Webs of Influence: The Psychology of Online Persuasion by Nathalie Nahai

Author:Nathalie Nahai [Nahai, Nathalie]
Language: eng
Format: mobi, pdf
ISBN: 9780273781585
Publisher: Pearson Education Limited
Published: 2012-12-13T14:00:00+00:00

CASE STUDY Dell

Brand: Dell

URL: twitter.com/delloutlet

“The Web was an ideal place for us to connect directly with customers. Social media brought that and something more – a way to listen, learn and engage with customers, with a clear emphasis on the engage part of the equation.

LIONEL MENCHACA, CHIEF BLOGGER AT DELL32

HOW THEY DID IT

Connect and respond

In an article for the Huffington Post33 dated 8 December 2009 (when the world was in the grip of recession), Manish Mehta, the vice president of social media and community at Dell, indicated that Dell had generated nearly $7 million in revenue through Twitter (@DellOutlet) in the USA alone. Since entering the world of social media in 2006, Dell had seen its global community (aggregated across various social media channels) grow to over 3.5 million people – a striking testament to the power of simply ‘connecting and responding to customers’.34

It’s an impressive feat, but one that relies on the implementation of a few fundamental principles to succeed. Simply put, social media is the digitalisation of real-life social interactions. The same rules that govern our offline relationships also drive the way in which we relate online – and our adherence to these rules can determine our online success.

As we have already seen, our desire to form relationships is based around the yearning to feel loved and valued, to experience a sense of belonging. It is on these principles that the most successful businesses base their social media behaviours and it is for these same, universal reasons that they attract and retain large, engaged customer communities.

Think of a secure relationship you have enjoyed at some point in your life. What were the elements that made it so special? Beyond chemical attraction, it’s likely that the relationship was based on trust, mutual respect and understanding, along with a desire to support one another and a sense of feeling loved.

As a business, just imagine the loyalty and commitment you would enjoy from your clients if you genuinely made them feel special and loved. Once you’ve created a product or service that your clients need, the key to establishing a strong, loyal and engaged client base is to make them feel valued. You can do this simply by talking with them.

According to Mehta at Dell, ‘That’s how every company can achieve success using social media – by facilitating the conversation. No strategy necessary.’35

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