Brand marketers gauge reception of product releases via social media, but they can also leverage these dynamic conversations to guide marketing strategy before a product even drops.
Dell smartly used this realtime response to consumer demand when in May 2008, Gizmodo's Brian Lam posted an exclusive first sighting of a netbook prototype in the hands of Michael Dell himself. It was a gadget rumor for the Internet ages — big PC maker, apparent new product, no information, what to make of it?
The leak created a tremendous opportunity for Dell. Having attracted an initial half million views, Gizmodo's post instantly generated a flurry of speculative, anticipatory conversation among other consumer electronics news media (Wired, CNET, BoingBoing, WSJ). The buzz even inspired a smug confirmation from the official Dell blog itself later that same day. Yep, a secret new laptop was coming! As the coverage continued to escalate, Dell discovered it had its own consumers talking about its brand... in public... loudly.
Chart shows interest in 'dell mini' from Gizmodo's exclusive post in May 2008 to product naming, launch, and adoption through 2009 (via Google Insights for Search).
It would be four months before this new laptop, the Dell Mini, would officially launch in stores, which left Dell plenty of time to engage with consumers in realtime product marketing. Dell's strategy mostly involved careful listening — tuning into discussion as it rocked the social web from Twitter to Facebook to blog comments to coverage on fast-talking gadget sites like Gizmodo. From the mentions, Dell gained a significant edge in product positioning for its retail launch and made occasional strategic information leaks to course-correct consumer conversations. The brand also beefed up its ability to revise pricing, specs, and packaging in response to realtime social media for future products.
And this new mastery of market intelligence came just in time. When, months later, Dell's Mini 9 launched and consumers found fault with the keyboard, Dell used online conversations to assess and quickly resolve the issue in its release of Mini 10. The realtime revision has continued as Dell has updated and streamlined its Mini offerings in response to consumers: In his fiscal year 2009 review, Michael Dell proudly commended the company's "best-ever range of mobile computer systems."
In the same way that blogs and Twitter have quickened the pace of news coverage to near realtime, so they have introduced efficiencies and shortcuts into the traditional product marketing cycle. As a result, Dell is able to 'tune in' to discussion generated by Gizmodo and the entire consumer electronics media category to get instant feedback on its initiatives. It can then meter its information distribution and revise products in direct response to consumer needs. A marketing miracle? Maybe. Or maybe just the way it always should have been.
Credit: A much more detailed case study of Dell's social media engagement appears in social media monitoring service Radian6's portfolio. Thanks to their work for showing how brands and media can leverage each other to build better things.
