A little company called Google recently started a new project called Google+. If you haven’t heard or seen (and you don’t live under a rock), Google+ is Google’s social platform that looks to run with the likes of Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc. Fully integrating itself with the rest of the tools that Google has to offer will set this platform apart from the rest of its competitors.

QUICK OVERVIEW
Google+ features some of the same elements that all social media platforms have, but with their own Googley (yeah, that’s a word now) twist to it. There is a news feed type of element called “Stream.” This will look very similar to other platforms with constant updates of new posts from users that you have in your “Circles.” Circles are customizable, you can have separate circles for everybody in your life (friends, family, co-workers, haters, etc). Like Twitter’s platform, users that you add to your circles do not have to add you to their circles (and vice versa). There is also a place for photos, a group chat element called “Huddle,” and even a place to have group video chat called “Hangout.”

SOCIAL MEDIA OVERLOAD
While this may seem like one more thing to consume your business’s time and money, you must think in terms of depth. Let’s take a football team as an example:
Team One has 11 players – each player plays both offense and defense.
If anyone on Team One gets injured and can’t play, then there is no substitute and both sides of the ball will suffer. Not to mention the fact that every single player is going both ways and working twice as hard.

Team Two has 22 players. – 11 on offense and 11 on defense
If anyone on Team Two gets injured and can’t play, then there are no substitutes for each side. You must rely on a player from the opposite side of the ball to fill in the hole. While it can be done, this will most likely lead to numerous problems and missed assignments.

Team Three has the 44 players. – 11 on offense, 11 on defense, and 11 substitutes for both sides
If anyone on Team Three gets injured and can’t play, then any one of the numerous substitutes can fill in and keep the team pushing towards victory.

Now think of Team One as your business only using Facebook. You still have a chance of being successful, but your chances are less. Now think of Team Two as your business using Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. Now your chances of success have just increased substantially. Finally, think of Team Three as your business using Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, AND Google+. You have now increased your chances to their fullest potential, and isn’t that what your social media strategy is all about? (Hint: You should answer yes to this question.)

Now that you are thinking of your social media strategy in terms of depth, you can easily see that adding something like Google+ would just further your chances of success. If any of the other platforms start to decline, then you have Google+ to pick up the slack (and vice versa).

Stay tuned for some follow up info on Google+ for businesses!

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Do you recall your last customer “service” experience? Did it leave you pleased and pleasantly surprised or angry and frustrated? The subject of good versus bad customer service is an issue that every business must be aware of. In the age of “Social Media Justice”, it is important to remember that information travels fast, and in this day and age, it’s only a click away for the person researching your company for their next purchase.

Think of changes in our access to information about a company just in the last 10 years. And with the rise in social media, your service interactions with your customers can be screen captured, chat copied, browser recorded, phone tapped and email forwarded in the blink of an eye. Your customer service is now “content” for sites like YouTube, Yelp, FourSquare, Facebook and ScamReport.

So, how do we develop a system in which we use all relevant mediums and tools to deliver excellent customer service? First, we must use all points of customer engagement to increase convergence and provide care. Quality customer care and responsiveness equals priceless credibility. Second, relate and get to know your customers as individuals. Stay engaged with who your customers are, get to know their behaviors and find a common-ground. Lastly, empower your employees with knowledge and direction. A well-trained employee will have the skills necessary to provide positive, productive communication with clients.

It’s important to remember that technology is enabling better customer service experiences, but can work against you when a bad experience happens. Meet your customers on their turf – so to speak. If they are using social platforms like Facebook or Twitter, learn how you can utilize these touch points to improve your relationship and service (or to avoid customer care calls). For a business, using tools like social media platforms can be a win-win situation. It has given businesses a variety of channels to respond to and engage with customers quickly and individually. Social media platforms allow for you to stay engaged in the behavior, activity and responsiveness of your audience.

Aside from the immediacy and interactivity of emerging technology that can support this, what it all boils down to is the human interaction between business and customer. Great customer service is a reflection of how well a company values their customer. And remember – “honesty is the best policy.” Addressing customer concerns in both a timely and honest fashion is of critical importance and priority. Otherwise you may have thousands of potential customers reading about it in the “reviews” written by the people who really matter – your customers.

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It’s no surprise that the issue of online privacy rights has been the topic of discussion in recent months, following the announcement of two new bills regulating the collection of data online. On April 12th, 2011, Senators McCain and Kerry introduced the long-awaited Commercial Privacy Bill of Rights, which covers the control of retention, collection, and use of online data. By May 9th, Senator John Rockefeller introduced the Do-Not-Track Online Act of 2011 (pdf).

Following a review of an interview with Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection, David Vladeck, interesting points were raised during their discussion of Congress’ latest privacy bills, social networks, and the online advertising and marketing industry.
When asked about the FTC’s current stance in the newly imposed privacy bills, Vladeck addresses the support FTC has in legislation, but points out that the efforts of these bills anticipate a long process that the FTC has yet to take a formal position in.

It’s important to understand that the FTC pursues companies that violate their own privacy terms, and are therefore held liable for their deception. The FTC has built their framework on this foundation, but also brings to light unfairness and half-truth deception cases. Vladeck also mentions the importance of civil penalties on data breaches and stresses that data security is the FTC’s legislative agenda on privacy.

So, what does this mean for online advertising and marketing efforts? Where is the line drawn between fair marketing behavior and what kind of marketing behavior invades privacy? It will be interesting to observe the result of privacy protections and how it affects online marketing and customer relationship management, not to mention social networks.
There is speculation that industry professionals may face detrimental effects on their CRM systems, used to learn about the behavior and buying patterns of clientele. However it seems that this issue may not be as much of a problem as some may think. There is a strong level of support among those in the industry and many believe that privacy and data collection is already adequately regulated.

The industry has definitely began to move forward with these initiatives, and only time will tell whether self-regulatory and tracking innovations are moving in the right direction.

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