Since its introduction and proliferation, internet has impacted businesses in more ways than one. Businesses were able to put up a virtual infrastructure and a face for the world to see. Borders were truly a history in no time. Reaching out and “meeting”: prospects and customers were almost real-time. With it came other issues too: security, hacking, phishing and other new words to dictionary. Now, the onslaught of social media makes us wonder whether this is the new leaf for businesses. Do we need a social business face now? What will be critical for businesses in this era of social angle to business? Is Michael Porter’s maximising shared value, as against maximising shareholder value, finding application here too? If internet has changed the way we look at information and technology, are social media platforms and channels changing the way we look at customers and relationships? Going by the flurry of activities across businesses of all hues, I tend to believe so. Even when there is no solid measurement available, and where “likes” can be purchased, media and advertising agencies are pushing the social media card to all their clients. The transformation that is happening at present in the social media and businesses is causing lots of uncertainty among the business community. Many of the businesses have absolutely no idea how social media works for them. Businesses need to indeed work on a social business strategy as opposed to social media activity now more than ever. Developing this strategy is core to developing a social media face. Mere media planning will end up as just another activity to reach out than making a brand personality in this space. As is common, the new strategy should spell out the social business value proposition, and should spell out the design of product and services, customer engagement, marketing, and business models that will drive customer connect in this space. Once this is in place, the social business face will emerge. The concept of buyer personality development using a complex process of getting to know customers and buyers experientially has been in use for some years now to help executives tell the story about their customers and reach out to them in appropriate media. 20 years ago, the development was about the user personality development in the internet era. Then came the internet buyer personality development for driving businesses. Now, it is moving into the third wave of social business personality development. In this third wave of transformation of the digital era, the social business personality development is aiding progressive organisations get insights on digital user behaviour, their buying behaviour and social behaviour. As a result of this, organisations can develop appropriate social business strategy to drive relevant social experiences for buyers. Both B2B and B2C businesses need to now think of driving their marketing to think about their interactions with customers and customer engagement based on the perceptions, goals and social business experiences. The fundamental segmentation of customers no longer works for the third wave of social business. The simpler approach of categorising who are users and who are buyers is no more valid in the social business context. It is no more a linear relationship. Some early adapters of the new social business strategy are developing social business experiences around the network of customers who are users, influences, buyers and social participants, all at once. While B2C was pioneering the social media presence, B2B is slowly waking up to the reality and for them social media is social business. The new reality requires all business functions to change appropriately to engage with customers. Sales, marketing, IT, HR, R&D and others need to look at the new customer more closely to deliver an aligned social business experience. For many businesses, the understanding of today’s customers is a big confusion. It is changing so rapidly that they need to constantly monitor the same. What was apparent few years ago, is no more so. This perhaps explains the proliferation of social media-based books and training programmes today. By developing a social business face, organisations will improve their understanding of their customers, their motivations, behaviour, and constantly changing habits. This will help them in the use of social media technology in the right manner. The development of social business personality of their customers, business will adequately gain sufficient insights that will help their executives shape the right social business strategy and not just a tactical social media plan. This approach will reduce the current uncertainties and insights leading to the shotgun approach of today that is either a hit or a miss, more likely a miss. So what is a social business personality? It is a qualitative research-based model of customers engaged in the social business experiences aiming to community participation and the use of products and services. In order for businesses to succeed in the new era of social space in the virtual world, it is crucial to put forward a social business face at this world by constantly learning about the social business personality of customers. This constant learning should be used for internal alignment of functions and employees to deliver the right experiences. (M Muneer is the CEO and MD of CustomerLab), Source: Mydigitalfc.com, Image: pixabay.com under Creative Commons CC0.
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