Which consumer group are you marketing to?

As part of the Social Media Success Summit 2012, Brian Solis gave a presentation called, “The End of Business as Usual: How Social is Impacting Business.”   The change is here so let’s embrace it and start effectively using social media for marketing.  It is time to learn about your consumers and build your brand awareness around them.

Brian Solis talks about “Digital darwinism”- the evolution of consumer behavior when society and technology evolve faster than your ability to adapt.

Don’t let digital darwinism slow your company down.  Become familiar with where your consumers are in the digital world and use it to your advantage.

Types of Consumers

Brian spoke about three different types of consumers, which really struck a chord with me.  The first consumer is the traditional consumer who receives all of his/her information from the television, newspaper ads and magazines.  I’d probably put my 90-year old grandmother in this category…although she has and iPad, so she might be more digital than I think!

The next type of consumer is the digital consumer.   This consumer will go online to compare and read ads and make purchases online.  This would be my husband….he’s got an iphone, but beyond facebook and his camera he doesn’t maximize its capabilities and actually asked me the other day how to use a QR code.

“It’s not about knowing the social media channels inside and out, it’s about knowing your customers.” [Tweet this]

Finally, we have the connected consumer.  This is where I really get excited!!! These are the newest consumers that are here to stay as long as the social world is!  These consumers are like me!  They are using the internet in a connected way to shop.  This means using social media to find the best deal, checking in at their favorite restaurant and posting pictures of their meals, scanning QR codes, and comparing deals with apps on their smartphones.

The “connected consumer” is where businesses should be focusing their marketing efforts today.  These customers are going to blast you on their social media networks if they received poor service, or complement your business like crazy if they like what you have to offer.  It’s your job, as the business owner to know when and where this is happening!  Get involved in the social networks that your customers are involved in.  Connect with your customers to provide feedback when they comment about you!

Know your Consumers

The true secret to using social media for marketing here is to know your consumer!  They can help you or hurt you.  As Brian said, “you are now marketing to an audience with an audience of audiences.”  This means your consumers who talk about your company on their social media channels, then have followers retweet, like,+1 or comment on their post to their followers and so on!

It’s not about knowing the social media channels inside and out, it’s about knowing your customers.  Create an online experience for your customers that is unlike any of your competitors.  Use that online connection to bring the awareness of your experience to the right consumers and they will eventually become loyal brand ambassadors.  What more could a business want?  A consumer who raves about us for free!  Bring them that experience and the payback will be priceless!

In what way has your company embraced the connected consumer?  Who is your connected consumer?  Can you place a value on the connections you’ve made?