Today’s post comes from Victor Gaxiola, Social Media Subject Matter Expert at Actiance.
If you aren’t listening to your customers, how do you plan to engage?
During a recent visit to Chicago I had the pleasant experience of engaging with a brand that is effectively using social listening to increase brand equity and in turn brand loyalty. In two tweets, they not only made me feel welcomed, they also provided me an example of how a brand can leverage a social tool to and share this experience with others- likely their long term motive.
After a heavy meal at one of our favorite restaurants, we decided to visit the Peninsula Hotel for an evening drink to finish the night. As a regular user of foursquare I checked in on my arrival to the lounge. Within seconds of my check-in I received a tweet welcome from the Peninsula Chicago (@ThePenisulaChi) that included an open ended question inviting me to a conversation. The entire exchange is below:
I proceeded to answer the question, and instead of being sold a product or service I was thanked for including the Peninsula Hotel as part of my Chicago experience.
What stood out to me about this exchange was the following:
1. The Peninsula Hotel is listening and engaging with people who check-in using foursquare, leveraging the location sharing application.
2. I felt welcomed and thanked for the visit.
3. In two tweets they have differentiated themselves from every other business that I check-in to that does not acknowledge my presence at all.
From a brand equity standpoint, I left feeling better about my experience at the hotel and was quick to share my exchange with my entire party and am writing about it now, which is yet another boost to their brand. All from two tweets!
Social listening does not mean that you have to give anything away but at the very least acknowledge your audience, especially when they are providing you with the information about their location and interactions with your people or your brand. It also provides you insight about who your customers are and how the engage with your people and products. How would knowing this differentiate you from your competitors?
There are hundreds, maybe thousands of places to get a drink in Chicago that I could choose to visit, however, during my next visit I will likely go back to the Peninsula. All from 2 tweets!
