Want a Brand Conversation? First Listen

Posted on | August 21, 2008 |

Brands need to listen before they speak if they want to spark sustainable conversations with consumers — and leverage the exchange for all its worth. As in any conversation, when we talk we’re only repeating what we already know. When we listen, we’re learning. When brands listen to consumers before beginning to talk to them they cannot only discover what their core customers are concerned about, they can also identify new markets and discover new opportunities.

But before brands start talking, they need to know what’s being said about them and their competitors, who their brand advocates and opponents are and why and how consumers respond to the brand and its services. That doesn’t mean just skimming the obvious sites, the blogs belonging to well-known influencers and the review boards. You need to look out on the fringes as well, find the places where your customers have created real communities online, the lesser-known bloggers who are writing with intelligence and passion, the industry groups, and the deeply disgruntled.

Once a brand has a real feel for the conversation they can join in. The best way to start is to acknowledge the existing conversation, share honest points of view in a human voice, and ask people to share what they know by telling them what you want to learn. And don’t ignore your critics; interview them on your blog. Be honest and respond — not just with words but actions — to concerns and criticism. And give them something to talk about too, use what you know about your customers to create online/offline events that are interesting, provocative, or amusing and act as a conversation starter.

Arthur Ceria is founder and Chief Creative Officer of CreativeFeed, a marketing consultancy and full-service creative production agency with a focus on digital media that acts as the bridge between Silicon Valley and Madison Avenue.