Thursday 5 May 2016

Is the Chat Bot Revolution Coming?

Was originally published on Jeffrey's Booom

In this guest post, GlobalWebIndex’s Felim McGrath shares his thoughts on the potential of chat bots, and whether consumers will engage with bots in the future.

Facebook’s big announcements last month surrounding chat bot functionality on Messenger caused a flurry of online discussion. When the biggest social network in the world throws its backing behind such a new development, the industry takes notice. But is the rise of chat bots a foregone conclusion, and will consumers engage with these bots in the ways that Zuckerberg & Co. are betting they will? GlobalWebIndex’s 34-market research shows that the outlook for chat bots is promising, if they are implemented in the right way.

Certainly, the increasing centrality of smartphones to the digital habits of internet users means that every aspect of the purchase journey is being influenced by mobiles – and, by extension, social media. GWI’s research shows when they are investigating products that they are thinking about purchasing, it’s 1 in 3 digital consumers who say they turn to social media for more information. This means that, globally, social media is now the third most important product research channel (being only 2 points behind consumer reviews). And if we zero in on the ever important 16-24 year-old age bracket, then we see that social networks are the second choice for these consumers when they are researching products (behind only search engines).

Product-Research-Channels

In fact, looking at this age group (the most enthusiastic users of messaging apps) gives us a clear indication of the potential of chat bots. In particular, if we look to the young, digitally engaged internet users of Asia, we can see how chat bots are already making an impact. In China, not only is WeChat used by close to two thirds of 16-24 year-old online consumers, but the service has capitalized on its massive market share by offering functionality well beyond simple messaging by attempting to insert itself into as many stations along the purchase journey as possible. Chat bots have been a key tool here, providing feedback to users on purchases ranging from clothes to food delivery, with customer service agents on hand to provide further assistance.

Social-product-research

So it’s clear why many brands will want to provide automated, round-the-clock assistance to consumers on messaging apps, even if – for now at least – most will want to retain the ability for a human to “intervene” in the conversation if needed. But there is one issue that could put the brakes on the march of the chat bots. Already, it’s 6 in 10 internet users who say they are worried about their privacy online, and over 55% who have concerns about how companies are using their personal data. Issues like these are one of the major reasons why GWI’s research shows that personalized purchase recommendations are yet to capture the enthusiasm of a large section of digital consumers. And as the ever-topical issue of ad-blocking shows us, internet users are fully capable of customizing their online experience as they see fit.

To truly make chat bots a major part of digital consumers’ purchase journeys and online lives, they will need to be non-intrusive, obviously beneficial to the user and, perhaps most importantly, present themselves as an honest assistant, not an advertisement in disguise.

The post Is the Chat Bot Revolution Coming? appeared first on We Are Social UK.

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Monday 2 May 2016

Facebook Faces Class-Action Over Proposal to Create New Stock Class

Was originally published on The Social Booom

That was quick: Just days after Facebook announced a proposal to create a new class of common shares, the company is facing a class-action suit over the proposal.

Facebook announced last Wednesday that its board of directors approved a proposal to create a new class of non-voting capital stock, class-C capital stock. The company said that if its proposal is approved, it will issue two class-C shares as a one-time dividend for each outstanding class-A and class-B share of common stock.

The proposal will be voted on at Facebook’s 2016 annual meeting, scheduled for June 20.

Reuters reported that a Facebook shareholder filed a proposed class-action lawsuit in the Delaware Court of Chancery, calling the proposal an unfair deal to entrench Facebook co-founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg as the company’s controlling shareholder.

According to Reuters, the suit claimed that the company “did not bargain hard (with Zuckerberg) … to obtain anything of meaningful value” in exchange for the control he would retain over Facebook, adding:

The issuance of the class-C stock will, in effect, have the same effect as a grant to Zuckerberg of billions of dollars in equity, for which he will pay nothing.

Facebook responded in a statement issued to Reuters:

(The proposal) is in the best interests of the company and all stockholders.

Readers: How do you see this lawsuit playing out?

Image courtesy of Shutterstock.

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Escape the PR and Marketing Echo Chamber and Start Creating Relevant Content

Was originally published to The Social Booom

Lately, my inbox has been overflowing with emails promoting brand content. They all follow a…
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Snapchat is the first social network to capture this element of our lives

See more on: SocialBooom Agency

snapchat-builds-trust1

On most social networks we post the best and worst parts of our lives—in a highly curated way. We share the highlight reel. This highlight reel effect is even more true for brand accounts. Where curation is governed by what generates revenue, stays on brand, and gets approved by legal.

But, the story is different on Snapchat. And that matters a lot, especially for businesses interested in marketing on Snapchat.

This focus on curating only the specific story we want to tell disappears on Snapchat. Users are more inclined to share the in between moments. The journey. There are two reasons why:

  1. Snapchat has a content creation focus. When you open Snapchat, you see a camera (whereas with Facebook, Twitter and most social networks, you see a stream of content first).
  2. Snapchat started as messaging app and it still has the DNA of a messaging app. There’s no public feed. There’s no permanent list of your old content for people to review or judge.

If you’re not familiar with Snapchat yet, just imagine all your silly text messages, photos, and gifs suddenly became a social network.

If you see a cool antique lamp at your hotel you might share it on Snapchat. You might share 10 photos of your weekend BBQ on Snapchat (instead of just posting one photo on Facebook). On Snapchat you’ll post multiple selfies, palm trees swaying in the wind, shopping photos, clips of live TV, and anything else that sparks your interest. Without guilt.

In between moments are more valuable

At first glance all of this sounds like it would be less valuable, that content shared on Snapchat is more trivial. When in fact, all of these pieces together create something more meaningful.

On Snapchat, users share less polished and more authentic moments, which allows you to see more about someone’s real life. In between our highs and our lows is where we live our life. It’s what our day to day really looks like.

This same authentic opportunity exists for brands. Share your brand’s in between moments and you’ll be surprised at the relationships you can build.

In Between moments build trust

Right now, it’s difficult to build an audience on Snapchat. Unless you have a massive audience, big name influencers, or ads, you have to rely on your existing audience from other channels.

This makes Snapchat the perfect place to deepen relationships with your most loyal fans and customers.

Lose the polish, production, and script for your Snapchat strategy. Don’t approach it the way you would approach Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Go with what already works on Snapchat: authentic and honest stories that capture in between moments.

This will build trust with your fans. And in turn, increase your word of mouth and customer loyalty.

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This article is an excerpt from Social Fresh’s upcoming course, The Social Marketer’s Guide to Snapchat. Be the first to get access to the course here.

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