What Does Every Successful Social Media Campaign Have In Common?
Square one, or, how they start their campaign, is what they have in common…
…Because when you do that right, it can be the difference between instant customer adoption or a long drawn-out product failure.
So, what’s square one?
Confidence.
Let me explain.
100% Confidence
Don Moore, a researcher at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, demonstrated that “consumers tend to pick advice from those who express more confidence that they have the right answer (Moore, 2009)”
Now this makes sense. We all know how important confidence is in all business settings. But here is where this gets interesting…
Confidence trumped accuracy. The advisers who grossly exaggerated their confidence levels, and as a result, were often wrong, still generated more consumer interest than their competition, who may have lacked confidence or took a more conservative approach.
Or in other words, advisers with 100% confidence would attract more buyers just because they were willing to commit to their decision.
What Chris Pearson Can Teach You About 100% Confidence
Chris Pearson, the creator of the Thesis Theme for Wordpress, will readily admit that the his theme is the ONLY right option for bloggers who want a premium theme.
(Yes. You read that right. The “ONLY” right option. That’s 100% confidence at its best).
At first, I was skeptical. Could this vanilla looking theme really be the “ONLY” right option?
It didn’t matter. Pearson’s confidence in his product was contagious. That’s why you will see thousands of bloggers using it – even some of the top bloggers use it (Leo Babauta, Brian Clark, Chris Brogan, Matt Cutts, and etc…).
Now it helped that his product really is the best out there, but what if Chris thought it was “just okay?” Would that affect its sales?
Yea, it would probably kill sales. Who would want a product from a guy who thinks it’s “just okay?” No one. As seen with the 100% confidence example, they would probably find someone who loved their own work. Makes sense, right?
How Does This Apply to Social Media?
When you use social media to promote a new product, your success is dependent on one thing, the people. And the best way to make sure the people are on your side is to discover what drives them to do what they do.
Today, you should have learned that consumers prefer those with 100% confidence. While the exact reason escapes us, I’m willing to bet it’s because people want some certainty in an uncertain world…
…So, the next time you craft a social media campaign, ask yourself, “what am I 100% confident in?” And when you discover what that is, promote the heck out of it.
What’s your opinion? Do you need 100% confidence to succeed with social media? Leave a comment.
Derek is new media marketer who has been living off of the internet for the past 3 years. You can learn about his unique marketing strategies at SocialTriggers.com – a blog that teaches you how to succeed online by using the invisible forces that guide human behavior.
Haha, I used to have a saying “Confidence is everything minus one”. This is like a mathematical express n-1. Confidence is not everything, but it’s everything minus one. Almost all purchase decisions are made from an emotional standpoint, and how others feel about something often has more power on us than our own logical reasoning (again, this goes for how much confidence we have for ourselves).
Great post and keep’em coming!
You’re right Yu-Kai. But we’ll have to change the -1 to -0. Ha ha.
I think this is a good point in the sense that you must be 100% confident in the products you sell or you will come across as disingenuous. This is part of the reason that I maintain the keys for social media success are:
- It is about relationship building, not about immediately driving sales.
- You must add value to the community before you seek something in return. You should always seek to give more than you take.
- You must be transparent, open, and honest. You must share who you are as a company
Thanks for sharing.
John
http://twitter.com/JohnFMoore
Here’s the problem. Everyone says that. The thing is, “authentic,” “relationship building,” and “give more than you take” attitudes are overdone and unoriginal.
Sure, it helps, but quite honestly, it won’t be the difference between success and failure with social media.
The real way to succeed with social media is by developing a product, a website, or anything that occupies a unique angle in your target audiences mind…
…And then you can take advantage of innate human behavior like 100% confidence to promote it to them.
I would argue that success in any medium is dependent on product development and positioning. Social media, like any other medium is just a way to communicate your USP.
However, because social media is human, transparent and about relationships (as John said); it allows the user to give the perception of 100% confidence.
@klturner
great post. nothing new but it’s a great reminder that how you present yourself can make or break anything you’re trying to promote.
the social media realm is special because on most platforms the perception is that a live person is stepping out from behind the curtain to give you their personal recommendation. personal being the key term. you’re “spirit” or “sense” is conveyed whether you realize it or not, right down to your 50px avatar in the social media world.
appear to have something amazing and it will shine on through sparking interest in your audience. Good thoughts Derek.