Use of social media - Facebook, Twitter, YouTube

The NSW Police Force is an early adopter of social media in NSW and has a successful track record of using this technology. Use of social media tools such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube are now an integral part of the Police’s communication strategy. Social media gives the Police the ability to converse with the community in addition to sending messages directly. The Police have had great success in its four years’ use of social media. One measure of this success social media as a marketing tool is the growing audience of approximately 300,000 people consuming Police social media messages, including 250,000 friends on Facebook, and 44,000 followers on Twitter. These are large audiences that compare favourably with consumption of radio and newspapers in NSW, and importantly are audiences to which Police can deliver messages intact and instantly. Police had been considering the adoption of social media tools however, it was an unforeseen event in 2009 that fast-tracked the move into the social media space. At that time the Police became a victim of a cyber-squatter imposter on Twitter pretending to be the Police. The Police acquired the Twitter account and, facilitated by a supportive executive, began official social media communications immediately. The Police have found that the requirements on releasing information to social media are much the same as those for traditional media. For example, the Officer making a comment online must be authorised to do so. In addition, information posted on social media has to meet legal requirements, such as to not be prejudicial to court proceedings. The Police Media Policy provided social media marketing pricing the guidance for use of social media prior to the development of the Police Official Use of Social Media Policy. A significant ongoing consideration for Police is the potential for people to report crime through social media, which is not a secure , efficient or appropriate way for people to report crime. The community is reminded on Police Twitter and Facebook sites not to report crime there, rather to contact Triple Zero (000) or Crime Stoppers.

Leveraging social media networks to your advantage relies heavily on saying and doing the right things.

As Berry Chill founder and CEO Michael Farah implemented his plans to open the first of his three Chicago-area locations, he took a bizarre step for a business yet to open: He set up a Facebook page before ever selling its first treat. “I wanted to build buzz on the brand,” he says. “I wanted to target a younger audience, and Facebook was an easy way to find our customer base.” His friends initially comprised the majority of his fans, social media marketing blog but thanks to strong word-of-mouth, the Berry Chill page had 500 fans before the grand opening. Today, Berry Chill maintains an online presence on Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, and Foursquare. It has amassed about 10,000 Facebook fans and more than 3,000 Twitter followers. A major reason behind these numbers is that the company puts out information that engages both existing and potential customers. “Don’t tweet only about the product,” Farah says. “Post things customers will find interesting. Keep it fresh.” A glance at the Berry Chill Facebook page shows posts that do just that, like the one that says, “What are you doing this weekend?! Shoot a PB&J video to try to win A YEAR’S WORTH OF Berry Chill!” These types of posts work, because they actively seek input from customers, says Mary Beth Huffman, CEO of Carpentersville, Illinois-–based IMPACT Marketing & Public Relations. “It’s like having a conversation,” she says. “Think of it as communicating with people on the other side of your computer.” Tiffany Rosenberger, manager of marketing innovation for the Chattanooga, Tennessee–based burger chain Krystal, social media marketing experts says her company plan is to create more of a lifestyle page on Facebook. While there are posts announcing special events or new store openings, the Krystal Facebook social media outlets—including Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare, and YouTube—focus more on its customer following. For instance, a recent Facebook conversation centered around the Hall of Fame event where Krystal fans could get their name and photo on a Krystal burger box. The original post read, “Hey, Krystal Lovers! We want to hear your Krystal stories and see more of your shining faces on a Krystal Box. To create your own personalized box, just click the Hall of Fame tab above.”

Has Mobile Killed The Fast Follower Strategy? Sure Looks That Way

Has mobile killed the “fast follower” strategy? The ability of a second-mover company to mimic (copy?) a more innovative competitor and eventually own the market? In 2010, Entrepreneur Steve Blank suggested the data shows you’re better off fast following than originating – citing companies like Google who benefited from combining somebody else’s business model with their search technology. Now just a few years later, it feels like mobile has increasingly rewarded being first to market with a product that people want – especially in the Consumer market. Instagram, Snapchat, Line, Twitter, Foursquare comes to mind as mobile-first social media marketing articles innovators who have been able to hold off imitations by larger tech companies and fast follow startups. On the web you could just push code and control your own release cycle. iOS inserts a delay while Apple reviews and approves your app. The first mover has already cleared this hurdle and subsequent app updates have less friction due to Apple’s familiarity with the product. Fast follower needs to essentially get approval to launch. iOS App Store promotion and word-of-mouth via social media are much bigger distribution forces today than three years ago. Sure a fast follower with a marketing budget can drive paid installs and ad-based promotion, but organic and editorial discovery is more important with mobile. This favors the innovator, not the mimic. When was the last time Apple featured a fast follower app? They want to drive the new, hot, best-looking apps because that’s what keeps iPhone as the platform of choice. Using Facebook Connect, Twitter Followers and address books, access to social graphs have become a commodity. Sure you can innovate on virality, but smaller first movers can scale quickly. Fast followers social media marketing dallastypically exploited their existing distribution footprint but this isn’t as meaningful an advantage in the social mobile world. Purely anecdotal, but clicking on a link is easy where I’ll often need to hear about an app from a friend before I go through the multiple clicks required to install.