By Rebecca Jones, for the Daily Tribune
ROYAL OAK — When it comes to social media, everyone wants to know: "What's the next big thing?"
Entrepreneur Joe Jaffe said he hates that question.
"The next big thing is now," Jaffe told a crowd at the FutureMidwest conference at the Royal Oak Music Theatre. "We as marketers have never had such a big opportunity" to network and crowd-source.
However, he warned that customer service will make the difference. It's not about what's next, Jaffe said, as much as it what is the experience.
That turned out to be a theme for presenters, such Scott Monty, the head of social media for Ford Motor Co.
Social media is more about retaining customers, not trying to create new ones, Jaffe said. Happy customers who are engaged will become ambassadors for the brand.
"The voice of the customer has never echoed so loudly," said Jaffe, an author of three books on social media. "Toyota could have used ambassadors, but unfortunately ... I have more followers than they do."
He recommends finding ways to reward and recognize customers and he said it doesn't have to cost a lot, if anything. Dunkin' Donuts, for example, promotes its customer of the week by using his or her picture as the profile on the company's Facebook fan page.
That idea struck a chord with Stephanie McIntyre, downtown manager for the Royal Oak Downtown Development Authority. She said the DDA's fan page has surpassed 5,600 fans. If the DDA offered them the opportunity for a store gift card, she said, "There's an opportunity to connect our fans to some of the businesses in town."
— Rebecca Jones, For the Daily Tribune
Entrepreneur Joe Jaffe said he hates that question.
"The next big thing is now," Jaffe told a crowd at the FutureMidwest conference at the Royal Oak Music Theatre. "We as marketers have never had such a big opportunity" to network and crowd-source.
However, he warned that customer service will make the difference. It's not about what's next, Jaffe said, as much as it what is the experience.
That turned out to be a theme for presenters, such Scott Monty, the head of social media for Ford Motor Co.
Social media is more about retaining customers, not trying to create new ones, Jaffe said. Happy customers who are engaged will become ambassadors for the brand.
"The voice of the customer has never echoed so loudly," said Jaffe, an author of three books on social media. "Toyota could have used ambassadors, but unfortunately ... I have more followers than they do."
He recommends finding ways to reward and recognize customers and he said it doesn't have to cost a lot, if anything. Dunkin' Donuts, for example, promotes its customer of the week by using his or her picture as the profile on the company's Facebook fan page.
That idea struck a chord with Stephanie McIntyre, downtown manager for the Royal Oak Downtown Development Authority. She said the DDA's fan page has surpassed 5,600 fans. If the DDA offered them the opportunity for a store gift card, she said, "There's an opportunity to connect our fans to some of the businesses in town."
— Rebecca Jones, For the Daily Tribune
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