Fancorps

A word-of-mouth marketing and brand advocacy technology solution for consumer brands and organizations

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The Value of Rewards and Recognition within a Brand Advocacy Program

 Are you currently utilizing giveaways in your brand advocacy program?

Contests, sweepstakes, giveaways, and other promotions can provide a huge boost to engagement both internally and externally. One of our entertainment industry clients recently offered a free Playstation 4 and 9 $50 gift cards to fans of one of their artists for sharing proof that they've purchased his new album on their favorite social network and using the appropriate hashtag. This is a great way to use your current brand's fans to source content for your social network and increase visibility on the social web.

Contests and giveaways can be hosted and publicized on your current social media properties, while simultaneously utilizing your brand advocacy community to increase awareness of the promotion. (In addition to participating themselves, of course.) Other ideas for incentives include hangouts with an artist, author, or celebrity, exclusive merchandise, and product previews.

Which of these is your brand currently using to leverage your advocates to create content and improve sentiment or visibility online? If you'd like to discuss promotions or beginning a brand advocate program with a knowledgeable member of our team, reach out to us through the "Contact Us" page at fancorps.com.

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Is Social Media No Longer For the Everyman?

While initially popularized by the public, there seems to be an increasing trend lately of social media networks catering more towards celebrities and prominent figures than to society at large. It's no secret that Facebook began targeting celebrities over a year ago in an effort to be more like Twitter, which is notorious for being the go-to medium for fans wishing to stay up-to-date and interact with their favorite celebrities. With the release of its Mentions app this July, Facebook takes yet another step in the direction of luring public figures into engaging with the network more frequently, and on a deeper level. This app, which not only allows a celeb to be notified when another user, verified page, or media outlet mentions them, also provides a list of currently trending topics- enticing them to join the discussion. Another handy feature, the app streamlines Q&A's between celebs and their fans. According to the above article and statements form Facebook itself, these high-profile users are now producing over twice as much daily content prior their adoption of the app. 

Some additional interesting stats: "Facebook also released some numbers around its public figures accounts, stating nearly 800 million people are connected to those with verified pages. There are also more than a billion interactions between public figures and their fans on Facebook every week."

Not to be left behind, Twitter followed suit by releasing a new feature in August allowing verified profiles to be notified when other verified accounts mention or follow them. Prior to this, high-profile users simply had the option to toggle their notifications feed to display only verified accounts, whereas now they can also view only verified accounts in their stream via the iOS app. For a scathing, albeit slightly biased, review of both services I urge you to turn to William Shatner. Check out his thoughts on Facebook Mentions and Twitter's Verified Accounts.

Keep in mind that all of this is happening in the midst of public outrage that Facebook has forced users to adopt it's standalone messenger app as opposed to utilizing the feature baked in to the main Facebook mobile application as it was previously. These occurrences beg the question, are the most popular social networks forgetting about the general public?

This would be a grave mistake- after all, we're the reason those ad dollars continue to flood their way.

What do you think? Let us know!

~@ColterLHall

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Is Your Advocate Program Losing Steam?

We've already looked at 5 Reasons Why Advocacy Is Failing For Your Company, but what are the steps necessary to bring your community back to its former glory? We've identified the three most helpful tactics you can implement to increase engagement within your advocate program.

Step one: Increase Communication

Often, activity on a community will die down because the administrators stop logging in as frequently, and are sending out fewer tasks and messages. This conveys to members that nothing too exciting is going on in the community and they feel no desire to log in and see what's new. You'll be surprised by how many more completions you'll receive by sending out a new task notification or messaging members about a "sale" in the reward store.

Step Two: Offer Something Exclusive or Exciting

That being said, when was the last time you freshened up the reward store, or provided exclusive content or merchandise to members? Advocates hunger for exclusivity, something which sets them apart from the traditional fan or Facebook like. Other than having an inherent passion for your brand, this is the real reason they are here. Show your appreciation by offering them something they can't get anywhere else, or solicit their opinion about upcoming product launches or promotions. Give them a voice, you'll be pleased with what you hear. For instance, check out this awesome tee shirt exclusively available to members of Gold's Nation.

Step Three: Reevaluate Your Recruiting Strategy

New members to your advocate program will always be the most engaged; everything seems fresh to them and they are eager to dive in and see what the community is all about. When you stop trying to acquire new fans, you're putting all your faith in a dwindling group of advocates, some of which will unfailingly log in less and less frequently over time, completing fewer tasks less often. Through our Community Feed feature on the dashboard, advocates see when new members join, or which members are completing which tasks. This visibility is the primary reason why you should aim for a constant influx of new fans joining the community. We recommend posting a minimum of once per social network each month, though adding placement on your website or sending the occasional email blast doesn't hurt either!

Hopefully you can implement some of these ideas in your own community or even make use of them when interacting with fans on social media. If you'd like to take that next step towards a true advocacy program running on a platform built to manage, track, and analyze fans' actions, please let us know!

~@Fancorps

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Lets be honest, most people still have no idea what a hashtag is. They may see it on TV or online on their Facebook feed and understand that this symbol (#) is indeed now referred to as a hashtag- but they do not grasp what it actually means or what it does. This is especially true as it pertains to the importance of the hashtag to brand marketers and advertisers. It has quickly become an important tool to enable tracking and visibility of an ad or campaign and can propel the real time conversations around events and promotions. Unfortunately, this is way over the heads of your everyday social media user.

We won't dive deeper into the basics of hashtag marketing, as that has been well documented time and time again (and again). Hashtags are here to stay on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram to name a few...and it is apparent that they will penetrate even more social channels in the future.

The interesting tie-in to our business, advocacy marketing, is that hashtags present both an opportunity for marketers as well as a unique challenge. Creating a campaign and associating a hashtag with it is merely the starting point. How do marketers then get people to actually use the hashtag, and at scale? Without mass adoption it will never take off; luckily, this is where an advocacy program can come in to play in a powerful way.

A few hundred, or thousand advocates (e.g. customers, fans, influencers, employees) can propel a hashtag driven campaign from day one. These are the early adopters who want to engage with your brand and are happy to use your hashtag alongside their posts. If coordinated and executed properly an advocacy program can be just the boost your campaign needs to get off the ground.

Get in touch if you would like to explore how an advocacy program powered by Fancorps can help out for your next project or campaign.

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Retention vs. Acquisition- An Advocacy Discussion

I read a recent article featured on ClickZ which immediately piqued my interest, "Retention vs. Acquisition - and the Winner Is...." The title alone resonated with concerns I hear from clients almost daily. Should we focus primarily on our current advocates? How important is recruiting new members? How often should we post on social networks or other channels? How many members can we expect to join in the first week, month, year, etc.? All of the above are legitimate questions which I field constantly from marketing managers and their staff, and each deserves a concrete and data-supported answer.

The original article, by Ohad Hecht, discusses the current trends in marketing spending and priority in regards to customer retention and acquisition, citing some staggering numbers from Econsultancy: "34 percent of the participants indicated that they will increase their investment in acquisition, while only 18 percent will focus on retention."A more poignant summary comes from Forrester, "Even as the lines between marketing and customer experience blur, our survey respondents prioritize customer acquisition efforts over nurturing and deepening relationships with their most valuable and loyal customers." What does this mean for advocacy or ambassador programs you ask? Well, we can translate this discussion into the WOMM marketing space and it becomes a question as to the true purpose of your advocacy initiative. Is it to reward and involve your most passionate consumers, or to have yet another facet to your content marketing and lead generation strategies?  At Fancorps, we find the the former can often be a catalyst for the latter. By actively engaging with your advocates and sourcing their feedback and opinions on current policy, products, and services, you can gain hundreds if not thousands of new consumers through passive word of mouth.

Members of your advocacy or ambassador program will WANT to create content for you, participate in online discussions, share offers, and review products. All of these actions result in support and praise for your brand which is easily visible to their friends and family. Therefore we find that launching an advocacy program is an excellent first step in shifting the imbalance between Retention and Acquisition based marketing. If executed properly, your advocate community will bridge the gap between both strategies and lead to increased revenue across the board. For a continued discussion about retention and acquisition within your advocacy program, as well as the importance and frequency of recruitment, contact your dedicated account manager today!

~@ColterLHall

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5 Reasons Advocacy is Failing For Your Company

1. You don't have an advocacy program!

Sorry to state the obvious, but it had to be said. So many companies are still behind the ball, continuing to bet their entire social marketing budgets on traditional posts from their official channels and sponsored content. The sooner you start to cultivate advocacy for your brand the better, as it takes time to scale and provide long term ROI. 

2. You are manually trying to manage/run the program.

Many companies participate and attempt to encourage advocacy from their customers and even employees. But, often times it is done in a completely inefficient and ineffective manner. Seeing companies still using email and spreadsheets to manage and track communication and engagement makes me want to slam my head against the desk. This is 2014, and technology exists for a reason, because it solves problems and makes our lives easier. There is no reason to be manually organizing advocacy for your company in a one-to-one scenario. Stop fighting it, and adopt to a tool or application that will assist and improve your performance across the board. It will ultimately save you (as a Digital Marketer) time and greatly enhance the user experience for your advocates.

3. You are making it too complicated.

Simplicity is key. Don't over think it...and put yourself in their shoes. Encourage and empower advocates to do what they do, in a natural and authentic way. The best way to get results from your program is to let your advocates be themselves and inject their own point of view along side your content. The moment their audience sees through it and call them out for forcing content down their throat is the moment you lose that individual from the program. It's all about transparency and authenticity. Make sure your advocates know you want them to be honest in their approach and only support the content/messaging that aligns with their personal point of view.

4. You aren't giving your advocates a voice.

It has to be a give and take, a two way street. You can't be pushy, and you need ensure that advocates know they have every ability to participate in the creative process themselves. User generated content can be powerful, to the end viewer but also in the increased level of engagement with the creator. There is nothing more exciting to a true advocate than getting to see behind the scenes, what lies on the other side of the curtain. Give them access to tools they can use to create great content and recognition for their efforts- they'll be an advocate for life.

5. You are failing to coach and train your advocates.

Do not assume the obvious. Make sure you properly coach and train advocates continually as they become involved. Everyone has a different set of skills and exposure to social technologies, so be mindful of their level of expertise. The last thing you want to do is turn off an advocate by not providing them with enough guidance or instruction. Something that seems simple to one advocate might be entirely new to the next.

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New Feature Update: Custom Branding For Membership Groups

It's a common request from many of our clients to have additional functionality for our Groups feature. To this end, we've recently made several updates to the way this feature is architected and the level of control an administrator has over segments of their community. These updates include being able to manually place members into a specific group, rewards which are only visible to individual groups, and the ability to award bonus points to an entire group all at once.

Most recently, we've included custom graphics for any admin-defined membership group. This means your members' experience on the platform will be dynamic, with the site's branding being determined by the groups they've opted into.

To learn more, contact [email protected] with your request. We'll take the feature online for your community and supply additional information regarding the full functionality and best practices.

~@Fancorps 

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Fancorps is "Entangled" with a Popular Digital Publisher

Here at Fancorps we embrace each new client which chooses our technology as the platform for their advocacy or fan engagement community. The most recent of which is Entangled Publishing, who describe themselves as "a boutique publisher of romantic fiction for adults and teens." We're proud to be partnering with a brand who already has built such a strong and passionate (no pun intended) following.

Entangled hopes to utilize our advocacy platform to leverage their dedicated readership to promote upcoming releases and continue to improve their stunning brand visibility. Click the link below to view a press release direct from Entangled, including a quote from our very own VP of Sales, Karl Woolfenden. In addition, check out this article in Virtual Strategy Magazine. If you're on the fence and contemplating an advocacy community for your own brand, reach out via the contact forms on fancorps.com today. We'll put a representative in touch with you immediately.

Press Release: http://www.entangledinromance.com/2014/05/27/entangled-partners-with-fancorps-to-extend-social-media-reach/

Congratulations to Entangled Publishing!

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We've all been there, we've been that guy or girl, and have certainly been exposed to our fair share of it. When it comes to social media you must take the good with the bad. For every amusing friend posting funny anecdotes, and for every family member sharing pics of their kid...there's the guy who does nothing but bitch and moan.

A recent infographic from ExactTarget entitled 5 Types of Social Media Complainers and How to Deal With Them highlights that this is also true for businesses and their customers. For community managers, who deal with social customers on a daily basis this isn't news- it's their life.

Click here to check out the article and full infographic.

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Fancorps 2014: A Usability Upgrade (Part 2)

Photos and Video in Feed Updates:

As a community manager, are you making use of the Custom community feed to share status updates? Modeled after the feeds in various other social networking platforms, this is the perfect area to post community-related updates and increase engagement. To remove some of the pressure for supplying constantly fresh content, the feed automatically pulls in various user and admin actions, such as new member signups, forum and news posts, and sent or completed Orders. To deepen the level of engagement possible in this part of our platform, we recently removed the block on embedding hosted photos and videos for administrators. This means your brand can share exciting and viral content directly in the community feed and post information on new promotions, contests, and product launches in a powerful way. For more detailed instructions you may reach out to Fancorps Support or our account management division.

Bonus Points and Credits for Groups:

If your community utilizes the Groups feature you now have one more tool to add to your repertoire. In addition to being able to target tasks and messaging to custom created segments of your community, you may also award them bonus activity points and store credits as a unit. This is useful when you need to give a point or credit bonus to a large portion of your advocate base, most often as part of an Order contest or promotional campaign. Don't hesitate to reach out to your account manager for assistance creating custom groups and designing these types of contests, we're happy to help!

Reward Sub-Categories and Sorting:

Most Community Managers are probably aware of our default incentive categories: Rewards and Supplies. However, at the request of both a major fitness and client and event marketing company we have added custom sub-categories and sorting options. With this update, certain sets of rewards can be viewed only by the chosen member groups, and the community admin has the last word on the display sequence. (Newest items first, most popular, least expensive, etc.)

Order Snapshot:

Community administrators can now view a listing of ALL tasks sent within the community. We've provided the ability to sort these tasks by various criteria such as gender breakdown number accepted versus completed, and social reach across networks. Also included is an export function to capture the data and allow community managers to download it in .csv form, which allows for an even deeper level of analysis through sorting and filtering in Excel and similar programs.

Here at Fancorps we're positive that you'll see value in these functionality upgrades, which is why we're providing them free of charge to all current clients! Ask your account manager for more information if desired.

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Don’t Be Lazy: Why Your Content on Social Channels Should Differ

We are all connected with many of the same people across multiple networks. You are friends with them on Facebook, follow them on Twitter, and connected professionally on LinkedIn. What’s annoying, and an extremely bad strategy, is when someone syndicates a post or piece of content (usually from a publishing tool like Hootsuite) to all of their networks, at the same time, and without tweaking a word of it. It's lazy, tells your audience you don't have time for them, and is begging for an unfollow. After all, if you (an individual or a brand) are posting the same duplicate content everywhere then I might as well only stay connected with you on one channel. 

Many people cycle through their social channels, especially on mobile, one after the other. Therefore, when a single post is placed on them all at the same time the user is bombarded over and over again with the exact same content. Once again- a terrible user experience that gets annoying very fast. 

No only is it lazy, but the strategy itself is faulty. Most people utilize social channels for a specific reason as each of them has its strengths and a unique focus. Facebook is more personal, Twitter is known as a source of real time news, and LinkedIn is highly geared towards business. With that said, it’s very unlikely that the content you’re posting is best suited for all three of those channels.

Our advice, for brands and individuals…

(1) Schedule It - If you insist on publishing duplicate content across all channels to maximize views at the very least stagger the times you post to ensure your audiences aren’t viewing the posts within seconds of each other

(2) Be Picky - Don’t abuse the privilege with your audience. Not everything belongs everywhere and people will appreciate quality over quantity. Choose content that makes sense for the social channel to which you’re posting.

(3) Keep Display in Mind - No two channels are alike. The way photos, links, and text display on one network differs greatly from the next. Some display photos gracefully, others have hashtags integrated, or auto populate article titles from links. These differences should be taken into account and your posts should be tweaked to ensure they are displaying properly for the chosen social medium. 

These are all small tips and tricks, but they will go a long way with your audience and ensure your content is received and displayed in the best light. Don’t be lazy with your social media, as these days it’s the most seen representation for you personally or your brand.

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Is Twitter's Redesign a Hit? Could be Too Early to Tell.

With the release of Twitter's new page design, the social and digital landscape has been buzzing this week. The general consensus is that the majority of people and brands appreciate the redesign, though there have been several comments made suggesting that it's too Facebook-esque. This comparison isn't too far-fetched, since Twitter adopted a lighter color scheme and larger buttons in an update this past February, and the similarities continue with the current refresh.  

Now, header images are larger (1,500 x 500 or 1,256 x 626 pixels) and users' profile icons have moved to the bottom left corner. (Familiar, anyone?)  If you aren't prepared to upload your own header image, Twitter offers several sample images for your convenience.

Also in the style of Facebook, tweets can be "pinned" to the top of your page to increase engagement.  It is important to note, however, that this pinned tweet will fall down on your page with each new update you post, unless you constantly re-pin it. 

With the new update, Twitter also introduces a filtering option for viewing other profile's timelines, which can be viewed as tweets, tweets with photos or videos, or tweets and replies. 

Finally diverting from features already available on Facebook, Twitter now automatically enlarges tweets which have received the most engagement, which serves to increase the visibility of a page's best content.

Despite their obvious similarity to other networks, do you think these changes are a step in the right direction for Twitter?

Check out some examples of pages who received the new design in advance, or are really capitalizing on Twitter's new and more visual layout.

Michele Obama

Toby Keith

Subway

Fancorps

Get the new page design here, and don't worry, Twitter will walk you through the changes whether you are creating an account for the first time or are simply upgrading an existing account.

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Did You Know…Fancorps Works Great for Event Marketing

It is no secret that Fancorps’ roots lie in the music and entertainment industries. The company started out years ago working primarily with artists and record labels that needed a way to organize and manage their most passionate fans. It didn’t take long for companies and organizations to catch up on this trend, and we’ve followed that path as well, assisting countless brands along the way.

One area that has been a constant throughout all of these years and bridges that gap nicely between the arts and the corporate world has been event marketing. Whether it’s a one-off promotional opportunity or a recurring monthly/yearly event Fancorps has always had great impact.

Events are a natural fit for advocate marketing, and align perfectly with the technology we’ve created. We’ve worked with companies like C3 Entertainment, Live Nation, Pipeline Productions, Wanderlust Festival, and with local venues like the AT&T Performing Arts Center and Granada Theater in Dallas. 

The common thread is the need to drive event awareness and increase ticket sales. With Fancorps, companies like these and many others have succeeded in empowering fans within their local markets to just that. The set of integrated tools Fancorps provides is a perfect match for promoters to:

(1) Directly/Privately Communicate with Advocates

(2) Task Advocates to Take Action on Social Channels and in their Local Markets

(3) Reward Advocates who are Participating and Producing Results 

Contact us if you would like some more details on our experience with event marketing and how Fancorps can play a big role in driving real results.

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Fancorps Feature Spotlight: Communication and Organizational

Are you an existing community manager looking to get the most out of the Fancorps platform, or perhaps a potential client reviewing our one sheet and rate card? Let's take a closer look at the differences between our two available feature packages: Communication and Organizational.

Our communication toolset includes additional functionality for disseminating content to members and strengthening their sense of community.

The community administrator can send out updates which are hosted in the News section, as well as create Polls for members to offer up their thoughts on product design, marketing, general questions, or even the Fancorps platform itself. The Chat feature is simply a chat room in which your members may gather and get to know each other; we often have clients who utilize this section of the community to hold weekly or monthly virtual meet-ups, as well as run real-time contests and solicit member feedback. As for the Forums section, these are traditional forums which empower you as the community manager to communicate more effectively with your members, and allows them to interact freely with one another. Let it be noted that every Fancorps community also comes equipped with a Message Center, which is essentially a miniature email client for use within the platform which can send notifications to members' primary email addresses on record in their profiles.

The Organizational package contains several features which allow an admin to more effectively manage their community. The Groups and Categories features are similar by design, and represent two different levels of segmentation available within our platform. By creating groups or categories and having members opt-in to these, an admin can send targeted messages or tasks directly to a specific segment of the community. This could be geographic, for example, or even relate to the types of promotion members prefer to complete. (Online v.s. tasks in the physical space.) The Pages functionality is simply to host small informative web pages inside the community; this is generally used for content or e-commerce when a client wants to keep these things internal to the user experience. Lastly, the Events section works just like events on networks such as Facebook- you can load virtual or real-world events into the system and users can RSVP, comment, and share. Reach out to us on social media or through our contact forms page if you have questions on any of these items- we'll do our best to answer them. If you're a current client interesting in upgrading to a plan including one of these packages or an isolated feature, contact your account manager today!

@Fancorps

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Advocates: An Ideal Strategy for Swaying Negative Sentiment

One of the emerging use cases for advocate marketing is the ability of advocates to interject a stream of positive mentions and responses within a negative conversation. Virtually every company these days deals with complaints and negative reactions on their social channels. It’s a customer service nightmare and sometimes impossible to keep an eye on and control. Even with the most advanced listening technology and strategies it can be overwhelming to manage.

It is easy to imagine countless scenarios where this would apply. Let's say you’re a social media manager at an airline, and deal all day long with people bitching and moaning about flight delays, bad weather, and inconsistent customer service. Wouldn’t it be great to balance that stream of negativity out with praise and positivity from a group of loyalists? That’s where advocates can have a significant impact on your overall sentiment, ensuring that it’s not just the negative reactions that get all of the attention. The same scenario could apply to just about any company, and is an ongoing and increasing problem today.

Many people only engage with companies on social channels when they have a bad experience, so the problems get amplified in a public light. When someone searches your brand, you want to make sure that what they find contains a balanced opinion, not just from those people that are yelling the loudest.

In this article from MarketingProfs they highlight some great examples of content marketing in combating negative attention and wrap it up nicely by saying:

“As in the offline world, no matter how great your brand is, mistakes happen and customers get upset and complain."

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Forbes Turns an Eye to Brand Advocate Marketing

Well, it seems the cat is out of the bag concerning brand advocacy and it's role in digital marketing. Posted late this past February, even Forbes.com now has brand advocacy in the spotlight with their article: "Seven Ways to Identify and Engage Brand Advocates." Tracy Foster contributes seven suggestions on how any brand, even a small business, can turn every day fans and industry recognized influencers alike into advocates on behalf of their product or service.

Her first piece of advice is to befriend these industry influencers, primarily utilizing social media. This can be a good tactic even for potential customers who can be found by searching the relevant hashtags for conversations related to what your brand has to offer. Second, Foster recommends trading free products and services for visibility with prominent bloggers in your industry, she makes an excellent point that this is often a cost effective way to gain traction in a blogging market which wouldn't be otherwise affordable. Her third and fourth suggestions are to send frequent emails, and even good ole' snail mail to surprise and delight frequent customers or sales prospects. Don't underestimate people's sentimental love for receiving traditional mail and connecting with a real human being behind a brand's social and digital facade. Next, thought it may seem it goes without mentioning, Foster found it important to include offering a discount as item number five in her list. Industry influencers and fans talking about your brand will both appreciate a discount on your goods or services; often a slightly lower price point might be just what they need to finally make that purchase decision. Sixth, Foster tells us to feature industry influencers and engaged customers on your company blog. This additional visibility will go a long way in strengthening their connection and affection for your brand. Finally, go local, as Foster champions the significance of real face-to-face connection with customers and influencers. Try getting to know both in the real world by meeting up with them or hosting events. This will ensure you stay top-of-mind and make a lasting impression as a brand who truly cares about their customers and wants to interact on a personal level, both with them and with those individuals who are respected in your field.

You'll notice that this article is skewed towards both consumers as well as influencers, and that each of these recommendations could be used effectively with either group. This draws a parallel with how many brands see influencer and brand advocate marketing. Yes the two are similar, and the same platform can be used to engage each, but the strategies involved are vastly different. Which of these ideas are you already putting in to place in your brand or organization? Are there any suggestions you think should have made the list? Let us know, and don't hesitate to reach out for more information regarding utilizing the Fancorps platform to leverage your brand advocates or manage influencers in your industry.

~@colterfancorps

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Digital Marketing Technology Spend Will Continue to Increase in 2014

It sometimes feels like an overwhelming landscape at times. The breadth of tools and technologies available to marketers right now is at an all time high, and the budgets getting allocated towards them continue to rise. A recent report from Econsultancy states that over 70% of businesses are planning to increase investment in digital marketing technology in 2014. That number speaks volumes towards the staying power of the countless vendors in the space making a splash. The choices seem limitless, and they’re making it easier than ever for marketers to be able to express their ideas so effectively.

“Marketers need to maintain a high level of investment in order to stay up-to-date with the latest developments in digital technologies."

Over the next few years we see this trend continuing, as we’re really still towards the infancy stage of digital/social technologies in the marketing realm. A lot still has to be determined in regards to effectiveness and hard ROI. Advocate marketing is a big piece of this puzzle in our mind, as it touches on many of the broader categories (e.g. CRM, Analytics, CMS, Social Listening, etc.) and is proven to be one of the most effective channels to increase organic reach and impressions for a brand. After all, nobody is more trusted than your legitimate friends and family, making them the prime target for brands to try and engage with.