February 2014 - Page 4 of 4

How are purchase decisions influenced by digital media?

By Dave Chaffey 04 Feb 2014

Customer research & analysis

Itamar Simonson explains how digital reviews and recommendations mean that consumers are now better equipped than ever to determine the absolute value of any purchase

According to Simonson, Professor of Marketing at Stanford University, today's consumers have so many new sources of information it's much easier for them to assess the absolute value of things, in other words, to know their likely experience with a product or service. Absolute Value is the title of a new book by Simonson written with Emanuel Rosen, ABSOLUTE VALUE: What Really Influences Customers in the Age of (Nearly) Perfect Information. In it they argue that consumers today take advantage of three trends: 1. the rise of reviews from other users 2. unprecedented access to expert opinions 3. easy access to friends on social media. In this interview we explore the new reality of the influence of digital media on purchase and its far-reaching implications on everything from competitive strategy to communication…

Selecting the best service for managing social media marketing?

By Expert commentator 03 Feb 2014

Social media optimisation (SMO)

Introducing The App Map - a useful tool to compare different social media marketing services

With the incorporation of social media in many parts of business, from sales to customer service to marketing and more, the social software market has also advanced to support various job functions. These systems provide a variety of capabilities, including social media monitoring, CRM, social advertising and collaboration.

As these applications are all called 'social business,' such a diverse product landscape can create a lot of confusion for buyers.

However, this situation also presents many benefits. First of all, social app vendors are working hard to deliver very advanced tools for understanding your audience and/or followers, helping you find opportunities you might not have been able to spot on your own or with more traditional methods.

Customers have already adapted to being serviced via social, and it’s the social software vendors who are enabling sales, customer…

Online PR Trends in 2014

By Expert commentator 01 Feb 2014

Online PR strategy

The move to more proactive sourcing of partnering opportunities

PR Newswire recently ran a survey which reinforces how PR has changed. As I see it, as traditional media either evolves or dies, the traditional media relations-only model of PR will evolve or die with it. Public relations work will transform more into earned, owned, and paid media generation, and PR professionals will find themselves increasingly doing work that transcends the traditionally rigid boundaries of earned, owned, or paid media.' The survey results showed some new focuses and traditional challenges. Using more video in communications and incorporating content marketing or “slow PR” tactics into the mix top the resolutions of the public relations pros who responded to our recent informal survey. Two perennial challenges – improving PR measurement and better utilization of social channels – are also high on PR’s list of things to do this year. …