RT@Twitter: How effective are you? Update

Today, AdAge had another post about Twitter setting up a Twitter 101 website to help companies establish a presence on Twitter and communicate with their customers (link here.) If you take a look at the case studies they post, Dell is an excellent example of how Twitter can have a positive impact on a brand.

Dell began its venture into Twitter by thinking they would tweet to customers about deals, new products, etc... Little did they know that people would tweet back with their experiences, comments, and questions. Since Dell's first foray into the world of Twitter in 2007, they have come to think of the medium as a way to communicate with customers. And, it works! Dell has booked more than $3 million in sales as a result of Twitter (coupons and promotions on Twitter.)

Capitalizing on Twitter's unique social network requires interaction and persistence on the part of the brand, but it can have a pretty big pay-out, as Dell is a testament to. It might also help solve Twitter's persistence problem - 60% of new users leaving after one month (as reported by Nielsen and re-reported in the AdAge article.) Twitter working with brands to create value for Twitter users surely can raise all boats. How companies take these best practices and case studies to develop their own Twitter image will be worth watching, might even save you a few bucks and keep you on Twitter too boot.

For the article at AdAge, please click here.

@Twitter: How effective are you?

Newsworthiness aside, I feel as though I have heard more about Twitter as an engine for social media change than I have about the House’s cap-and-trade bill (though, admittedly, Twitter is much more fun to talk (or tweet) about.) From June of 2008 to June of 2009, Twitter’s audience grew by over 1,900% according to Nielsen (and, no, that is not a typo.) In comparison, Facebook only grew by 198% and Myspace lagged at a mere 6% growth rate.

The variety of opinions on what Twitter will become and what phase of growth it is in stuns the best two-handed economist. However, thanks to Harris Interactive, and their recently released poll, we know what advertisers and consumers think about the force that is Twitter. The poll makes one thing abundantly clear, most people don’t know enough about Twitter to answer questions about it – 69% of adults and 55% of adults age18-34 say they do not know enough about Twitter to have an opinion. Even the social networking generation, less than half can answer a question about that ‘big new craze’ Twitter. While I have not seen comparable stats for Facebook, to put this in perspective, Nielsen says that, as of June 2009, Facebook had 138,635,000 users, whereas Twitter had only 20,950,000. That means Facebook has over 6 times more users than Twitter – for anyone to say that Twitter can’t expand or isn’t in its infancy seems silly.

The more important question remains: will consumers find Twitter an effective way for marketers to reach them with information. The answer, unsurprisingly, is mixed. 50% of consumers believe that Twitter will either be very or somewhat effective in promoting products or ideas, while the other 50% believe just the opposite (with 19% stating that it will be ‘not at all effective.’) Meanwhile, advertisers have more faith with 58% believing that Twitter will be effective in communicating and promoting their ideas, products, and promotions.

Twitter does have one benefit, the ability to start a conversation that can become viral, global, and constant – all in 160 characters. In a Web 2.0 age, campaigns that stir up conversation will become successful, at least according to a recent piece in Ad Age (link here.) Campaigns like Dove’s ‘Campaign for Real Beauty’ might translate well to a Twitter age or Nike’s ‘athletic nirvana’ campaign. If, while following friends, consumers are also following, participating in, and shaping an ongoing conversation about a product and the idea behind it, there is no telling how effective Twitter may become. At least for now, we’ll just have to wait and tweet.

For the complete poll from Harris Interactive, click here

For the Nielsen information about Social Media, click here

Advertisers: Do They Really Know What We’re Thinking?

For the full polling data from Harris Interactive, please click here

In a recent poll released by Harris, in collaboration with LinkedIn, they survey consumers and “advertisers from agencies or corporations who are involved in the advertising decision making process.” The results are quite interesting.

The first apparent finding is that, overall, advertisers believe that their ads will be more effective than consumers actually find them. When it comes to the effectiveness of characteristics of advertising, in each characteristic advertisers consistently rank the characteristics very effective more often than the consumer does. However, taking this into account, there are some similarities and a few differences in the effectiveness the professionals are delivering and the characteristics the market wants.

First, the top five advertising characteristics are the same for both advertisers and consumers (they are: ‘ads that make me stop and think,’ ‘ads that give me new information,’ ‘ads that are entertaining,’ ‘ads that are informative,’ and ‘ads that are funny.’) Of these, consumers rank ‘ads that are entertaining’ and ‘ads that are funny’ as the most effective, with 34% and 33% saying these types of ads are highly effective, respectfully. Advertisers, on the other hand, rank ‘ads that make me stop and think’ and ‘ads that give me new information’ as the most effective.’ While these two categories are not far off from the effectiveness of the consumers top two choices, at 30 and 29% saying they are very effective respectfully, they are slightly lower. And, though some might think that while ‘funny’ or ‘entertaining’ ads might also have a high percentage of respondents saying they are ineffective, that is not the case. In the long run, it seems that advertisers, while overestimating the effectiveness of their ads, know what the consumers find most effective.

Some differences emerged when dealing with the current economic situation. According to consumers, the most effective way to position to them in the recession is using the ‘value proposition’ (i.e. discounts, coupons, etc…). Advertisers seem to understand this with 61% stating that they are using this in their branded communications. However, the second most effective position, according to consumers, is clearly ‘luxury for less’ with 34% believing this messaging works well or very well. However, advertisers seem to be using the ‘empathy’ proposition as their second gun in their arsenal, while only 18% are employing the ‘luxury for less’ position, which even losses to the ‘cheerleading’ message by 7%. There is, obviously, a clear message/position that can be employed and exploited here by marketers; especially for those targeting consumers aged 18-34 (51% believe the ‘luxury for less’ position works well or very well.)

As the recession continues, advertisers have and will continue to reposition their products to appeal to consumers who must tighten their belts. And, while they seem to be doing a pretty good job gauging which ads and positions are effective with their audience, it seems they are lagging in the ‘luxury for less’ position. Typically in a recession, consumers tend to treat themselves to small luxury items (i.e. higher quality chocolate) because they cannot afford more expensive luxuries. The lack of positioning seen within the advertising community and consumers willingness to purchase ‘smaller’ luxury items leaves a hole in the market that, if filled, could produce a huge return in this tough time.