By Rajiv Parikh, CEO, Position²

Thanks to the group that filled our Ask-the-Experts Roundtable session at DMA 2010. Given the placement of the sessions, I was a little concerned that I wouldn’t get to share our new presentation and new Social Media ROI analysis for addressing unresolved issues and engaging to drive new leads. Instead, we had a great session with companies from around the world. While much of the examples in my deck were B2C, many of the questions were B2B. I was happy to share our experiences and learn from the group. If anyone is interested in a copy of our deck, please write to us.

The DMA 2010 conference has evolved from discussing the latest in database marketing techniques to a much more holistic event that this year was heavily weighted towards social media. There were many beginners and some experts. I went to a few sessions and took away some interesting tidbits.

The best session was the Social Media Face-Off moderated by Sean Muzzy with industry luminaries like Brian Solis, Vivek Sodera and David Berkowitz.

They discussed the need to research first before you get involved and to budget more senior resources than the social media intern. This is your company’s brand presence and should not be left to the whims of someone without real experience.

I liked Solis’ comment about the need for the brand to exude a higher purpose.

“You need to see the brand in a more aspirational sense than pure features and function – think Apple and Disney.” – Brian Solis

Then there’s the reality that Michael Friedman expressed about needing to drive new sales.

“Giving freebies to influencers is not enough. It has to lead to real growth. Hence the need to model the return on investment. When you are a restaurant owner, image is one thing, but it better fill the seats.“
- Michael Friedman

Of course, Solis won the “battle” of the day. It’s partly because he’s steeped in the subject. He also gave away a copy of Engage. That never hurts

Given our experience in social media area, there is a way to map conversations in a market to a particular capability like customer services, sales opportunity, or competitive intelligence. The difference is the magnification aspect and permanence of conversation. What you say stays. We are big believers of relating this to customer lifetime value because it wraps acquisition costs, customer services and retention marketing to profitability over time. If you are interested in discussing this more, please write to us.

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On Oct 11, Rajiv Parikh, CEO of Position² (@rajivparikh) will be speaking at the DMA Ask-the-Experts Roundtable on Tracking Brand Sentiment for Social Media: Impact and Defense. We urge you to join us as this has become a critical subject with the rise of social media and the impact of a company’s brand. Brands have evolved immensely from decades ago. Previously, a corporation could message in a continuous and streamlined fashion to their target audience. With the rise of social media, brand attributes regarding service, quality and value can quickly be undone by a customer video or a tweet. Brands like Southwest Airlines, Toyota and Dominos have seen the impact of this positively and negatively.

In our session, we will have an intimate and interactive format to discuss:

• Discover why tracking Brand Sentiment is crucial for your business
• Learn the various methods you can use to track brand sentiment
• Learn how you can share success stories and defend your brand online

So stop on by at the Moscone Center Exhibit all from 12:30-1:30 on Monday, Oct 11. As a special bonus, we will share with you a new ROI model designed to help companies understand the impact of social media monitoring on marketing, customer service and sales.

See you there!

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• Position² at #SocialTech2010 and #DMA2010 Events (1)
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Position² is a proud sponsor of SocialTech2010, and we’re also going to be present at the DMA2010 conference.

SocialTech2010


Position² is proud to sponsor SocialTech2010 (from MarketingProfs)

At SocialTech2010, you will:

• Learn how to energize your company’s B2B marketing and sales via social media from experts.
• Connect with your technology marketing and sales peers to network and share social media marketing tips.
• See the latest innovations in social media tools and services.

Date: October 26, 2010
Time: 8:30am to 6:00pm PT
Place: San Jose, CA

About SocialTech2010:

SocialTech 2010 brings together the visionaries and experts who are using the power of social media to transform the way that B2B technology companies market their products and services. Read more…

DMA2010 Conference & Exhibition



Position² CEO Rajiv Parikh (@rajivparikh) will be speaking at the conference on “Tracking Brand Sentiment for Social Media: Impact and Defense“.

Abstract:

• Discover why tracking Brand Sentiment is crucial for your business
• Learn the various methods you can use to track brand sentiment
• Learn how you can share success stories and defend your brand online

Date: Monday Oct 11, 2010
Time: 12:30 PM – 1:30 PM (PST)
Place: San Francisco, CA

About DMA 2010:

DMA2010 is the Global ROI Marketing Event. DMA2010 covers all marketing channels-from traditional to digital-capitalizing on the principles of data and direct marketing as the underpinnings to enhance the end user experience and maximize ROI! Read more…

• #DMA2010 – Event Summary (0)
• Tracking Brand Sentiment for Social Media: Impact and Defense – #DMA2010 Ask the Experts Roundtable (0)
• Position² is Proud to Sponsor #SMX Advanced, Seattle (0)

The Social Media Strategies Conference is focused on how companies can leverage Social Media to achieve their business goals. It is the event for CMOs, Social Media Managers, Online Community Managers, Corporate Communications, PR, Marketing, and Advertising professionals.

Position² CEO Rajiv Parikh (@rajivparikh) will be speaking at the conference on “Generating traffic via Social Media” .

Please join us at the conference and get Keynotes, Sessions and Workshops that will help you refine your Social Media strategy.

Register with the Promo Code position2 and you’ll get a $555 discount on the registration fee.

Position² will showcase Brand Monitor™ at the conference. Position² Brand Monitor™ is a cloud based platform developed to help companies track and monitor conversations across millions of blogs, social media, forum, news, video and photo sharing sites on a real-time basis.

About the Conference:



The Social Media Strategies Conference is the premier event for CMOs, Social Media Strategist, Managers, Marketers, Search Marketers, Online Community Managers, Corporate Communications, PR, Marketing, Advertising, and Recruiting Professionals.

This conference features experts in this cutting-edge space, sharing their knowledge and ideas on how social media impacts your business, and how you can leverage it. The conference feature a combination of hands-on workshops, interactive sessions, panel discussions, and keynotes from thought leaders. Don’t miss it!

Read more…

• Position² at #SocialTech2010 and #DMA2010 Events (1)
• How to Manage a #Social Media #Crisis & Design a Communications #Plan (2)
• Showcasing Position² Brand Monitor™ @SMX West, San Jose, CA, March 8-10, 2011 (0)