Consumers also see social media as valuable. In a 2008 survey, 93% of those surveyed think that companies should have a social media presence and 92% of American’s surveyed believe that companies should interact with consumers via social networks (Wilson, 2008).
Yes, numerous businesses are engaging in social media and finding success, but before a company hops on the social media bandwagon, it is important for its marketing or communications team to have knowledge of this medium and an established strategy that details responsibilities, guidelines, messaging and tactics that can easily be implemented.
A social media strategy allows a business to reach a different audience – sometimes a smaller, niche audience committed to a brand or industry. In addition, such a strategy affords a business the opportunity to connect with consumers, maintain brand positioning and awareness, generate more traffic to the company’s primary Web site and enlarge the target segment (Delobelle, 2008).
While some companies may believe it can go into social media without a strategy, the company should be cognizant of the risks associated with not having a strategy. These risks include an inability to answer responses in a timely and honest fashion, a non-conversational tone and possible negative feedback due to lack of customer engagement (Delobelle, 2008).
Overall, a successful social media strategy will focus on brand intelligence, consumer insights (demographics, etc.), community behavior (a deeper understanding of a brand’s target audience) and tools and platforms (Falls, 2009). These four spheres do overlap, and together, they provide the foundation for a winning social media strategy.
These spheres provide the blueprint for the social media strategy detailed below for Rust-Oleum Specialty, a brand of specialty paints and coatings for the do-it-yourselfer from Rust-Oleum.
About Rust-Oleum and Rust-Oleum Specialty
Rust-Oleum, based in Vernon Hills, Illinois, is first in brand recognition and market share position in the United States and Canada in the rust-preventative, decorative, specialty and professional segments of the small-project paint category (RPM International Inc. Web site, 2009). Founded in 1921, Rust-Oleum has a vested interest in the growth and sustainability of this market segment. Its mission is to provide its consumers with the highest quality paint so you get the best results.
Even though the Rust-Oleum brand is well-known in the home-improvement industry, many individuals do not know of all of the product lines that fall under the brand. With so many product lines and offerings, their distinctiveness may become blurred or a consumer may become confused and not think Rust-Oleum offers a particular product.
One example of this is the Rust-Oleum Specialty product line, which features products such as chalkboard paint, dry erase paint, paint for stainless steel and appliance paint, among others. Rust-Oleum Specialty displays its entire product line on a section of the Rust-Oleum Web site. Yet, this seems to be the brand’s only online presence – a Web site listing its products. With its unique product offerings and its concentration on improving and enhancing a home, Rust-Oleum Specialty can directly benefit from a social media presence.
Situation
While Rust-Oleum Specialty does not have a social media presence, Rust-Oleum itself does. For the purpose of this situation statement, Rust-Oleum’s current social media presence will be used to demonstrate that the company does have an understanding of social media; yet, there is an opportunity for it to expand its social media presence by focusing on some products under the brand that need to garner more awareness. One such brand of products is those within Rust-Oleum Specialty.
The company has a presence on Facebook via a “fan page.” The page, which has 329 fans as of December 27, 2009, displays product information, how-to videos, discussion boards and news items. Yet, the one thing that could be confusing is the fact that there are three “fan pages” dedicated to Rust-Oleum. How can a consumer differentiate between the three, and how does one know they are on the official Facebook page? Also, how does one know that they are on the correct page when seeking information on Rust-Oleum Specialty products? To find the answers to these questions, Rust-Oleum’s marketing team will need to take hold of its brand on the site especially since its target demographic aligns perfectly with Facebook’s largest growing segment, those 35 and older (Facebook, 2009). Too, it will need to creatively and distinctly differentiate its various brands as not to confuse consumers; thus, ensuring they are being directed to the correct social media site.
Twitter affords a great opportunity for Rust-Oleum Specialty to reach a very targeted demographic with how-to tips and company news. This is one social media outlet that should definitely be explored by the company.
In addition, the company does have limited presence on YouTube, SlideShare and other sites. There are some how-to videos posted on YouTube; yet, the company does not have a dedicated channel, which would make it easy to find on the site and provide a comprehensive library of how-to videos on the products. There are numerous opportunities available for Rust-Oleum Specialty to set a precedent in the social media space for specialty do-it-yourself products, paints and coatings.
Situation Statement
Currently lacking a social media presence, opportunity abounds for Rust-Oleum Specialty to create a social media platform from which the brand can build awareness, demonstrate product usage and engage with customers (both current and potential) on a more conversational and personal level.
Taking a Look at the Competition
In order for a social media plan to be developed, a competitive analysis needs to be completed and included in the overall situation analysis to gain an understanding of opportunities and challenges that may be met.
Valspar
There are numerous competitors, but not all of them are utilizing the social media tools available. This presents a tremendous opportunity to reach an engaged and targeted audience. One on which Rust-Oleum Specialty can capitalize. The key will be to identify the messaging and information for which this audience is looking; this messaging and information will be detailed in the brand’s social media strategy.
Target Audience/Market
According to Quantcast, Rust-Oleum’s primary target audience is males, ages 35 and older with a household income of between $30,000 and $60,000 (Quantcast, 2009). This target audience also includes those individuals that Rust-Oleum Specialty wants to reach.
In addition, women, in the same age group, cannot be discounted. In fact, women account for 85% of all consumer purchases including everything from autos to health care (Holland, 2009). This would include home improvement projects. Another fact that demonstrates women need to be factored into the social marketing plan for Rust-Oleum Specialty: women represent the majority of the online market (Holland, 2009).
Having to appeal to both men and women in the same age group will present challenges, but since social media offers so many different networks and opportunities, this challenge should easily be overcome.
Marketing Objectives
Rust-Oleum Specialty’s social media plan will be developed and implemented with the following objectives in mind:
- To create a social media strategy that can easily be executed among Rust-Oleum Specialty’s marketing team that will afford the brand the opportunity to reach consumers
- To build awareness for the product line among its target audience
- To develop a social media platform that engages consumers through a variety of established social media tactics
- To differentiate the Rust-Oleum Specialty products - their uniqueness and usage - from the other brands under the Rust-Oleum umbrella
These objectives will be met through the social media plan that is outlined below.
Strategy Statement
Create a comprehensive, easily executed and maintained social media program for Rust-Oleum Specialty that highlights the brand’s uniqueness and product offerings to the brand’s target audience – male and female, creative do-it-yourselfers.
Social Media Plan
Based on brand knowledge, research and a competitive analysis, as well as a closer look at the brand’s marketing strategies, which include Web presence, events and limited advertising, it has been determined that social media would be advantageous for Rust-Oleum Specialty. Not only will a social media presence allow the brand to engage consumers and have them truly experience the product, but it will also give the brand a competitive advantage since the majority of Rust-Oleum Specialty’s competition has a limited, if any, social media presence.
There are numerous social media channels available for Rust-Oleum Specialty to utilize. These include: blogs; branded social networks/communities; established social network sites, such as Facebook and MySpace; discussion forums; Flickr and other photo posting sites; innovation hubs; Twitter; ratings and review; YouTube; and Wikis (Wetpaint & Alimeter, 2009).
As previously stated, the goal of a social media program is to ensure the company is engaged. At the inception of a social media program for Rust-Oleum Specialty it is critical for the marketing team to understand the concept of social media, be comfortable with it, and then select those tactics that provide ease of use and can be updated frequently. Too, it is important to select those social media channels that will be brand-focused and not appear that Rust-Oleum Specialty is only having a social media presence and not a social media engagement.
With that said, the following are the suggested social media tactics Rust-Oleum Specialty should implement:
- Twitter
- Facebook Fan Page
- YouTube Channel
- Blogs and Consumer Generated Content
- Branded Entertainment
Step 1: Team Education and Engagement
Education is crucial to the success of any plan. In order to have marketing team buy-in for a social media plan, each team member will go through social media training. This training will provide the fundamentals of social media as well as show the team how social media has been used. This includes case studies on brands that have found success in social media including Starbucks, Dell and Southwest, among others. The training also includes social media failures such as Wal-Mart, Pepsi and Skittles. These failures demonstrate to the marketing team what not to do in social media. Consider this part of the training as best practices and lessons learned.
This education focuses on the fact that social media is not a forum to sell a product. Instead, it is a medium for conversation and to demonstrate a different side of the brand. It can be used to educate consumers about a product through videos, but it is also used to answer consumer questions. This will be a key component that will demonstrate success. Conversations are going to happen, and it is important for the brand to be a part of them.
In addition, employees will go through the process of building accounts on social networks. There will be step-by-step instructions on appropriate posts, suggested posts, and most importantly, how to post to the various sites. It is recommended that a social media binder be developed for the marketing team that includes the user names and passwords for each site.
The marketing team will be responsible for the social media updates as they are closest to the brand. The public relations firm’s role is to provide guidance, develop messaging and provide other recommendations for posts and further social media development.
Another key component of training includes gaining an understanding that some social media messages cannot be controlled. This is an important concept for a marketing team, who typically likes to control messaging, to grasp. In addition, the importance of transparency and authenticity will also be emphasized. Consumers want to know they are communicating with the company. They also want to be understood and social media affords t hem the opportunity to have a conversation directly with a company.
It is critical that all members of the marketing team know that social media is continuously evolving, and once the above mentioned tactics are mastered, then it is possible to move onto other tactics that align with the brand and set objectives.
Step 2: Messaging
While formal marketing messages are not necessarily appropriate for social media, a messaging plan needs to be established for the strategy to be effective. This means that general ideas about messaging need to be developed. These ideas include: customer-focus, responses to customer inquiries, how-to tips, product usage tips and ideas, new products, retailers and possibly any public relations releases.
The key to social media messaging: a conversational tone that is not corporate speak. If this type of tone is followed, a company will find success in social media.
Step 3: Tactics
Twitter
Twitter is a social networking site that answers the question: what are you doing now? Yet, it has become a phenomenon that allows businesses to post information and educate consumers. In fact, in 2008 Twitter’s users grew by 900%.
Twitter has the potential to be a powerful tool used to disseminate relevant and timely information out to a company’s “followers,” who are a captive audience. Twitter can help to create awareness for an unknown brand, promote a product or educate consumers.
The most compelling argument though for Twitter usage can be the fact that according to Performics and ROI Research, 48% of individuals who saw a brand’s name on Twitter went to a search engine for additional information on that brand. This is compared to 34% for other social networks (Sullivan, 2009).
Twitter affords Rust-Oleum Specialty numerous opportunities to engage its customer base. With a Twitter account, Rust-Oleum Specialty can provide its “followers” with product updates, usage tips, applications and specials. This is critical since these products are so unique, yet so cool. These are products most do-it-yourselfers may not have even thought about, but Twitter allows the brand to build itself and showcase capabilities to an engaged audience.
In addition, the brand can use Twitter as a customer service tool by answering customer questions directly from the site. Plus, with Twitter, the Rust-Oleum social media team or those who monitor social media for the company can also search the site to see what is being said about a particular product. This way the company can proactively reach out to customers and educate them about the product and offer other tips. Essentially, Twitter enhances dialogue between the consumer and the company.
The above are general brand building techniques Rust-Oleum Specialty can use via Twitter. Yet, with Twitter’s introduction of the “Lists” feature, there are even more opportunities. Twitter launched this feature on November 2, 2009. It allows individuals and companies to group together followers or find new ones (Catone, 2009). Rust-Oleum Specialty can use the lists feature to its advantage once it sets up an account. For example, the company can group together users of its various products to communicate with them about product-specific information. The company is also able to search lists to find people. In addition, the list feature also allows individuals to recommend pages to others. This means current Rust-Oleum Specialty followers could recommend the company’s Twitter page to those they know with the same interests.
Listi, which is a Web-based application that informs an individual of when a company name or brand has been mentioned in a tweet from a specific Twitter list, is another tool the brand could use to increase its Twitter presence (VanGrove, 2009). Think of this as Google Alerts for Twitter. With this feature, Rust-Oleum Specialty can further extend its customer service outreach by receiving hourly updates on what is being said about the brand on the site. Even though Listi is in its early stages, it is definitely an advantage to using Twitter for promoting a brand. Learn more about Listi at http://www.listi.com/.
From showcasing product tips, to featuring actual completed projects, Twitter can be a powerful tool for the brand.
Facebook
With more than 350 million active users, Facebook is the largest social network (Facebook, 2009). And while many use this site to connect with old friends, numerous consumer brands are finding success in reaching an audience through this medium. In fact, according to Razorfish, 40% of Facebook users "friend" brands on Facebook (Keane, 2009). This is why it is recommended that Rust-Oleum Specialty develop a Facebook fan page.
In order to be successful, the Rust-Oleum Specialty fan page not only needs to provide information on the company as well as showcasing its products, it also needs to accomplish the following:
- Network with other platforms. This means that Rust-Oleum Specialty needs to integrate all of its other sites within its Facebook page. This page can link to the brand’s Twitter and Flickr accounts as well as YouTube channel. In addition, the company can provide links to the social media site from its main Web site
- Create a resource of information. This page can include information about the product, its usage and other tips
- Develop contests for user interaction. By developing contests, Rust-Oleum Specialty is fostering user engagement. Consumers are becoming actively involved in the brand. In addition, contests can build a larger community and following for the brand
- Target the proper demographic
- Establish a discussion board with topics for individuals. Make the Facebook page a go-to resource for anything about Rust-Oleum Specialty. Create discussion posts about problem solving, usage of the product and more (Balwani, 2009).
Since this page will attract new visitors to the brand, it is important that the landing page be welcoming and informative. This site should not be overpowering. It should also be fresh. In addition, make sure the site includes videos about the product. This could also be in the form of a link to the brand’s YouTube Channel. But post importantly encourage and facilitate participation on the page. This will keep fans and followers coming back (Williams, 2009).
To get started on developing a Facebook Fan Page, this tutorial will provide the necessary steps and details http://tutorialblog.org/how-to-create-a-facebook-fan-page/
YouTube Channel
The YouTube audience is vast with 157 million American viewers in June of 2009 alone. While YouTube is usually associated with humorous videos, it is actually useful for posting corporate messages. Rust-Oleum Specialty could utilize this tool by posting product how-to-videos to the site. In addition, YouTube now offers branded channels, which affords Rust-Oleum Specialty the opportunity to develop a channel that has the look and feel of the brand.
The YouTube channel can be linked through Facebook and Twitter. This way all social media networks the brand is using are integrated.
Blogs
There are more than 200,000,000 blogs, and 34% of bloggers post opinions about brands and products (Qualman, 2009). With these numbers in mind, it is advantageous for a company, especially Rust-Oleum Specialty, to pay close attention to blogs and user generated content because blogs are valuable resources for both a company and consumers. This also means that numerous conversations are being had via social media.
Blogs are a type of Web site maintained on a consistent basis that provide commentary and insight on a particular subject. Blogs can provide greater insight into the company as well continue to facilitate two-way communication with consumers.
The company can set up a blog through a free site, such as blogger.com. This blog should be separate from corporate messaging. Instead, it should focus on home improvement and showcase creative ideas about the industry and products that are available. The blog needs to be conversational, informative and entertaining. Again, this is not a place for corporate messaging.
In addition, the blog also affords consumers to leave comments. By responding to comments, Rust-Oleum Specialty will be able to engage in conversation with its target audience.
Consumer Generated Content
Brands are part of our lives, and the goal of this campaign is to make Rust-Oleum Specialty a part of the lives of consumers. With that said, consumer-generated content could provide a strong outlet for the brand.
Consumer-generated content allows the consumer to be a part of the communications process (Jaffe, 2005). It is a different kind of marketing tactic that allows the consumer to truly embrace the brand and participate in it. With consumer-generated content, the consumer is actually a part of the brand. They can tell why they use it and believe in it; essentially, why it is a part of their lives.
Rust-Oleum Specialty would be able to use consumer-generated content in its social media marketing campaign. One preliminary idea is to have customers write in via a Facebook page, Twitter account, or possibly even a dedicated Web site and tell how Rust-Oleum Specialty made their house a home. The campaign, “Making Our House Our Home,” allows the customer to tell the story, which includes an experience and promotes how the product can be used. To add another customer engagement component to it, those who log onto the site can vote for their favorite story with the winner receiving a grand prize. Maybe it is something they still need for their home or maybe it is cleaning service for a year. The possibilities truly are endless. In addition this idea further emphasizes the importance of integrating the social media networks and mediums to demonstrate one cohesive brand.
Branded Entertainment
Branded entertainment is frequently called product placement. Whereas some individuals do not think product placement may be beneficial, it could be extremely beneficial for Rust-Oleum Specialty as long as it is strategic and does not look like it is a complete endorsement for the product.
According to PQ Media, branded entertainment was expected to reach a spend of $25.8 billion in 2008 and continue to grow (PQ Media, 2008). This is due in part because it is not a traditional advertising tactic. For Rust-Oleum Specialty, a possible partnership with HGTV may prove to be successful, maybe on a show such as Design to Sell where there is a limited budget available to transform a house. By using the products on this type of programming, consumers will be able to see how they are used as well as the end result.
General Ideas
While some ideas for usage of the above tactics were mentioned in the description of the tactics. There are a few other ideas Rust-Oleum Specialty can incorporate once its social media program is up and running.
First, Rust-Oleum Specialty should feature links to all of its active social media sites on its Web page. This way, it is easy to find and access those pages without conducting a search on each site.
One idea is the usage of games. Once the brand develops its Facebook presence, it can include an online gaming component, which can then further expand to its own Web site. These games might include recreating a dream kitchen with the stainless steel paint, or maybe a game that sees how creative one can get by creating a chalk mural or drawing on the brand’s chalkboard paint. This could be followed by a contest to enter your drawing for free paint or a room makeover. These are just a few initial ideas, but they do demonstrate that there is an opportunity for Rust-Oleum Specialty to engage consumers through online gaming. Gaming is engagement, and since it creates an experience for a consumer, they are more willing to participate.
Another idea is generated from the usage of Twitter. In order to engage in consumer conversation, the Twitter account should ask for success stories using Rust-Oleum Specialty. Users can even submit pictures. This would promote dialogue and the pictures could populate the brand’s Facebook page. Again, this shows integration, which is key to a successful social media campaign.
A discussion section on Facebook would also be advantageous for the brand. It is a FAQ section that allows consumers and fans to discuss projects and usages as well as a variety of other topics. For example, since Rust-Oleum Specialty offers stainless steel paint, a debate can be sparked on whether to go with the paint or buy stainless. One could even discuss how this product prevents those nasty fingerprints that are synonymous with stainless steel.
A contest can also be implemented to increase the number of fans on Facebook and followers on Twitter. This might include a coupon for products if one signs up for the page. This not only educates the individual about the product, but it allows the brand to continue to inform via social media. Plus, sales may increase as a result of such a campaign.
The blog that is established for Rust-Oleum Specialty would be a discussion forum for home improvement and decorating. This could be a site to brainstorm ideas with others looking for new and fresh ways to brighten their home. This sponsored blog could include some information on Rust-Oleum Specialty, but this could be more of a site for idea exchange that is presented by the brand.
Measurement
In addition, social media can be measured in a variety of ways. Sales numbers, followers and friends, cost-efficiencies, customer satisfaction ratings and positive comments can all be used to measure ROI. Learn more by watching this video: http://socialnomics.net/2009/11/12/social-media-roi-examples-video/
Conclusion
Social media is about extending a brand and reaching customers. It is about engaging in conversations and letting those conversations happen. This also means being personable and open to new ideas. In order for social media to work, a brand must use it. The above stated plan demonstrates how Rust-Oleum Specialty can enter the social media world and be successful.
References
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