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As opposed to interrogative surveys, conversational marketing produces better data, insights, and ultimately, better lead conversion results. This was the key message from a recent panel session carried out by popular marketing publication, The Drum.
Epiphany RBC’s Alfie Adamson opined that it is very important to look at human-to-human conversations.
“Businesses need to find early adopters in the community and persuade them so that they can influence everyone else. We can begin to achieve this by listening to people on social media. Using NetBase Quid, we were able to compile a list of all the keywords from their Twitter profiles.”
You met someone at a party, you were intrigued by them and you would definitely want to learn more about them. What steps would you follow to know more about them, do you;
(a) Ask them a prepared set of multiple-choice questions,
(b) Talk to them, or
(c) Join the discussion they’re having with someone else and listen to learn more about them?
Answer (a) is the approach that traditional market researchers have been adopting for years, according to Alfie Adamson, a senior research consultant at marketing consultancy Epiphany RBC.
Approaches (b) and (c) work together to provide a more modern, conversational approach that produces better data, insights, and ultimately, better business results.
This was the key message from a recent panel session carried out by a popular marketing publication firm, The Drum. The workshop which was titled ‘Finding the human perspective; how conversation powers insight’, was produced in partnership with AI-powered consumer and market intelligence platform NetBase Quid.
“When you get these interrogative surveys, which are incredibly tedious and really boring, it’s bad for the whole industry,” Adamson said, “Instead we can actually start having dialogues with individuals and be more engaged, which leads to greater results and deeper insights.” It’s important for the industry to have higher-quality data so you can offer more strategic recommendations.”
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Research update for the social media age
According to Adamson, his company, Epiphany’s technique is still based on the old model of primary and secondary research, but it has been updated for the social media age.
“If you’re looking at primary research, it’s very important to look at human-to-human conversations,” he said. “if you question customers, you’ll get really poor quality information, they aren’t ready to engage with you.
“Then there’s secondary research, which is what’s already out there, and a lot of it comes from online content”. However, there are a lot of posts going on right now. For example, over half a million tweets are sent out every minute on the internet, it can be tough to decide what to focus on, but conversions and, of course, NetBase Quid can assist.”
Adamson cited a recent project in which Epiphany was requested to investigate ‘entertainment bingers’, or people who stream movies on demand on a regular basis.
Prior research, the group revealed they sampled males who were located in the UK and interested in movies and TV.
Using NetBase Quid, we were able to compile a list of all the keywords from the group’s Twitter profiles, revealing their passions, favourite brands, and people that inspire them.
“Then you’ll be able to see that this is a functioning community, and you’ll be able to figure out what makes them tick, what motivates them, and what they all have in common.” We can begin to achieve this by listening to people on social media.
Influencing the influencers
According to Adamson, all of this is important because it allows businesses to find early adopters in the community and persuade them so that they can influence everyone else.
“We’ve all seen the innovation diffusion curve, which shows how you progress from the inventors to early adopters to the late majority. And the reason we begin with the most viable communities is that the innovators, the 2.5% at the beginning of the curve, are the ones that can truly lead to your value.
“Because once you have a thorough understanding of the demographic, you can start looking for commonalities and what motivates them, and you can start engaging with them online.” And if you truly understand what these folks are about, you’ll have greater word-of-mouth and more consumer resonance.
Fast-fashion brands Asos and Boohoo, are two companies that excel at this, according to Adamson. They’ve identified a persona known as ‘Daytime socializers,’ who are young British women who tweet about socializing, eating out, having a girl’s night out, and having a good time. They also promote Asos and Boohoo on the internet.
“Boohoo and Asos recognize that these are viable communities; they tap into the relevant and current culture, with the content that they’re putting out there, and they’re really having a conversation with these daytime socializers,” he said.
Primary and Secondary Research and The Social Listening Technique
Another important point highlighted by Adamson is that primary and secondary research must be used in combination, but how they are employed will vary depending on the project. For example, if you’re creating a survey and aren’t sure what questions to ask, you may utilize a technique known as social listening to discover a target audience online, learn more about them, and figure out what questions you should ask.
Social listening (or social media listening) refers to the process of identifying and assessing what is being said about a company, individual, product or brand on the internet.
If you’re evaluating primary research, you may enhance it with instances of what your target audience is talkimg about online using social listening. Ultimately, the key, according to Adamson, is to engage with your potential customers.
“The more customers interact with you, whether through primary or secondary research, the stronger their bond with your firm will be, and the more money you’ll make.”
