Crowdsourcing: You’re Doing It Wrong! And here’s why…

Posted on February 3, 2012June 10, 2013 by Valentina Rosa

On the surface it’s simple, you make an open-call to the world asking for help to solve a problem. Crowdsourcing enables a myriad of people to engage online and combine efforts towards a central purpose. From Wikipedia to Open-Source Coding, the effects of this wildly effective concept have been proven over the past several years. Now companies are emerging that revolve an entire business model around outsourcing tasks to their networks. The costs are relatively low and the rewards are high. Many are rising up through the ranks, such as the software testing go-to uTest, but many are not… and here’s why.

Before I get into the good stuff though, credit is due where a lot of these ideas came from. I attended a panel at the Microsoft Nerd Center this week where the topic was Crowdsourcing. Though many offered insights and tidbits, the moderator Jeff Howe, also known as the father of Crowdsourcing, was by far the most enlightening. I guess you have to know your stuff to be the guy who literally wrote the book.

First off, you need to set the rules for the crowd. Having a set of standards for what is acceptable through forums and the community makes it clear what those in control will regulate. It’s usually not advised to have an unregulated environment because of spam and malicious invaders, but on the flip side too many constraints and nobody will be able to collaborate. If you’ve ever seen a Wikipedia discussion thread, it’s a perfect example of how much effort goes into even small bits of the projects, and the rules help to organize the flow of the work.

Winners and Losers. There has to be something in it for the crowd. Though some are successful with a purely altruistic model, many companies are out to make money and the people helping you want a slice of the pie. How you divvy up the pie is your call, but rest assured there are many issues with contractors actually being an employee and it’s best to have professional legal advice before embarking and winding up bankrupt from a lawsuit. Having a winner take all method is great to spur competition, but it may sour a lot of the crowd who’s effort and diligence was for nothing.Figure out what works best for you and work with those who are an asset.

Hierarchy is another critical element of crowdsourcing. Many unknowingly believe that crowdsourcing is some idealistic meeting ground where everyone is equal. This is not the case. There is always some structure because controls need to be managed to keep the project moving forward. Whether it’s a top-down or a bottom-up approach, some people have to be steering the ship. Without leadership the project will amount to very little.

Though it’s still relatively new, crowdsourcing is shaking up the way business is being done. From encyclopedia to project management, many new companies are finding that it’s more cost-effective to utilize a crowd, and with the right controls, the results are superb.

Social Media Usage in the Corporate World

Posted on February 3, 2012May 20, 2013 by Valentina Rosa

What social media do you use for your business?

Over the past two months I have been working closely with Valentina Rosa, founder and CEO of TRA360, as a Social Media Strategist. After working overseas in Australia and writing my senior thesis on social media usage among brands across the world, I have developed a passion for helping businesses utilize social media to their benefit. The invention of social networking channels such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and LinkedIn have re-connected billions of people across the world and has created an entire new space of two-way communication. Skype is great for video chatting, Facebook establishes and builds relationships with friends and family, and Twitter is an outlet for micro blogging; but what do these outlets mean for businesses and building up a brand?

Social media, if used correctly and maintained constantly, can connect a brand with their targeted audience and customers, generate interest and increase website traffic. First, a company must identify who they are aiming to target. What type of demographics do your customers have? I am a firm believer that nearly every company, despite the industry, can benefit from social media in one way or another. Personally, I prefer to stick to Twitter, Facebook and blogging for corporate purposes. Of course that’s not to say if a client wants to establish video content, why not create a YouTube channel or Flickr for photo content? Knowing how to reach your customers is essential in social media marketing for a brand. By establishing these social media outlets you are becoming the voice of your brand; the thought leader of your specific industry. Give people a reason to visit your Facebook, blog, Twitter, etc. By continuously updating a brand’s social media on a daily or bi-daily basis, you are showing people that your brand has something to say that followers or fans could gain something from. Creating user generated content and using strategies like campaigns, promotions or contests will allow your customers to interact with your brand on a personal level. Social media is about establishing and fostering relationships with current clients, the general public, and even other businesses.

As a sphere that is constantly evolving and never static, brands need to distinguish themselves from their competition. By giving the cyberworld a reason to care about your brand, more overall interest will be generated. Social media has the power to help boost a brand’s image, reputation and overall credibility. Stay tuned for more blog, Twitter and video content from TRA360!

The Experts’ Advice on Viral Marketing in 2012 (Part 2 of 2)

Posted on January 27, 2012May 20, 2013 by Valentina Rosa

Okay so you want your content to go viral. You and everybody else. You have your blog, your RSS signups, you’re tweeting, posting and doing everything under the sun to create great content and pump it out to social networks. What’s missing you ask?

Rob Ciampa of Pixability has the answer. People like content that is easy to share. How often does a friend send you a link of something they’ve enjoyed or found value in? More often than not, that content happens to be videos- which is a booming trend.Youtube has provided a global medium for everyone from teenagers to grandparents to upload whatever content they choose. For companies, this is a huge opportunity. Just watch Mattress Dominoes World Record Attempt – HD, to see what creativity can do for a relatively unknown warehouse company called Bensons For Beds.That video was shared over 1,000,000 times and had a much further reach than any advertising campaign at such a low cost.You have to start your campaign with a marketing and sales strategy. Hoping for something to just “go viral” is ineffective, so have a strategy in mind that will resonate the value you are offering to the world. Develop a creative story around that value and combine it with efforts to have consistent content online. Before you know it, your small business could end up being the next Bensons For Beds. Once you have people’s attention, it’s up to you to keep it focused on your company to reap the benefits.

Laurel Ackerman of Zeo has been developing cost-effective ways to engage with her brand’s audience. She found that advertising through Facebook and Google didn’t have the Return on Investment that she was looking for. Instead, she focused on the silver lining of engaging the customers she already had. She started partnering with similar businesses for sweepstakes that built synergy between the brands. She also creatively came up with mommy bloggers to get her target customers actively promoting the brand. Your company has something to share with the world and your customers share a passion about your industry. Encourage your online pages and websites to become breeding grounds for discussions and content. Don’t just add “likes” and “followers” for the numbers, but really engage the viewers to talk about your company and the industry. Find out what they like and don’t like. Utilize their input and creativity and you just may find new ideas that can take your company in a whole new direction.

You will find that if you utilize all of the proven strategies in this two part series, that you will be on your way to success because of a customer focus that is easily amplified.

The Experts’ Advice on Viral Marketing in 2012 (Part 1 of 2)

Posted on January 20, 2012May 20, 2013 by Valentina Rosa

The EntreTech Forum is an excellent opportunity to network with professionals in the Boston area. They have monthly meetings focused on technology and wouldn’t you know that this past week was dubbed “Leveraging Viral Marketing.” I always like to include my disclaimer that nothing replaces having been there, but that being said, here’s the good stuff…

Lora Kratchounova is the Principal of Scratch Marketing + Media. She gave a presentation that went through recent history of corporate marketing from the 1980’s, 90’s, and the new millennium. She proposed that marketing has evolved from a focus on the past to a focus on the present, and is now shifting to a focus on the future. People want to feel comfortable with their brands and are willing to pay for quality and peace of mind. Sure having a great track record is nice, but more important are those intangible good feelings about the future. Toyota is a prime example of a company with an impressive history of safety and reliability, yet due to recent events these past few years, that reputation is holding less water. Trust in a brand goes down just as quickly as the reputation can with so much bad PR. How will they recover? The only option is to regain that trust because consumer outlook on the future is reliant on how well a company has delivered on its value proposition. The past can’t be changed, but you do control the future.

Let the customers know why they should be buying from you and deliver on all of your promises consistently. Your happy customers will become your happy brand ambassadors doing your marketing bidding for you; lest the opposite occur. If you’d like to know what happens when you upset your customers, check out Netflix’s stock… It’s not pretty and it didn’t have to happen.

Sarah Hodges is the Director of Marketing of FitnessKeeper. She has been part of a brilliant marketing team that has developed a community of over 7 million users with a budget of a whopping $0 and 0 cents. To all you entrepreneurs out there, it can be done! How? I’m glad you asked…

iPhone runs Boston Marathon – RunKeeper

Sometimes all it takes is thinking outside the box. Though easier said than done, it’s that sort of creativity that can spur exponential growth overnight. That video was shared virally through social media and traditionally media and created a sensation tied to the brand RunKeeper. The company successfully capitalized on that golden egg by offering their value proposition to all of the listeners. They also held on to those listeners by creating a community online and offering them valuable content tied to their products. Ask yourself what emotions and messages do the consumers want to share about your product? Runkeeper made it easy for them to congregate and share. Doing so fosters ideas, comments, critiques and opportunities- all of which are positives.

The moral of the story is to think of a way to captivate the minds, and tie that to your brand. It may not happen in a brainstorming session, but give it time and an honest effort. Think about what success means to you before embarking and make it happen. Viral marketing is a product of hard work, dedication and creativity.

Want to know more about what the expert say about viral marketing? Stay tuned for part 2 early next week! (Why not Comment and Share this blog post while you’re waiting? )