Social Media Commerce Using Social Games

Why Social Games Are Marketing’s Next Frontier. I read an interesting book recently, Reality is Broken: Why Games Make Us Better and How They Can Change the World written by Jane McGonagall. Here are a few of the useful takeaways on using social games.

Growth in gaming

“[Al]though a typical gamer plays for just an hour or two a day, there are now more than five million ‘extreme’ gamers in the U.S. who play an average of 45 hours a week. To put this in perspective, the number of hours that gamers world-wide have spent playing “World of Warcraft” alone adds up to 5.93 million years.”

Impacts of gaming

“In a good game, we feel blissfully productive. We have clear goals and a sense of heroic purpose. More important, we’re constantly able to see and feel the impact of our efforts on the virtual world around us. . . . One recent study found, for example, that players of ‘Guitar Hero’ are more likely to pick up a real guitar and learn how to play it.”

Learning persistence

“Research shows that gamers spend on average 80% of their time failing in game worlds, but instead of giving up, they stick with the difficult challenge and use the feedback of the game to get better.”

Building relationships

“Studies show that we like and trust someone better after we play a game with them—even if they beat us. And we’re more likely to help someone in real life after we’ve helped them in an online game. It’s no wonder that 40% of all user time on Facebook is spent playing social games.”

These takeaways support our position on the importance of games and gaming as the next important customer engagement technique. Consider these points in evaluating why games are so valuable:

Games can be combined … with rewards which permits fueling loyalty

Advertising, like other marketing elements … is moving from eyeballs to engagement

Social games … fit all platforms

Games have shown ability … to draw large communities

Brands can become … a component of game experience

Games aren’t limited … to just the virtual world

Lots of reasons to add games to your social media commerce and marketing campaigns, don’t you think?

Please share a social media commerce gaming experience with us.

Read more:

8 Popular Social Media Initiatives for Customer Engagement

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12 Ways to Build Social Commerce Business through Great Customer Service

9 Great Ways to Improve Your Social Media Design

Social media design usually centers on efforts to create content that attracts attention and encourages readers to share it with their social networks. Company messages, stories, and helpful information spreads from user to user and presumably resonate because it provides relevant, interesting, and/or useful information. Hence, this form of marketing is driven by word-of-mouth, meaning it results in earned media rather than paid media.

We think of social media as just another marketing channel when we need to instead think of it as the influencer of all channels.

To improve your social media design, you must improve social networking and customer engagement. We have found 9 ways to accomplish these improvements that we use with our clients:

Know as much or more than your audience … valuable content is essential

It is all about quality … quality is much more valuable than quantity

It is about building relationships … meaning conversation is required. Don’t add to the noise

A picture or image … is worth 1000 words. Visual marketing is growing rapidly

Keep your messages … short, simple, and relevant

Define … specific objectives for your campaigns

Measure your accomplishments … against your objectives. Learn and apply to learn

There are NO shortcuts … it requires time and energy

It requires persistence and patience … don’t give up

We are finding more and more businesses are defining meaningful ways to use social media, even if it isn’t always to sell directly.

“Web merchants view social media more as a medium to build up brand awareness and customer loyalty than as a way to drive immediate sales,” says Internet Retailer reporting on its latest survey of 175 companies that sell online.

Survey participants included 85 web-only merchants, 40 consumer brand manufacturers, 34 retail chains, and 16 catalog companies.

Here’s a rundown of the findings by the numbers:

96 percent say social media campaigns are important to the future of their Internet business; 53 percent label them very important.

90 percent have a Facebook page, 75 percent are active on Twitter and 54 percent use Pinterest

51 percent post videos on YouTube, 9 percent use Google+, and 15 percent leverage Instagram.

The more success you have with customer engagement via your social media design, either online or off, the better you are understanding their needs and priorities. Having the best customer insights makes it much easier for you to define your next moves and improve your odds of success.

Please share a social media design experience with this community.

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8 Popular Social Media Initiatives for Customer Engagement

Social Commerce Business … What Ben and Jerry’s Knows That You Should Know

12 Ways to Build Social Commerce Business through Great Customer Service

Building Relationships by Paying Attention to Customer Engagement

What do you feel is the most important factor in building relationships? How you make customers feel is the most important factor …hands down in our opinion. Like making new friends. It is becoming the most important element of social commerce.

People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.

–Maya Angelou

Business is a people activity; people like to do business with people they know, like, and trust. Ones with whom they have relationships are at the top of the desirable business option list. The stronger the relationships with your customers, the greater will be their trust and loyalty in your business. So it is very logical for businesses in establishing customer relationships.

Check out our thoughts on customer focus.

Studies show time and again, your best, most loyal customers are the aptest to tell their friends about your business, creating strong word-of-mouth marketing. Word-of-mouth marketing is the most important element of any marketing campaign.

Have you ever used checklists to improve your attitude toward establishing customer relationships? How did they work for you? We often use checklists to achieve our goal to create the best in building new customer relationships. (See our article on what matters most in preparing for each new day.)

After college, I spent almost 2 years training as a naval aviator. An important element of that training was the use of checklists in the learning and refresher process. Checklist utilization remains an important part of my business life. It is always a good idea to have a helpful checklist for reminders of improvements for your business or your personal life.

I keep a stack of 10 or so checklists that I rotate and update occasionally. I pull out one checklist to read and contemplate for five minutes as a way to start each day. I find it puts my thinking in the right frame of mind.

Creating positive experiences for building customer relationships often will take some serious thinking. But hopefully not at the expense of the little things you can do to build customer relationships. Such as what you may ask?

Let’s examine the customer relationship checklist of 20 items that Digital Spark Marketing recommends to its clients:

Building relationships … remember their name

Always a good thing … but don’t guess. It is worse if you get it wrong.

Listen before talking and listen more than you talk

Store and use what you learn. Good customer insights are worth their weight in gold.

Find win-win

Of course, your business goals are important. But keeping customers happy is a critical goal.

Remember special occasions and send congratulatory notes

Simple things always make fantastic impressions and impacts.

Building relationships at work … give without being asked

You will learn what their issues are. Solving some of these issues without being asked will maximize the impact on future relationships.

*Build relationships … do the unexpected***

Surprising them with things can make a huge impact. Want to know one of the most effective ways that any company can use to build its brand and create reciprocity with its customers?

By surprising them!

People like getting things for free and like them, even more, when they are viewed as ‘favors’. But even more, they love receiving these favors as surprises.

Make them feel special

Let me describe a recent episode where I was a customer at a Marriott Hotel. My wife and I were staying in celebration of our 20^th anniversary. On our arrival at check-in, the front desk welcomed us with a warm anniversary congratulations and welcome. They said they were able to find us a very nice ocean-view room. We certainly were not disappointed.

Later, after getting back from an afternoon of sightseeing and dinner on the bay, we returned to the room to receive a very nice bottle of champagne and fresh strawberries from the front desk and hotel chef. What a great surprise and ‘wow’ customer experience. Great job making us feel very special.

Exceed expectations

Always do your best to go above and beyond … even on the little things.

Lend an ear

Customers are just people and many times they need to vent or tell a story about something in their lives. Listen like it was someone in your family.

Offer without being asked

Learn to anticipate. When you can, solve their problem without being asked. Note you will reuse insights many times, so this will become easier than you think.

Make them look good

Whatever you can do in this regard will be remembered and talked about. The foundation of the best marketing … word of mouth marketing.

Follow through on every commitment

No choice on this one. If you are not going to deliver, then don’t promise you will. Broken promises will be much worse.

*Build relationships … s**how that you care*

Gathering customer insights over time will lead you to a good understanding. They work best in showing you care. An example? A florist we worked with always took flower vases to the car for customers so that could strap them down so they wouldn’t be overturned.

Reach out if they’re in need

Spot customers that are in need of help or need. Reach out with help and support.

Never sacrifice a long-term relationship for a short-term gain

Always a big no-no without question.

Remain calm, cool, and collected during difficult times

Your lack of stress will be easily noticed and transferable.

Do what’s right

No matter what or even when no one is watching.

Admit quickly when you’re wrong

Everyone makes mistakes … so fess up, apologize, and move on.

Learn how to disagree without being disagreeable

No one likes to be around a negative, disagreeable person. Avoid this attitude at all costs.

Share the credit

Give collaboration a try when dealing with customers. It may be as simple as asking their opinions. When done, share the credit and make them look good.

Let me share a great experience and story about establishing customer relationships from a recent trip:

A landscape gardener ran a business that had been in the family for two or three generations. The staff was happy, and customers loved to visit the store, or to have the staff work on their gardens or make deliveries – anything from bedding plants to ride-on mowers.

For as long as anyone could remember, the current owner and previous generations of owners were extremely positive happy people.

Most folks assumed it was because they ran a successful business.

In fact, it was the other way around…

A tradition in the business was that the owner always wore a big lapel badge, saying Business Is Great!

The business was indeed generally great, although it went through tough times like any other. What never changed, however, was the owner’s attitude, and the badge saying Business Is Great!

Everyone who saw the button for the first time invariably asked, “What’s so great about business?” Sometimes people would also comment that their own business was miserable, or even that they were unhappy or stressed.

Anyhow, the Business Is Great! Badge always tended to start a conversation, which typically involved the owner talking about lots of positive aspects of business and work, for example:

the pleasure of meeting and talking with different people every day

the reward that comes from helping staff take on new challenges and experiences

the fun and laughter in a relaxed and healthy work environment

the fascination in the work itself, and in the other people’s work and businesses

the great feeling when you finish a job and do it to the best of your capabilities

the new things you learn every day – even without looking to do so

and the thought that everyone in business is blessed – because there are many millions of people who would swap their own situation to have the same opportunities of doing a productive meaningful job, in a civilized well-fed country, where we have no real worries.

And so the list went on. And no matter how miserable a person was, they’d usually end up feeling a lot happier after just a couple of minutes of listening to all this infectious enthusiasm and positivity.

It is impossible to quantify or measure attitude like this, but to one extent or another it’s probably a self-fulfilling prophecy, on which point if asked about the badge in a quiet moment, the business owner would confide:

The badge came first. The customer relationships and great business followed.

REMEMBER, trust and credibility, the foundation of establishing customer relationships, take years to develop but can be lost in seconds

These are not things that we do not already know, of course.

Yet the little things on this checklist simply remind us of what we already know but may have forgotten. Then it is up to us to put these lessons (or reminders) into daily use through persistence and practice.

All you get is what you bring to the fight. And that fight gets better every day you learn and apply new lessons.

When things go wrong, what’s most important is your next step.

Test. Learn. Improve. Repeat.

Need some help in building better customer trust from your customer engagement? Creative ideas to help grow your customer relationships?

All you get is what you bring to the fight. And that fight gets better every day you learn and apply new ideas.

When things are not what you want them to be, what’s most important is your next step. Call today.

Mike Schoultz is the founder of Digital Spark Marketing, a digital marketing and customer service agency. With 40 years of business experience, he blogs on topics that relate to improving the performance of your business. Find them on G+, Twitte r, and LinkedIn.

Digital Spark Marketing will stretch your thinking and your ability to adapt to change. We also provide some fun and inspiration along the way.

Practical Guide To How Leaders Shape the Future

Facing many new small business challenges? You bet. Marketplace clutter. New marketing channels. Much more competition. Some that you may not have yet even noticed. And more on the way. Requiring how leaders shape the future? Absolutely. A successful future depends on them.

There is an interesting story about how Pablo Picasso, the famous Spanish artist, developed the ability to produce remarkable work in just minutes.

As the story goes, Picasso was walking through the market one day when a woman spotted him. She stopped the artist, pulled out a piece of paper and said, “Mr. Picasso, I am a fan of your work. Please, could you do a little drawing for me?”

Picasso smiled and quickly drew a small, but beautiful piece of art on the paper. Then, he handed the paper back to her saying, “That will be one million dollars.”

But Mr. Picasso,” the woman said. “It only took you thirty seconds to draw this little masterpiece.”

“My good woman,” Picasso said, “It took me thirty years to draw that masterpiece in thirty seconds.”

A short video on inspiring young leaders in shaping the future.

What is your strategy for a successful business? Is it like the Picasso story?

While most entrepreneurs know what they would like to achieve and that they want to expand their business, few have taken time to plan out how and to what end. A plan can help you focus your efforts and align your team to achieve your long-term goals.

If you do not change direction, you may end up where you are heading.

Lao Tzu

One of the most significant challenges facing businesses today is the need to be an effective leader. Certainly, a challenge facing businesses big and small.

Leadership is a trait many are quick to claim, but few truly deserve. So true, isn’t it?

Improve Employee Motivation: How to Completely Change Techniques

To be a leader does not mean wearing the title of “leader.” It’s not something you choose to be one minute and then choose not to be the next. A leader is not a leader simply because he or she has been promoted. And a leader is not someone who sits in a position of management.

None of those things are what truly make a real leader. Here are the things that do:

Leaders shape the future

Leaders must be forward-thinkers who can envision a future state, set the direction, and then lead others toward that goal. Shaping the future is not just about the internal processes, it also means shaping the courses of action we have available to us in the markets.

Expanding our markets, moving adjacently, and dealing directly with customers as well as potential business partners. Forward thinks?

Leaders shape the future by creating teamwork

Leaders need to create a positive team environment where people are excited about the contribution they can make. Where they are inspired to be actively engaged. Where they understand exactly what is expected of them.

They know the bar is set high. These leaders value diversity and foster inclusion and they know how to communicate with force and effect, both inside and outside the business.

Leaders shape the future by listening first and acting second

Someone who jumps to conclusions without first seeking to understand has made a fatal error—for themselves and their team. To lead people effectively, you have to take the time to listen and see things from their perspective.

You have to put yourself in their shoes and fully understand the situation.

Listen more than you talk.

keys to a successful business — **Keys to a successful business.**

Doesn’t make decisions in the heat of the moment

Do you know those bosses that get all riled up and then start rapid-firing people? That’s not a leader. That’s a trigger-happy manager on a power trip—and there’s a difference.

A leader waits until the heat of the moment has passed so that he or she can give solid thought to the situation before concluding.

Model accountability

Leaders need to be stellar role models. Be completely accountable for all their actions. Be mentors and coaches for all around them… Leaders need to take the high road in pursuit of better performance.

Leaders shape the future knowing what they don’t know

It’s dangerous when someone claims to “know everything.” A good leader is ok with not having all the answers, and knowing that they will find the people who do. They don’t see it as a weakness—because it’s not. It’s merely part of the process.

Leaders shape the future … avoiding being the smartest person in the room

If someone hires people or surrounds themselves with people less qualified than themselves simply to remain in a position of power, then they feel threatened. You never want to be the smartest person in the room—and if you are, you’re in the wrong room.

Great leaders know this and seek to surround themselves with masters of their crafts. The leader’s job, then, is to “play the orchestra.”

*Leaders shape the future … building relationships***

Leaders need to be able to establish and maintain good, effective relationships with their peers, with their employees, with customers, and within their communities. All are of critical importance to the business. Good relationships can create a boundary-less flow of capability that can be channeled to customers’ highest priorities.

Gives constructive feedback

There is a difference between “constructive criticism” and plain negativity. People who spew negativity aren’t doing anything to help anyone. A great leader looks for ways they can help, not ways they can tear others down in the process.

Leaders shape the future by doing what has to be done

Anyone who says, “That’s not my job,” isn’t leading by example. Yes, people need to stay their lane and be responsible for their work, but when there’s a fire, and it’s all hands on deck, a leader doesn’t step back and say, “All right everyone, go figure it out.” They get right to work with them.

successful business tips — Successful business tips.

*Leaders shape the future by delivering results***

Leaders are ultimately responsible for delivering results. Quite simply, that means continually driving operational excellence and adapting with agility to changing circumstances.

An additional challenge will be to carry that strength forward to the next future leaders

Cultivate a positive culture

Being results-driven is great, but a culture that produces results has to be healthy in some way, shape, or form. And creating that culture takes hard work.

A great leader knows that they are not the center of attention, and what’s more important is creating an environment where others feel empowered to succeed, bring ideas to the table, and think for themselves.

Leaders shape the future by always finding a way

Anyone that says, “It’s impossible. We can’t,” isn’t fit to lead. A true leader knows that there is always a way. It might not be the way anyone had originally planned for, but it’s a way nonetheless.

Great leaders find the roads less traveled, and do whatever needs to be done to get the collective over the obstacle ahead.

Decide what you are playing for

From small business to large, executives confront a constant tension between managing what is and creating new growth. That tension manifests itself as a continual battle for attention, time, and resources. But we no longer have the luxury of choice, if we ever did.

In April 2004, HBR published “The Ambidextrous Organization” by Charles A. O’Reilly III and Michael L. Tushman. It’s one of our top five clippings for the title alone. For how many of us is ambidexterity a natural talent? Precious few: Estimates I’ve run across the range between 3% and 5%. And that’s physical ambidexterity: the ability to write, bat, or throw with either hand.

In business, as in life, we tend to be either right-handed or left-handed — “right-brain thinkers” or “left-brain thinkers” — and we stick with our strengths. But success in business demands that we be both. So we have to learn new skills (just as you can learn to write or throw with your other hand if you try).

We like to say, “You get what you pay for.” You can’t just wish or want to do something; you have to put your time, energy, and attention into getting it done. Do you want long-term growth? Then you have to stop wanting it and start doing something about it. Growth requires leadership. You don’t have to do it all, but you can’t just delegate it and hope someone else will do it for you.

Everyone speaking the same language

Long-term growth doesn’t come from doing the same things you did yesterday and hoping for a different result. In our world, growth means fostering transformational or breakthrough innovation. And, perhaps surprisingly, one of the most powerful initial steps a leader can take to pursue innovation is to define your terms. If you don’t think this matters, go ask five smart colleagues to define “breakthrough innovation.” Write down their answers and then see if you agree.

Here’s our definition: Breakthrough innovations are innovations with new value propositions that expand your business into new markets with new advantages. Whether or not this definition works for you is irrelevant. The key is that whatever definitions you use, they need to be clear, useful, and common throughout your team or organization.

Leaders shape the future by imaging the future

Alan Kay said, famously, “The best way to predict your future is to create it.” If you want sustainable growth, you must have a sense of what the future will be, what it will require, and how you will win.

Then you can direct your breakthrough innovation efforts toward achieving the vision — predicting the future by creating it.

The bottom line

These are just some ways that everyday occurrences can result in a business leadership lesson. Because if there’s one thing I’ve found to be true, both in business and in life, it’s this – people relate to real life.

If your people (your customers, your colleagues, your clients, your readers) can relate to your life and all you learn from it, it’s pretty much a guarantee that the goals you have will be easier to meet.