Over the past year the term Social CRM has been all the buzz, and rightfully so. We are operating in a time where social platforms in conjunction with shifts in consumer behavior are ushering in a major wave of global business transformation. Within the enterprise, Social CRM is leading the push for convergence. Marketing, Sales, Support, IT and Operations are all faced with a need to work together to effectively address the opportunities brought about by social platforms such as Facebook and Twitter. Global businesses are, more than ever before, feeling the pain of not being able to adapt and adopt as fast as the opportunities presented by the rapid evolution in these social technologies. From our vantage point within the realm of social media marketing, we see the requirement for a more fluid enterprise with deeper collaboration among departments on a daily bases.
As an example of the need for interdepartmental collaboration and a more nimble socially calibrated enterprise consider an integrated marketing program developed to meet the goal of driving consumers in-store for the holidays. Let’s say that the recommended program is a sweepstakes that lives on Facebook, the brand’s website and Twitter. It incorporates an in-store code redemption for any purchase that, when entered back into the promotions application on Facebook, provides the consumer with a chance to win a grand prize. In addition, the same program has an overlay that rewards consumers with an additional entry into the sweepstakes and an instant coupon for each in-store check-in. Knowing the mechanics of the program let us now examine the top level interactions and impact on various departments within the enterprise:
Marketing
- Coordinate with agencies and vendors on the development of the social applications, content and communications plans for the program
- Coordinate with operations on the in-store purchase and code redemption process
- Coordinate with operations on the coupon delivery process
Operations
- Coordinate with marketing and in-store ops teams on the in-store purchase and code redemption process
- Coordinate with marketing and in-store ops teams on the coupon delivery process
- Coordinate with IT and various vendors to evaluate program integration points
- Coordinate with customer support to develop program support policies and processes
Consumers and social platforms such as Facebook and Twitter are ripe for the execution of the above-mentioned program. We can manage the communities, navigate the legal matters, and develop the technical components, including the social apps, within a matter of weeks. However, executing against the components in the program that require collaboration between departments within the enterprise tend to bring about unexpected problems. Using the example from above again, let’s think of what hurdles may come up in the program planning and execution process:
- Is the in-store staff trained to execute integrated marketing programs?
- If not, can they be trained?
- What is the process, who executes the training?
- How long does it take to get everyone up to speed?
- Does the POS have the required features?
- Can the POS support the type of coupon that is best suited for the program?
- Does the POS support unique codes?
- Who controls the management of the community (Facebook, Twitter) for the program?
- Is it the technology or promotions vendor, the creative or PR agency, the Marketing or the Support department?
- What are the rules of engagement?
- How does everyone play nice in the sandbox?
- What does success mean in terms of metrics?
- Are the technologies and system in place to connect the loop between the in-store and online experience?
- How will reporting work and who is responsible for the unification of metrics?
The above is just one example of how social platforms and Social CRM are bringing about collaboration and change within the enterprise. To effectively compete in a global marketplace, businesses must be nimble enough to execute against the latest shifts in consumer behavior and trends in technology at the drop of a dime. Today’s global businesses must be designed and calibrated for rapid iteration, collaboration and execution. This all ties back into a broader business transformation phenomenon under the umbrella of Social Business Design. And the legions of partners and vendors must learn to work together in a more seamless way to support global businesses through this transformation process. At Stuzo, we are doing our part at the ground level, developing the social technology platforms that grease the wheels of change and delivering on our promise, one innovative social marketing program at a time.
