers, and to let customers know you’ve got what they want.
• Invest in disciplined customer research. Research data collection costs have gone down 30 to 35 percent in the past few years and can now be affordable to smaller companies. Double-blind customer market research is the gold standard and well worth the expense, but it’s not feasible for all companies. However, even a small investment in research can reap huge returns.
Some less expensive and free alternatives to find out what your customers want include sharing the expense with an industry association; partnering with an organization that needs the same information or a peer that doesn’t compete with you; hiring a college intern; or creating an online survey using a free basic service, such as Survey Monkey.
Tags: Best Practices, Jaynie L. Smith, what customers want
Posted in Best Practices, Business advice, Viewpoint | Comments Off
Wednesday, April 18th, 2012
 Recent Pulse on Leaders studies using data collected by PDI Ninth House and analyzed by University of Minnesota researchers have identified several leadership behaviors that increase the potential for career derailment — the risk of being demoted, fired or performing below the level of expected achievement.
One of the studies found that leaders who rated their skills significantly higher than ratings provided by their bosses are more than six times more likely to derail than those who display signs of being more “in touch” with their actual work performance.
Behaviors of those who will fail can be spotted
In another study, researchers found that those leaders identified by their direct managers as most likely to derail exhibited behaviors that caused their managers to perceive them as lacking in both self-awareness and tact, resulting in damaged workplace relationships.
“Some of today’s leaders struggle to differentiate themselves from their colleagues, and many are also very concerned about their managers recognizing their performance,” said Lou Quast, vice president and executive consultant at PDI Ninth House, and associate chair of the University of Minnesota’s department of Organizational Leadership, Policy, and Development.
“In some cases, this quest for recognition leads to a lack of willingness to recognize and learn from one’s own weaknesses, and a highly competitive atmosphere, which damages working relationships with colleagues and upper management – the same critical relationships that can help them reach their career goals.”
He continues, “Tactics such as regular formal feedback and learning to address concerns without damaging relationships are great ways to help change their approach and attain long-term success.”
In the first study, researchers looked at ratings of more than 39,000 global leaders. They compared the leaders’ ratings of their own performance with those given by their direct managers.
Those considered to be in touch with their self-assessments — meaning their ratings closely matched those of their direct managers — were at little risk of derailment, while strong self-promoters were more than six times (629 percent) as likely to derail as the in-touch group.
In contrast to self-promoters, those considered to be strong self-deprecators are not more likely to derail than the “in-touch” group, and may in fact be less likely to derail.
Behaviors that Indicate Potential Derailment
In the second study, researchers analyzed boss evaluations of 14,000 U.S. leaders. The study examined how direct managers ranked their employees on 135 behaviors representing 24 core competencies.
Those leaders considered by their direct managers most likely to derail received failing scores on the following behaviors:
- Demonstrates awareness of own strengths and weaknesses
- Creates an environment where people work their best
- Expresses disagreement tactfully and sensitively
- Has the confidence and trust of others
- Develops effective working relationships with higher management
- Develops effective relationships with peers
Key to success: be smart, proficient, & relate
“The key to a successful career requires being smart and proficient on the job, as well as having the ability to relate to the people around you,” Quast said.
“And, as both studies show, success depends on a realistic view of one’s own strengths and weaknesses. We suggest that managers give these leaders candid, constructive feedback on where issues exist, and how to improve. Managers (or HR professionals) noting shortfalls in any of these specific behaviors should take the initiative to intervene: coach early and often.”
He adds, “Left unchecked, the behaviors can lead to career failure. Positive changes can only occur when leaders receive that feedback and act on it. In addition, coaches from PDI Ninth House can help these leaders cultivate the skills they need to succeed.”
Tags: behavior that derails careers, Best Practices, PDI Ninth House
Posted in Best Practices, Business advice, People, Studies, surveys, reports, Viewpoint | Comments Off
Tuesday, April 17th, 2012
 Social media is changing the nature of healthcare interaction, and health organizations that ignore this virtual environment may be missing opportunities to engage consumers, according to a new report by the Health Research Institute (HRI) at PwC US entitled, “Social media likes healthcare: From marketing to social business.”
The report found that social media activity by hospitals, health insurers and pharmaceutical companies is miniscule compared to the activity on community sites.
While eight in 10 healthcare companies (as tracked by HRI during a sample one-week period) had a presence on various social media sites, community sites had 24 times more social media activity than corporate sites. The finding holds significant implications for businesses looking to capitalize on social media opportunities.
“The power of social media for health organizations is in listening and engaging with consumers on their terms. Social media has created a new customer service access point where consumers expect an immediate response,” said Kelly Barnes, US Health Industries leader, PwC.
“Health organizations have an opportunity to use social media as a way to better listen, participate in discussions and engage with consumers in ways that extend their interaction beyond a clinical encounter.”
“Savvy adopters are viewing social media as a business strategy, not just a marketing tool.”
PwC’s report includes findings from a recent HRI social media survey of more than 1,000 U.S. consumers and 124 members of the eHealth Initiative (eHI), a national association of industry organizations focusing on health information and technology.
HRI also interviewed more than 30 industry executives and tracked the social media activity of a number of hospitals, insurers, drug manufacturers, and online patient communities to create a Week-in-the-life of Social Health snapshot.
The consumer survey found:
- One-third of consumers now use social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and online forums for health-related matters, including seeking medical information, tracking and sharing symptoms, and broadcasting how they feel about doctors, drugs, treatments, medical devices and health plans.
- Four in 10 consumers say they have used social media to find health-related consumer reviews (e.g. of treatments or physicians); one in three have sought information related to other patients’ experiences with their disease; one in four have “posted” about their health experience; and one in five have joined a health forum or community.
- When asked how information found through social media would affect their health decisions, 45 percent of consumers said it would affect their decision to get a second opinion; 41 percent said it would affect their choice of a specific doctor, hospital or medical facility; 34 percent said it would affect their decision about taking a certain medication; and 32 percent said it would affect their choice of a health insurance plan.
- While 72 percent of consumers said they would appreciate assistance in scheduling doctor appointments through social media channels, nearly half said they would expect a response within a few hours.
- As is the case more broadly, young adults are leading the social media healthcare charge. More than 80 percent of individuals between the ages of 18 and 24 said they were likely to share health information through social media channels and nearly 90 percent said they would trust information they found there. By comparison, less than half (45 percent) of individuals between the ages of 45 and 64 said they were likely to share health information via social media.
Evolution from Social Media to Social Business Strategy
While some health businesses have started listening and participating in the social media space, they have not fully connected it to business strategy.
The HRI report found that organizations that are strategic about their use of social sites are beginning to differentiate between social media and social business.
Social media is the external-facing component that gives and receives customer input. Social business is where core internal operations, such as customer service, data analytics and product development could use social data. Additionally, patient-reported data on social networks could offer new insights on behavior and lifestyle to help inform care plans and improve the quality of life for patients with chronic conditions.
HRI’s survey of eHealth initiative members found:
- Eighty-two percent said their organization’s social media efforts are managed by marketing/communications. Few organizations said their IT departments and digital teams owned social media strategies.
- One-half said they are concerned about how to integrate social media data into business strategy and processes.
PwC says that hospitals, insurers and pharmaceutical manufacturers can benefit from the interactive nature of social media.
Social media provides instant feedback
Insights from social media offer instant feedback on products or services along with new ideas for innovation that could lead to higher-quality care, more loyal customers, efficiency and even revenue growth.
“Social media is another source of business intelligence that provides information at the aggregate level, not only about what consumers ‘like,’ but what they need, how they behave and when their experiences demand an immediate response,” said Daniel Garrett, US Health Information Technology leader, PwC.
“Health organizations can engage IT to integrate social data intelligence with existing systems and processes, yet most are still struggling with how to manage the data from their own clinical systems.”
The HRI report Social media likes healthcare: From marketing to social business provides research on new and emerging relationships between consumers and the biggest health companies that serve them.
It examines how individuals use the social channel; how some leading healthcare firms are responding, and outlines strategies for taking advantage of this new view into the 21st century patient. A copy of the full report is available at www.pwc.com/us/healthsocialmedia.
Tags: facebook, Health research institute, Healthcare & social media, online forums, PWC, Social Media Likes Healthcare: from marketing to social business, twitter, YouTube
Posted in Best Practices, Internet/New Media, Marketing | Comments Off
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