In the Year 2020

Here's a startling prediction: according to Gartner, by 2020, corporate buyers will manage 85 percent of their supplier relationships without once interacting with a salesperson.

Salespeople used to serve as the face of a company—a prospective buyer's first contact with the brand.

No more.  As Jon Miller, CMO of marketing-automation provider Marketo, writes in his firm's blog, "Today, buyers create their own brand preference by conducting research online, particularly within their own social networks, before they even touch base with a sales rep."

What does the trend mean?

Companies have to change how they use both marketers and salespeople.

In a few years, online content will be the only way to reach nearly 9 out of 10 prospects.  So marketers, for all purposes, will present the "face" of the company until the crucial moment of decision, when salespeople step forward (and, with luck, cinch the deal).

"Unless companies begin to sell the way their customers want to buy," Miller warns, "they might as well write a prescription for their own failure."

Transparency in Social Media

Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart famously said that, while he couldn't define pornography, "I know it when I see it."

Defining transparency in social media is equally difficult.

Writing for Social Media Today, Elissa Nauful tries to do so anyway in "What Does It Really Mean to Be Transparent?" 

She defines transparency in social media five ways:

You gotta be "you."  Transparency rules out any fudging or posturing.  Being true to thine own self entices customers.  "Your authenticity will translate as both honesty and integrity."

You gotta be tolerant.  Transparency means you'll accept praise and criticism.  That tolerance "will immediately build brand trust."

You gotta be generous.  To be transparent means to share, openly and often.  Not top secrets or tawdry details, but enough hard news to keep people interested.

You gotta be forthright.  Transparency demands that you disclose commercial interests in anything you're plugging.  (The Federal Trade Commission demands that too.)

You gotta be chatty.  Transparent companies socialize.  "They reply to comments, they retweet funny ideas, and they treat their customers like new friends."

How do you define transparency?  Or do you only know it when you see it?

Approximating Authenticity

The term "authenticity" is a social media shibboleth.

After all, consistent promise-keeping is the real rule of the authentic organization (think Amazon).

But we can at least be approachable in our social media exchanges, according to online community consultant Richard Millington.

In his recent blog post "Interact With Your Community Like a Human Being," Millington sets out his codes of conduct:

• Write in the first person.  Phrase questions as personal ones. "Has anyone had experience with ....?"
• Engage first, tell second. Lead with a question, not content.  Only if others reply should you respond with information.
• Begin with a story. Why are you asking for others' opinions? What's your opinion?
• Speak with emotion.  "Don't default to a customer-service tone for engaging members of your community," Millington advices.

Social Media News

Social Media Examiner has released its annual report on marketers' use of social media.  

The key findings:

• 90 percent of marketers say social media is important for business.
• 88 percent say it drives brand awareness.
• 72 percent say it drives Website traffic.
• 62 percent say it drives search engine rankings.
• 58 percent spend 6+ hours a week on it.
• 34 percent spend 11+ hours a week.
• 77 percent plan to increase the use of video.
• 28 percent outsource at least part of their program.

According to the report, 2011's top four social media marketing tools are Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and blogs.

Duh, Selling!

Ad Age reports that big brands are spending countless hours every day scrubbing spam from their Facebook pages.

According to Facebook management software vendor Vitrue, 15 percent of posts should be deleted, because they're offensive or represent promotions unrelated to the brand.

Spammers target big brands' Facebook pages because the exposure is vast, even if the messages remain visible for only a few hours.

This so-called "page spam" can tarnish a brand's image and drive away fans.

Page-spam cleanup is costly because it has to be performed by humans.  Some brands are hiring outside firms to do the work, spending as much as $20,000 a month.