I had the opportunity this past week to introduce my four year old daughter to the magic of Disneyland. After a week long trip, we came home exhausted but very happy. Disneyland truly is one of the happiest places on earth, but what is it that really makes it so amazing?

Of course the creative and fun rides, cute decorations, costumed characters, and buckets of cotton candy are part of the equation, but the entire trip I couldn’t help but notice that it’s so much more than that.

My daughter summed up exactly what I was thinking when she said, “Everyone here is calling me princess. They’re all so nice to me mommy, I want to live here forever!”.

From the time I first called the reservation lines through our entire trip encounters with park customer service, ride operators, food sales and everyone in between, the way we were treated and the happy, helpful attitudes made me want to stay forever.

It was such a good reminder in the basics of great customer service and how important it really is in creating happy customers who feel valued and come back again and again.

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Or should I say, what’s your social media sign?  Are you an avid Tweeter or a more dedicated Facebook Friend?

Research suggests that Twitter and Facebook users differ based more on psychographic characteristics rather than simple demographics.

Two-thirds of daily Facebook users are fans of a brand, and about four in 10 daily Twitter users follow a company or brand.  So as marketers, it’s important to know why and how consumers are using these social networks in order to develop marketing messages better tailored to each specific audience.

A recent report from eMarketer shows that users that have the greatest focus on becoming fans of brands are motivated by trendy topics, entertainment and like the ability to publicly show support for brands.  Using Facebook to promote messages that are informational as well as entertaining can be greatly effective.

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Unless you’ve been hiding away on a deserted tropical island, you have probably heard some talk recently about the “new” Old Spice Man.  The nightly television newscasters are talking about him, women are calling in to their local radio stations to find out how to meet him and he has been the topic of the day across many internet sites.  Why all this buzz about a brand, that until recently was, well… old?

Talk about the power of utilizing social media to drive word of mouth and help reinvent a brand.

Acting on an off-the-wall idea of creating instant buzz by responding in real time to consumers questions/comments with short videos, Procter & Gamble produced funny YouTube videos about Old Spice.  The team leveraged Twitter, Facebook, Reddit and blogs sending out invitations to ask questions of The Old Spice Man.

As people responded, their comments were pulled in and tracked and those who had interesting questions or were high-profile users on social networks were responded to directly in real time with a personalized short video featuring the dashing shirtless actor and former football player Isaiah Mustafa.  Over 200 videos were posted to YouTube over the course of two days and featured everything from a marriage proposal to messages to celebrities.

Check out this one which includes the real-life marriage proposal:

You can see all of the videos here.

It turned out to be a huge success.  Old Spice received over 83 million YouTube video views and grew their Facebook fan base by 616K all in the the course of two days.

I love it when a campaign goes viral.   But what, besides a touch of good luck, makes a campaign like this so successful?  When a campaign becomes an overnight sensation, it’s always beneficial to look back at what worked and why.  Here are a few take-aways and tips from this campaign that can be applied in making other social media campaigns a success:

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Imagine walking into a restaurant, creating and naming your own meal using an online application, ordering it on an iPad and then sharing it with your entire social network.  I came across this story in the Wall Street Journal about a new restaurant chain that plans to do just that and had to share.

On July 6th, the New York City burger chain, 4food, will open its first of 11 planned locations where they will leverage the use of social media and web-based technologies to engage customers on a whole new level.  The restaurant describes themselves as the new socially networked counter culture.  And I think the idea is ingenious!

Customers have the option to receive personalized meal recommendations based on lifestyle and health goals entered into an online application. Or they can create custom meals, name and brand their creation and market it to their friends on Facebook and Twitter, right from the restaurant. When ordering from home, customers can create commercials on YouTube as well.

The custom meal creations and commercials will then be featured on a 240-square-foot media wall at the restaurant that will also stream Foursquare check-ins and tweets.  Every time someone else orders one of the custom made creations, the creator receives a 25-cent store credit in their 4food account to be use toward future purchases.

The restaurant itself looks quite a bit like an Apple store and seating resembles bleachers and communal tables, emphasizing the idea of social networks and staff will take orders on iPads. Below are a couple of renderings to give you a look inside:

4Food is banking on the idea that by engaging customers through social media and getting them involved in the product development process, they will be inclined to spread positive word of mouth about the restaurant and about their own creations as they market them to friends in their social networks.  The concept is a great one and if their food tastes as good, I believe they will have a winning combination.

Can you measure the value of a Facebook fan?  More and more companies are developing Facebook “fan” pages and encouraging customers or potential customers to connect and become part of their community, but what are those fans actually worth?

The value of a fan can mean many things, but just recently a social media measurement firm called Syncapse took a stab at determining an actual dollar amount.  In a study conducted with market research firm Hotspex they identified and calculated several areas that make a Facebook fan a valuable consumer in the eyes of a marketer. These include product spending, loyalty to the brand, tendency to recommend it, and the emotional connection or affinity to the brand.

Syncapse asked 4,000 fans of 20 of the top brands on Facebook why they were fans of those companies or brands, and about their past and future purchasing behavior and feeling regarding the product. They then tried to estimate what the value of each fan’s spending would be to a company, as well as the value of continuing to have that fan as a customer over time.

So just what exactly is a Facebook fan worth?  Well, according to this study… $136.38.

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I am on a mission.  A mission to become the mayor of my neighborhood Starbucks!  The mayor?  Yep, that’s right.

I recently downloaded an up-and-coming mobile application on my phone called Foursquare.  Although you may not have heard of Foursquare yet (they are an early stage start-up), you are sure to soon. They are growing at a tremendous rate, so much so, they just hired a number of staffers to keep up with the landslide of inquiries from marketers interested in participating.  And for good reason, it’s a unique and exciting application, with many potential marketing opportunities.

Foursquare defines their mobile application as a cross between a friend-finder, a social city-guide, and a game that encourages users to explore their neighborhoods and rewards them for doing so.   Users can search for nearby businesses, earn points for checking in (telling Foursquare where they are) when they visit each location, win mayorships, unlock badges and access specials for trying new places and revisiting their favorites.

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Every month I receive an email from one of my favorite local deli’s introducing their latest sandwich or salad. In each of these emails they include a link to their Facebook page, with the statement “Join us on Facebook”. Although I receive this email monthly and read it in its entirety, I’ve never clicked through to their Facebook page… until today. Why now?  Because this time next to their Facebook link was the statement “Join us on Facebook, the first 500 people to become a fan and post a comment will receive a free cookie”.  I love their cookies, how can I resist!?

I clicked through, signed up and made a comment about their wonderful wheat germ chocolate chip cookies and minutes later received a message with a certificate for a free cookie on my next visit.  Can’t wait! Not only am I a happy camper, but the deli gained a new Facebook fan (along with at least 499 others today) and another way to stay in touch and build a relationship with their customers.

The greatest reason by far that people friend a company on Facebook is to receive special offers and promotions, I am certainly one of those people.  According to eMarketer, almost two-thirds of those friending a brand are looking for promotions and special offers. Coupons remain a leading driver of brand interactions in social networks and learning about sales and new products is also a strong motivator for people to interact with companies in social media.

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Think back to the last time someone did something nice for you.  How did it make you feel?  Maybe it brightened your day, made you want to return the favor, tell someone about it, or pay it forward and do something nice for someone else.  When we reach out and make an effort to help another, we leave our mark, set a great example and can truly make an impact.

The same can be said in business and developing a positive brand image.  Goodwill is an invaluable asset that can define a company’s reputation and market position.  Statistics show that today’s consumers would much rather associate themselves and do business with companies whose values match their own and those that are truly looking out for the common good.

Of course, as consumers, we all know that companies are in business to make money.  But it’s those that go the extra mile, take that extra step to connect with their customers values that we are drawn to.  Customers are attracted to companies that can demonstrate that they are in it for more than just meeting monthly sales goals.  They want to align themselves with companies that stand for something they believe in and feel good about.

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Ssshhh… Listen…  Your customers are talking.

Do you hear them?

Your customers are constantly providing feedback (good and bad), making comments, telling others about your company’s products and services.  But are they talking with you or just about you? And are you listening?

The feedback provided by your customers is one of the most valuable pieces of information your company can obtain.  Through it, you will gain tremendous insight into their attitudes, expectations and buying behavior.  It will let you act quickly to make changes if needed, resolving issues successfully while improving customer retention and loyalty.   And you might discover themes and ideas which provide inspiration for new products and services or for making improvements to existing ones.

You can use this feedback to tailor your marketing outreach efforts and really hone in on your message, providing timely and relevant campaigns that are truly beneficial to your customer. Maybe there are more effective methods for positioning your current products and services.

To grow, your company must take every opportunity to actively solicit customer feedback, both good and bad.  And make it easy by incorporating multiple ways for customers to share their thoughts.  Here are just a few ways to do this:

1. Send out questionnaires and surveys by email, mail or incorporate a feedback form into your website.  Programs like SurveyMonkey and Constant Contact are great for developing and sending surveys.

2. Use pertinent social media sites, blogs and forums to research and listen to the conversations your customers are having about your products. Allow your customers to communicate with you directly through the use of social media by developing your own Facebook page, forum, support group, etc.

3. Hold focus groups and pick the brains of some of your best customers. A focus group will allow you to ask more specific and targeted questions and obtain the detail of feedback you won’t receive elsewhere.

Allowing customers to provide feedback opens the door to a two way conversation, strengthening the relationship.  And understanding what your customers are really thinking will provide the insight needed to make better business decisions.  When it comes to customer feedback, it pays to be all ears!

I am a firm believer in the age old saying “Actions Speak Louder than Words”.   Words are wonderful, powerful, and communicate much, but without actions behind them, to back them up, they mean nothing.

In this era of on-line communication with platforms like Facebook, Twitter and email, it’s very easy to make verbal statements, put our marketing message out there and think it’s enough.  A wise marketing guru (the founder of our agency actually… do I get extra points??) likes to share the following analogy, and I’ve always found it to provide clarity…

Try placing a piece of string on the table and pushing it across to the other side. It bends and turns in many different directions, never quite getting there. But if you pull that string, it straightens out, moving in the exact direction you want it to go.  In much the same way, our words are the push, but our actions are the pull.  You can push your marketing message out there, but it takes pull to provide direction and assure your customers arrive and remain on your side of the table.

Nice words, a nice message, they will give your customers a sense of satisfaction, but it’s acting on those words that buys their loyalty.  Yes, you want a satisfied customer, but more than that, you want a loyal customer.  One that buys from you again and again and advocates for your brand by telling others and encouraging them to buy.

So how do you build loyalty?  By building trust. Through actions that consistently meet the needs and expectations of your customers, showing them they are valued much more than for just the immediate sale.  Whatever you promise, you must deliver.

In the 10^th Annual Edelman Trust Barometer survey, customer service and product quality outweighed all other business efforts in building trust. Participants in the study listed the following, from most to least impactful, as the things that matter most in building their trust in a company:

1. Service & product quality

2. Leadership can be trusted

3. Company treats its employees well

4. Provides value for the money

5. Stays within the spirit & letter of the law

6. Strong financial future

7. Frequent communication about the state of its business

8. Innovates new products, services or ideas

9. Creates & maintains local jobs

10. Gives time, money or resources to public good

11. Strong commitment to protect the environment

Don’t just tell customers how good your company is and that you understand their needs.  Prove it to them by finding and incorporating actionable ways of showing you mean what you say.  Make sure your customers really get what’s promised.  Keep the focus on providing great customer experience through excellent product and service quality. Remember loyalty and trust can’t be bought, they must be earned.  And earning is an action!