The Ambassador Blog

Net Promoter Score and Referral Marketing work hand in hand to take your business to the next level. We've taken the liberty of breaking down the key points you should know about each, and how they work together to boost your bottom line. 

If you haven’t noticed yet, referral software has been getting a little SaaS-y lately. To clarify—over the past couple of years, SaaS companies have begun implementing referral programs into their social media marketing efforts. And wow, have they been doing well as a result!

It might come as a surprise, but SaaS businesses may be the best candidates for a referral program. Think about it: They’re reliant on maintaining a low churn rate, keeping the costs of customer acquisition down, and being able to track metrics easily.

While we know we don’t need to tell you that referral software works wonders for a SaaS company, we’re pretty SaaS-y . . . so we’ll do it anyway.

1. Referral Programs Help Decrease Churn Rate

Churn rate is arguably the most effective metric for measuring the health of a SaaS provider. Without a low churn rate, the number of new sign-ups is irrelevant because their likely departure keeps your business from collecting a recurring source of revenue.

On the other hand, customers referred by trusted sources have a 37 percent higher retention rate than the average buyer. Meaning, when a referred customer signs up, they’re in it for the long haul. And for a SaaS company that’s dependent on a long-term commitment from sign-ups, that can really make or break the business.

2. Referral Programs Keep the Cost of Acquiring Customers (CAC) Down

Again, referred customers are more valuable for your business than customers who arrive at your site by chance. Consider the implications for your CAC: With more referrals, marketing costs are reduced because you’re attracting new business via existing customers, not paid outbound advertising. Also keep in mind that customer referrals are inherently viral. In other words, when a SaaS loops in a customer referral, they’re not getting just one customer. They’re actually getting that customer and the potential business of said customer’s entire social network. As your loyal customers refer others to your brand, a SaaS can easily build publicity and a stronger brand name—both of which are critical to retaining a user’s trust and support.

3. You Can Easily Track Actionable Metrics

Metrics are an extremely important component of any successful online business, but especially so for a SaaS provider. After all, a SaaS company operates entirely online and thus requires an intimate understanding of their online customer base. Setting up a referral program on your own can be tricky, as well as time intensive. Plus, without referral software you won’t have access to the comprehensive suite of metrics that it provides.

4. More Than a Free Trial

Most SaaS businesses that utilize a referral or affiliate program offer a free trial as an incentive to refer. It’s quick and easy—but is it the best option? With referral software, your business will have the opportunity to reward customers in more creative ways. Perhaps you can try a tiered rewards system where customers are rewarded for referring five friends, or maybe you’ll offer one month of service to customers at no cost.

Sometimes a free trial simply isn’t enough. With comprehensive referral software in place, a SaaS provider has the ability to optimize the incentive structure to accommodate for their niche target base.

Referral marketing has gotten a little SaaS-y lately. But like Grandma always said, you can never have too much SaaS in your life . . . right?

Traversing the landscape of marketing programs can be tricky business, especially when industry terms overlap. Take affiliate and referral marketing for example.

Both drive new customers to your business, both use indirect advocates to make sales, and both provide a remarkable ROI on your social media marketing investment— so what exactly is the difference? 

Let’s break this down.

                           Affiliate vs. Referral Advocates

In affiliate marketing, the advocate does not know their referred customer personally, and the primary reason for referring your brand is financial motivation.

In contrast, the referral marketing advocate recommends your brand to a direct friend or family member. The motivation is based more on a strong relationship between the advocate and the potential customer. That being said, offering referral rewards definitely helps drive social sharing and shouldn’t be discounted.

Channels for Success

These interactions lead to differences in the channels of communication used to drive conversions.

Affiliate marketers tend to use more antiquated forms of media like email and PPC ads. They’re not contacting close friends, but rather looking for maximum exposure. Whereas a brand ambassador works mainly via social media platforms, which makes sense, given the trust-based focus on peer-to-peer referrals.

An affiliate program will focus on website owners and large influencers—making it more of a partnership than a relationship. The traffic generated is visitors searching for products online, and has very little to do with a prior relationship between the two factors. While you’ll be getting more traffic, your likelihood of conversion is lower due to the lack of a prior relationship.  

A referral program focuses more heavily on customer engagement. It is building a strong relationship with your customer base to the point where they feel your brand is good enough to share with a friend. Here, you’re getting a marginally lower amount of leads, but because of the prior existing trust-based relationship, referred customers are of higher quality, meaning they’re more inclined to engage with your brand and make a purchase.

Although both forms of marketing accomplish the same goals, nuanced differences require nuanced decisions on what type of structure your business should pursue.

Now What?

Luckily, Ambassador’s proprietary referral software works just as well for affiliate marketing as it does for referral marketing. So whichever route you choose to take, you can be sure Ambassador is there to guide you along the way.

Several factors influence a business transaction, but the most pressing one is the human element. While savvy business owners understand the importance of connecting with their patrons, many tend to overlook the significance of an unassuming “thank you.” Yet in our highly competitive, consumer-driven economy, customers no longer hope for such gratitude from vendors—they expect it.

Let’s take a look at the ways your thankfulness may have seemed insincere in the past, and how it can be improved moving forward.

Forgettable, Boring & Buried: The “Thank You” That Doesn’t Deliver

Saying “thanks” has become an almost mechanical gesture, offering about as much warmth and personality as an invoice, a pop-up order confirmation, or an email receipt. Unfortunately, this gives your customers the impression that you only value their money.

Some of the problems plaguing companies’ thank-you messages include:

Ice-Cold Formatting

Adding an exclamation point to your “Thank you!” doesn’t make it any more compelling—and especially not if the message that follows reads like it was written by a machine. Too often, businesses drown their friendly sentiments within reams of impersonal transactional information and fail to create any sort of human connection.

Bland, Uninspired Messaging

Your customers bought your products, referred a friend, or plugged your company because they were excited about your business. That excitement can quickly dissipate once a disappointingly generic “thank you” message arrives. You’ve just missed a great chance to make a lasting impression.

Pushy Up-Sells & Not-So-Hidden Agendas

Saying thanks is about recognizing the value of your customers, not demanding more of them. A well-delivered “thank you” can generate additional sales, but hammering a customer with an ineloquent invitation to “Buy more now!” or “Refer a friend!” drives a wedge instead of building a relationship.

Beginning to Think—and Thank—Differently

Improving your “thank you” starts by understanding that instead of recognizing transactions, you need to acknowledge the people behind them.

Get Personal

Treating customers as individuals is the cornerstone of a winning “thank you” strategy. As noted by Gary Vaynerchuk in his book The Thank You Economy:

It’s still so rare for anyone to be personally acknowledged by a brand that the impact of such a simple, polite gesture on a customer’s buying habits could be huge.

Based on your growing relationships with your customers, you should have a reasonably accurate picture of what they like, want, and need. So you can use this information to craft a validating thank-you message.

Address your customers by name.

Be specific about why you’re thanking them.

Consider highly personalized messages for first-time buyers, significant purchases, or longstanding customers.

Keep It Simple & Sincere

A thank-you message should be concise and authentic. This could mean sending an email that’s free of jargon, technical details, or instructions in order to let patrons know that you truly appreciate their business.

Add Some Value

There’s a fine line between flagrantly begging for another sale and providing an incentive that benefits the customer. But don’t be misled—adding value to the customer experience can come in various forms.

Offer insider perks and benefits.

Give them a discount on their next purchase.

Invite them to refer a friend or share their experience in exchange for free product, a discount, or other personalized rewards.

Provide them with free resources or helpful information (but keep it brief).

Entertain them—provide an interesting tidbit that reminds them of your business and offers a little mental refreshment.

Boost their ego—consider thanking your customers publicly on your website or various social mediums, where appropriate.

Break Conventions

Customers might expect a thank-you, but that doesn’t mean you can’t surprise them. Take the time to leave a lasting impression and stand out from the norm.

Take it offline! Consider sending handwritten thank-you notes to customers who buy online, or offer them tangible rewards like available product or gift cards. Brainstorm ways you can interact with them away from the Web, anything from throwing a party for local customers to meeting one-on-one with major buyers.

Celebrate your customers’ birthdays or the anniversaries of their first sign-up or purchase. Or send them something for free—just because.

Thank those who offer both positive and negative feedback and then wow them with unexpected and appropriate rewards for helping you improve your business.

Use multimedia tools like video, audio, and images to spice up your messages and create a more memorable experience.

Test Boldly & Often

How you thank your customers is too important to ignore. Take an active role in optimizing your thank-you by testing new approaches and measuring their impact. Find what works for your customers and then tweak it and test it some more. Never let the ways you show your appreciation grow stale.

As shoppers increasingly engage with brands online, social media has become as much of an eCommerce referral engine as it is a networking tool. In fact, data collected online shows that a person’s purchasing behavior is influenced exponentially more by friends and family than by traditional outbound advertising. An effective referral campaign, backed up by comprehensive referral software, can leverage these trends and capitalize on the power of word-of-mouth recommendations.

               In the hustle of holiday shopping, moving into social commerce may seem a little intimidating—but don’t let the ability to communicate freely with customers overwhelm you. 

Put simply, “social commerce” combines social media marketing techniques with the sales potential of e–commerce. This interactive evolution of e–commerce allows for brands to participate in customer communities; leveraging their networks to drive sales, increase revenue, and build powerful brand ambassadors.                  

Ultimately, moving into social commerce is easy and can be segmented into 3 simple dimensions:

Social Shopping: Social shopping seeks to mimic the interactions found in brick and mortar stores by involving a customer’s friends in the shopping experience. Group shopping sites (like Groupon), recommendation engines, and online marketplaces all bring customers together in a central location allowing for an interactive, social experience.

Customer Reviews: Easily accessible user forums ease customers into making educated purchase decisions. By harnessing the wisdom of crowds, positive reviews can be game changers in a customer’s decision to choose your brand.

Peer–to–Peer Referrals: Proven to be the most effective way to drive new business, happy customers will take their satisfaction a step further than a positive review and share a peer–to–peer referral with friends and family. In fact, according to a Nielsen study, customers are four times more likely to buy when referred by a close friend.

With social referral software built into your e–commerce platform, you can easily reward customers for sharing information about their purchase, referring new friends, and driving sales. If social commerce is all about promoting word–of–mouth activity, implementing a customer referral program is critical to successfully entering this new marketing sphere.

You may have noticed a common theme: establishing a trust–based relationship is critical to effectively leveraging social commerce.

Shoppers today have an inherent distrust of branded messaging. Instead, they look to friends, family, and online communities for purchasing wisdom. The choice to utilize social commerce for commercial gain is simple. Now it’s up to your brand to act on it.

Thanksgiving is here and like most Americans, our mind is not on the historical significance of the event, but on the historically significant amount of food we’ll consume. Amidst planning our own menus, we realized that each dish could accurately be pinned to a social medium. That’s just the way we are.

So read on…and hopefully social media won’t interrupt your family gathering like it did ours.

1. Turkey: Facebook

In most households turkey is the staple dish for Thanksgiving dinner. Without it, it seems the entire meal would fall apart.

Facebook is the same way. No social media strategy would be complete without a strong Facebook­–presence for your brand. From social sharing to community engagement, Facebook is the biggest player of available mediums, and without it—you might as well be eating McDonalds.

2. Green Bean Casserole: Twitter

Green bean casserole is easy and quick to cook, but very difficult to master. Sure, anyone can combine Campbell’s soup, fried onions, and green beans to churn out casserole in less than 20 minutes. But it can take years to perfect the recipe.

In this scenario, Twitter is like green bean casserole. Tweeting out 140 characters may seem easy enough, but there is a strict science behind it that can lead to successfully garnering more leads.

Effectively branding your Twitter profile to drive leads back to an offsite landing page is a key best practice for any brand utilizing Twitter. The same way no one makes green bean casserole quite like grandma—no one knows your niche better than your brand.

3. Buttermilk Biscuits: Google+

The often­–overlooked Thanksgiving side dishes, like buttermilk biscuits, are still a critical component of any feast. They may not be the flashiest or most popular, but they offer a lot of utility for promoting and enhancing the rest of the meal.

Google+ offers the same experience. It’s not the most talked about social network, and it certainly isn’t the flashiest, but Google+ is an extremely critical component of any social media strategy.

Google’s social network was built partly to impact search results (meaning the greater the page activity, the higher your company ranks when key words are searched), while it also allows for creative market segmentation, and user engagement opportunities.

Google+ may not be your highest marketing priority for now…but, much like a biscuit, it’s very useful to sandwich in between other, more active networks.

4. Roasted Brussel Sprouts: LinkedIn

Ah, what a sad life a brussel sprout leads. Unless you’re really into blandness, brussel sprouts tend to be the most boring part of any Thanksgiving meal. In fact, their only real purpose is to inject a semblance of health consciousness into what is otherwise a testament to American gluttony. It’s a necessary, albeit trite, component of a meal centered on gluttony.

Similarly, LinkedIn might be all business, but it’s absolutely necessary for developing professional connections. Yes, it can seem boring and easy to ignore, but frankly, it’s the best tool out there for lead generation. So eat your vegetables and network on LinkedIn…you’ll be happy in the long run.

5. Sweet Potato Pie: Pinterest

The hotshot on the Thanksgiving scene, everyone is convinced they have no room for dessert until they stomach their shame and gobble down the sweet, mushy goodness that is sweet potato pie. The pie is also the most visually appealing of the Thanksgiving bunch. The next day, in between stomach cramps and shameful reflection, you’ll likely see photos of dessert plastered across social networks.

If you have any experience with Pinterest, you can tell where this is going. Pinterest is all about sharing images that present opportunities to gain utility from the site.

In order to attract visitors, you first need to post engaging pictures in your blog posts. Infographics and eBooks work well if you include eye–catching covers.  Once posted on your board, you can drive traffic back to your landing pages by including embedded links in your images.

The name of the game is conversion, and if you’re not bringing people onto your site, there’s really no reason to be online—just like there’s no reason to eat Thanksgiving dinner, if you do not taste that sweet potato pie.

One of the most underappreciated aspects of social mediums is their ability to set industry leaders apart. However, businesses today tend to shy away from social media engagement as they fear their efforts are time consuming, and insignificant—but that simply isn’t the case. Effectively managed, brands can utilize these mediums to garner client feedback, engage ambassadors, identify competitors, improve their products, and set themselves apart in the eyes of consumers.

To keep you from spending hours on the hunt for the most effective social media management tools, we’ve cut through the noise, and selected a few of our favorites to share.  

Without further adieu, here are 8 of our top picks—both free and paid—for listening in:

1. Google Alerts

While not overly robust, notifications available through Google Alerts serve as a simple tool to manage your brand in real–time. With a simple adjustment to settings, Google Alerts will ping you each time your brand name is mentioned—an easy and barebones way to put an ear to the ground, and get notifications on–the–go. Hard to beat for those who have little time or budget to devote to new tools.

2. Social Mention

Free, fast, and surprisingly robust—social mention will scour blogs, videos, comments, and more, to bring you on–the–go information pertaining to brand discussions (i.e. sentiment, top users, sources, etcetera). The sort by date feature also allows you to review the most recent conversations had about your brand, or ones held in the past you might have missed. It might not be as detailed as other paid solutions, but it’s a great way to get a lot of information in a pinch.

3. BoardReader

While the term “social media” might bring to mind Twitter, Facebook, and other major networks, businesses tend to overlook the discussions held in forums—many of which are not indexed by Google. BoardReader is a forum search engine that can illuminate these hidden conversations. Forums lend themselves to lengthy, detailed discussions, great for garnering in–depth insights into, and engaging with, a more deeply invested audience.

4. Topsy

A powerful (and free!) social search engine, Topsy provides real–time insight into online conversations shared about your brand. In seconds, you can review news releases, photos, videos, tweets, Google Plus pages, links, and more. Sort by date to see the most recent buzz, or scan the archives to catch up on old conversations.

5. Loudpixel

Lost in a sea of customer responses? Loudpixel is designed for just such scenarios. This distinctive monitoring app serves up a wealth of information, including actionable reports of statistically representative client data. Receive daily alerts about priority­–based consumer posts requiring follow–up, keep a pulse on relevant data, and effectively analyze your businesses progress against industry and competitor benchmarks.

6. Engag.io

With so many available networks, it’s tough to be everywhere at once. This tool allows you to monitor your various social presences, track conversations, and respond to all posts, tweets, +1’s, and more, from a central location. Get new interaction notifications, and immediately join in on a conversation.

7. Brandwatch

At $250 per month, the price tag might not suit every budget, but Brandwatch serves as a powerful tool for those wanting to take monitoring to the next level. Sophisticated sentiment analysis gives you the nitty–gritty details beyond whether or not people like or dislike your product, while visually stunning charts and graphs turn data into actionable insights. Detailed filters help you cut through the noise, identifying key influencers who might not have otherwise been on your radar.

8. Sysomos

Real–time tracking and analytics, automated sentiment analysis, demographic tracking, competitor comparisons—what more could you ask for from a listening tool? This tool can provide particularly powerful insights into the “whom” driving online conversations: age, location, interests, and engagement levels.  You’ll have all the information needed to reach out and build relationships with the seed influencers who matter most.

Honorable Mention: Radian6

No list of social media monitoring tools would be complete without recognizing the juggernaut in the ring, Radian6. While we’ve yet to see the implications the recent acquisition by Salesforce will have on the tool, Radian6 remains the top choice among marketing professionals. Clean dashboards and real-time charts make it easy to see the most common words associated with your brand, monitor the highs and lows of social mentions, ascertain sentiment, export data, and allocate workflow. The tool excels at turning data into appealing visuals—helping you cut through the clutter, and focus on data meaningful for marketing decisions. With some of the most robust help and support of any tool mentioned, putting the immense power of Radian6 to work seems less daunting and more exciting.

Social media listening tools can be your most useful set of eyes and ears on the web, providing insights you could never have gathered on your own. Just remember—the key to any successful customer management tool is engagement. Be prepared to listen, converse, and build relationships with your potential brand ambassadors!

Social media has evolved beyond cat memes and vanity status updates into active engagement with consumers. Today, businesses active on social media increase exposure, improve search rankings, generate leads, and grow partnerships that lead to wild success in the online marketplace.

The following infographic explores the potential of social media to fuel strategic marketing campaigns and gives some powerful statistics on the benefits of taking your marketing program to the public square.

If you’re wondering about the impact of social media for B2Bs, check out our report on why social media works for B2B brands:

http://www.slideshare.net/getAmbassador/report-social-media-referrals-work-for-b2b-companies

          In 1954, Abraham Maslow laid out a theory that would radically reshape ideas on human development: the Hierarchy of Needs. In layman’s terms, the theory held that individuals couldn’t realize true emotional development unless basic needs were satisfied. 

Over 50 years later, this theory still holds its weight, albeit in a different form. Today, Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs can easily be applied to the current generation of brand ambassadors. How, you ask?

Well read on, dear reader, as we explore the psychology behind social media referrals.

1. Physiological Needs

At the bottom of the pyramid you find the most primitive needs necessary to sustain human life (i.e. food, water, shelter), which is easily applicable to an individuals everyday buying decisions. After all, in our consumer–driven society, as well as on a global level, customers are drawn to particular products—infatuated with the idea of obtaining said goods, until that desire is met by following through with purchase. Up until that point, all other needs pale in comparison.

2. Safety Needs

Once an individual completes such a purchase, their need for economic, familial, and physical safety takes priority. In social selling, this applies to a customer’s level of trust in your brand, and the ability to feel secure in their purchasing decisions. Developing a strong social media presence is crucial to establishing this relationship. So, don’t neglect your online community—doing so, could generate a level of uncertainty amongst online shoppers that could have otherwise been avoided. Reputability and accessibility are central buying factors for today’s consumer; the successful establishment of each generates a confident purchaser, and repeat customer.

3. Social Needs

Social needs include love, family, and belonging—all of which are central to promoting brand ambassadors. Once a customer experiences the joy of using your product/service, they will promote your brand without even being asked. After all, what better way to build strong social ties than by helping friends and family find cool, new products?

4. Esteem Needs

Esteem needs are comprised of social recognition, accomplishment, self-esteem, and personal worth. Sound familiar? If your customer is already looking for ways to share a product, why not incentivize them for a job well done? The combination of a brand offering free rewards, and appreciation from grateful friends and family will satisfy the esteem needs of any brand ambassador.

5. Self-Actualizing Needs

This is the pinnacle of Maslow’s need pyramid. Self-actualizing people are concerned with personal growth, and fulfilling their own potential. For the social buyer, this means taking advantage of your businesses referral program, and reaching their full potential as a brand ambassador.

While Maslow may not have been thinking about referral marketing programs some 50 years ago, he sure hit the nail on the head by establishing the Hierarchy of Needs. Understanding customer psychology will enable you to satisfy a customers’ unsaid need for emotional stability, better leverage your brands current social networks, and empower enthusiastic brand ambassadors.  

With so many networks available to marketers, understanding the landscape of social media can be difficult. But don’t fear the unknown! The following infographic from Awareness Inc. offers 5 best practices for traversing Twitter, Facebook and YouTube to help optimize your referral campaigns and start generating more leads, increasing brand awareness and promoting brand ambassadors now.   

Whether it’s using dynamic tools to reach audiences seconds after a campaign event, or masterfully crafted CTA’s that drive voters to the polls, there’s no doubt that when it comes to social media marketing—both presidential candidates are decisive winners.

As we begin to wind down from the thrill of election season, let’s evaluate 3 takeaways from presidential social media marketing, and how they can help give an electoral boost to your brand:

1. Targeted Messaging Matters

If you’re looking for votes, you need to make sure your message is resonating with supporters. A candidate working with a fan base of 20,000,000, however, must also understand that not every message is going to resonate equally.

We recently saw an ad on Facebook that featured Rapper/Entrepreneur Jay-Z endorsing Barack Obama, clearly targeted towards a younger demographic. If a baby boomer had seen the same ad, it would have had very little, if any, impact.

The same could be said for a brand seeking meaningful engagement from online supporters: the more targeted the message, the more likely that viewers will engage with the post and develop into high-value leads.

By creating a solid customer profile—interests, age, shopping habits, etcetera—your brand can craft a marketing strategy aimed towards supporters, at the optimal conversion time, and with an eerily targeted message.

2. Use Powerful Imagery

After Clint Eastwood’s speech at the Republican National Convention, in which he spoke to an empty chair as a surrogate for President Obama, the Obama campaign tweeted a photo of the President sitting in a chair marked “The President,” with the caption “This seat’s taken.” The post was immediately retweeted almost 50,000 times.

Not only do images promote sharing and improve visibility on social networks, they also elicit a strong emotional response from fans in ways that text alone cannot.

Using relevant images to convey brand messaging is a valuable way to improve your reach, while also enabling your brand to and loop-in emotionally driven followers.

3. Be Human

At the 2012 Democratic National Convention, President Bill Clinton (paraphrasing Bob Strauss) said that, “Every politician wants every voter to believe he was born in a log cabin he built himself.”

Candidates are always looking to present themselves as the “average American” that lives the American dream…If that’s the case then the American dream must be stitched together with denim pants. [KR1] 

But mom jeans aside, personal connections with voters are a critical component of garnering more votes—building a powerful community of supporters for your brand works the same way.

Publish content that is valuable to your fans—offer contests, share other fan’s content, and/or engage directly via Twitter and Facebook. Whatever avenue you choose, humanizing your brand via social media makes fans feel engaged, appreciated, and ready to advocate on behalf of your business.

There’s a lot to learn from the digital marketing strategies of the 2012 campaign, and they all center around a common theme: engage your community of supporters. What good are 20,000,000 Facebook fans if no one is listening to your message? Presidential candidates work tirelessly to empower, engage, and inspire the American people; there’s no reason your brand can’t do the same.

Today's consumer is turning to online mediums to make informed buying decisions—wanting to feel as if they are a valued consumer that is heard by the businesses they buy from. Businesses can capitalize on this opportunity by knowing their audience, and targeting messages accordingly. Let's take a look at how your business can benefit from this shift in consumer behavior.

Zombies will roam the streets on Halloween—mindless creatures covered in blood soaked rags, staggering around in an endless search for…candy? 

It might come as a surprise that Halloween zombies are just kids in costumes. A true zombie apocalypse could never happen…right? Well not to scare you, but leading scientists have concluded that a zombie apocalypse is not only possible, but also inevitable.

But don’t batten down the hatches just yet. In these pre-apocalypse times, we can use a virus-induced zombie outbreak to get insight into common traits of referral marketing programs. Make sense? Here are 3 components of effective referral programs to be learned from a zombie apocalypse:

1. Effortless Transferability

Looping in one brand ambassador doesn’t just mean one new customer. The effect is compounding due to the endless reach of social media. With an effective referral program you can easily generate hundreds of referrals from just one ambassador.

Like a transferable zombie virus, referral marketing is also inherently “viral.” Once the ball gets rolling it’s very hard to stop. But hopefully you’ll be generating revenue and not world ending zombies.

2. Takes Advantage of Existing Networks and Resources

Having a strong, integrated infrastructure today may seem like a plus—but when the zombies begin attack, a giant highway interconnecting every major city won’t double as good containment of the virus.

Luckily, having such an interconnected online world is one of the key factors of why social media referrals are so effective. With just one click, you can share a message with hundreds, if not thousands, of people.

In the same way that roads facilitate the spread of a zombie virus, online networks make it easy to spread your message and brand.

3. Use of Common Human Motivations

Zombies tend to have one thing on their mind: braiiinnnsss. It’s a simple, basic motivation to eat and survive. While a referral program typically doesn’t involve brains—it hopefully taps into human motivations. (Feel free to reference our previous post about potent psychological traits that get referrals.) We all have underlying tendencies that compel us to share and promote the brands we love…just like a zombie has an underlying tendency to stumble around and eat.

The growing popularity of zombies has prompted many to begin actively preparing for a viral zombie outbreak. But rather than thinking, “How can I prepare for a zombie apocalypse?”, we should instead be thinking, “How is a zombie apocalypse applicable to my customer referral program?”

The truth remains: until we actually see an outbreak, the only thing on a marketer’s mind is: referrraaalllsss.

         B2B marketing has come a long way since the days of print ads and salespeople, and with new online engagement platforms popping up daily—the current shift towards social media shows no signs of slowing down.

Here are the facts behind the trends and the rationale for incorporating social media engagement into your B2B marketing strategy:

1. Buyers Control Their Own Marketing Consumption

More often than not, consumers are looking beyond traditional methods of engagement, and are pursuing personal interactions with brands via social media outlets. The trend is undeniable.

A few facts to consider:

Over 70% of consumers find brands that neglect to distribute non-promotional materials untrustworthy.

Many buyers are 50-60% down the sales funnel before establishing contact with a company.

9 out of 10 consumers report finding businesses online completely independent of outbound channels.

80% of buyers begin the purchasing process by using a search engine online.

For B2B marketers, establishing a trust-based relationship from first interaction is extremely important. Customers don’t trust sales pitches. Today’s buyer is instead turning to peer-to-peer referrals, brand connoisseurs, and industry leaders when considering various product offerings.

2. B2B Goes Social

61% of online marketers now use social media outlets to generate leads—and for good reason. B2B’s are increasingly reporting lead generation stats from social media engagement that go beyond the wildest dreams of any outbound marketer:

The top B2B companies gained 230% more leads via social media than their competitors.

Almost 70% of business owners that they were better able to gather insights into their market by use of social media.

Over 56% of B2B marketers reported acquiring new business partnerships by utilizing social media.

60% saw improved SEO search rankings as a result of social media engagement.

3. Online Word of Mouth and Brand Advocates Are Key to Sales Growth

B2B transactions can run into the hundreds of thousands of dollars so buyers want to be sure they’re making the right choice. Rather than being sold on a product, customers instead turn to word-of-mouth referrals to validate their purchases:

84% of B2B buyers said word-of-mouth recommendations are the most important factor in purchasing decisions.

Brand advocates are 3x more likely to share brand information than the average internet user.

Brand advocates are 50% more likely to create content that positively influences purchasing decisions.

In the B2B marketing world, customer referrals and quality online content play a crucial role in acquiring new business.

Engaging with customers via social media platforms not only produces immediate results like that of customer referrals and high-value leads, but also leverages your brand to take advantage of the newest frontier in B2B marketing: the social web.

For years, pay-per-click ads have been a fallback for businesses that want to drive sales online. The medium offers controlled spending and traceable returns, making it attractive to marketers used to more traditional forms of advertising.

But while it would be foolish to claim that PPC is dying (Google can’t let their primary revenue stream bleed out on the table), all is not well in the pay-per-click space.

Google’s earnings report from earlier this month revealed that the average cost per click decreased by 15%—and that’s not because they’re giving away more impressions for less. As users increasingly migrate to mobile platforms, it’s getting tougher for Google to make money on ads. Businesses simply aren’t willing to pay the same cost per click, while overall returns seem to diminish.

The Trouble With Pay-Per-Click

The discouraging reality is that even if a click drives a user to your website, there’s no guarantee that the visitor will follow through to sale. The consumer is still relatively high in the funnel at this point in the process, despite the business having paid for that lead. Businesses wind up scraping for window shoppers, many of whose sole motivation to purchase is lowest price.

Like many other forms of “push” marketing gone before, PPC ads are also being tuned out by an over-stimulated generation that has learned to distrust or ignore blatant advertising.

The most recent Nielsen Global Trust in Advertising report found that 40% of respondents trusted ads served in search results, 33% trusted online banner ads, and a mere 29% trusted text ads on mobile phones. Ouch.

PPC Advertising Has A Silver Lining

PPC still has its own redeeming factors. The fact remains that well-structured PPC campaigns generate a considerable number of leads and sales. Regardless the varying trust levels for PPC, careful planning and execution allow marketers the ability to reduce waste spend, reach their target market with a well crafted message, precisely when the consumer is evaluating options. These practices in tandem with a businesses ability to remarket content to previous ad visitors, significantly improves conversion rates.

For generating quick, measureable results that get in front of your market, PPC is still a strong option—yet, an expensive one. That said, earnings report numbers hint at the underlying challenges in tracking that success with PPC.

This begs the question: while PPC ads might be one way to generate leads and potential sales, are they the best way to spend your marketing budget?

Referral Marketing: A Viable Alternative

If your business is unwilling to allocate budget towards a click campaign unable to guarantee results, where is the smart money?  Unsurprisingly, word of mouth. After all, doesn’t it make more sense to pay per sale,while offering perks to existing customers in the process?

Your business may not have an enormous budget for PPC, but what you likely DO have is a core group of devoted customers. Incentivizing that core group to refer their circle of friends can yield dividends beyond the reaches of pay-per-click ads.

Referrals Win Customers Over—The Proof Is In The Numbers

According to the New York Times, 65% of new business comes from referrals. Even more compelling, the same Nielsen study mentioned earlier, showed that 92% of respondents trusted referrals from people they knew, with 70% trusting consumer opinions posted online. People are also 4 times more likely to buy when referred by a friend, and the Wharton School of Business found that the lifetime value of a new referral customer would be 16% higher.

The opportunity is there—but businesses often fail to capitalize. A Texas Tech Marketing Study found that 83% of consumers are willing to refer after a positive experience—yet only 29% actually do. Imagine the potential returns if budget were allocated to turning these happy and willing customers into brand ambassadors!

Go To Where Your Market Is

Unlike other forms of advertising, the effectiveness of genuine word-of-mouth will likely remain the same. People trust those they know because their relationships are exterior to any business or brand, therefore, a referral isn’t seen as advertising. Those relationships transcend technology—and, changes to mobile and social platforms will only make referring businesses to friends that much easier…not so, for advertising.

       We all know the volume of activity on the Internet, be it social sharing or otherwise, is astounding—but, what about the pace?

In the time it takes you to read this sentence an almost dizzying amount of status updates, emails, tweets, online purchases, photos, etcetera, were shared across the web.

       Just how fast does the web move? In a mere 60 seconds:

1. Over $270,000 is spent on e-retail websites (Social Skinny).

2. 695,000 status updates, 79,364 wall posts and 510,040 comments are published on Facebook (IB Times).

3. More than 168,000,000 emails are sent (IB Times).

4. 600 videos are uploaded to YouTube equaling over a day of new content (GoGulf).

5. Google processes 694,445 search queries (IB Times).

6. 13,000 iPhone applications are downloaded (BigPicture).

7. 98,000+ tweets are sent and 320+ new Twitter accounts are created (BigPicture).

8. 100 accounts are created on the professional networking site LinkedIn (LinkedIn).

9. 25,000+ new posts are created on Tumblr (AllTwitter).

10. 40 new questions are posted to Yahoo Answers (AllTwitter).

These are pretty impressive numbers, but don’t let them scare you! You’re about to start on a fresh new sixty seconds, so get moving and make them count!

What are you currently doing to harness the speed of activity online?