2009 saw a mad dash for the social media real estate and even then uptake was tentative and haphazard, with many companies taking a stand just for the sake of it, simply because of all the buzz around social media, but without actually knowing why they needed it or what the return on the time invested was going to be.

2010 will see a more organised and planned approach to a corporations online presence as keeping a tidy shop window will no longer suffice. With public views so prevalent in the search results, strategies need to be focused around proactively engaging with consumers on all levels. This sounds similar to the plan for 2009, however this time we really mean it! The entire corporation needs to become self aware on all levels. All employees need to feel how they fit into the bigger picture and how they shape the way their organisation is perceived. Has anyone ever heard of any disgruntled Google employees? Or how about Fedex? What sets these companies aside is the company ethos. They are a community and they feel that theirs is one of the best companies to be working for.

With this attitude, the company transforms the way they deal with consumers. A deep sense of pride is attained and all staff strive to deliver greater value to consumers. It shifts the perception of the customer and of the company, and it empowers staff to contribute to the community, and the greater good.

Brand management then becomes an entirely different occurring for the corporation. The expertise and specialist skills of agencies in understanding social media channels are still essential to the organisation however now they fit in with what the organisation wants to tell the public and not the other way around. Agencies will take on the role of advising internal teams on how best to undertake their communication and how to monitor their reputation in real time. The organisation is no longer “outsourcing” its voice to an agency, rather they establish a strong strategic framework in which to execute social media activities.

The advice for 2010 is for brands to engage with their consumers on all levels, because the conversations are happening, whether you are a part of them or not.

Related posts:

1. Avoid downplaying brand reputation management
2. Got a bad reputation? Online Reputation management can clean up your mess.
3. The basics of online reputation management

What 2010 holds for Brand Reputation Management

Ive shared it on slideshare under LouisVenter or you can get to it via MediaVison. Will get to the sharecast next week with any luck.

In this presentation:

1. What is SERM?
2. Why is it Important? – Hitwise report on navigational search
3. Who Typically Needs SERM
4. Some Horror Stories
5. Is it only about companies that dont get SEO? :- An SEO agency with an SERM issue
6. What tactics are involved?
7. Some success stories

So here goes:

If you have any specific questions please read our services page on SERM or alternatively grab me on Twitter or in our London office on 0845 006 0709.

All feedback welcomed of course!

Related posts:

1. The basics of online reputation management
2. Got a bad reputation? Online Reputation management can clean up your mess.
3. What 2010 holds for Brand Reputation Management

Search Engine Reputation Management – (SERM) – A presentation

I realise “Web 2.0” is a term loosely thrown around, what I mean by it is that the internet is becoming more of a community. Information and sites are being passed on to friends and other community members through social media sites, email and blogs. People react more to personal recommendations than adverts and pop up banners; and one of the best way to receive a “thumbs up” is through attractive content on your site. In the context of this post, attractive means: useful, informative and fun content that the user will find worthwhile.

Attractive content is spread widely, encouraging users to visit the site and view it for themselves, which generates brand awareness for the site.

“Brand awareness is when people recognize your brand as yours. This does not necessarily mean they prefer your brand (brand preference), attach a high value to, or associate any superior attributes to your brand, it just means they recognize your brand and can identify it under different conditions.”

There needs to be careful consideration when creating brand awareness, as you don`t want your site to be known for the wrong reasons. That`s why the content that attracts users needs to compliment your site and its branding. When users are trying to read an article and a pop up banner jumps into sight without warning (and practically sends them into seizures), it could do more harm than good for that site`s branding (I`m a little biased against banners). Creating attractive content on a regular basis and throughout the site, on the other hand, will generate a preference (brand preference); meaning users would rather visit your site than your competitors.

I won`t go as far as saying advertising has no place in more community focused internet, just that with the increase of popularity in social sites such as; StumbleUpon, Digg and Mixx, more attention needs to be paid to content.

Related posts:

1. Duplicate content in laymen’s terms
2. Possible digital advertising restrictions for UK companies that use social networking.
3. Digg founder envisions the future of social media advertising

Content, the new advertising