When interpreted via a sensible methodology, data becomes intelligence. When viewed through the lens of real consumer behavior, intelligence becomes wisdom.  Social Business Intelligence is all about wisdom- the wisdom to listen, to interpret, and to act authentically and from the outside-in, displaying fidelity to the expressed wants and needs of the billion-plus consumers who offer opinions online.

In traditional research, companies elicit feedback through periodic surveys and then enhance their findings through focus groups. Both have inherent limitations.  Surveys are episodic and offer inauthentic information since the questions themselves alter the answers given, creating a distance between reality and what is articulated. Focus Groups suffer from the most human of all issues; the loudest person in the group wins and sways others through a combination of charisma and decibels. In both cases, the information rendered is faulty. When companies combine this with internal business data, they get the Business Intelligence they use to make fundamental decisions about product development, honing existing services, and where and how much to invest. Unfortunately, traditional BI is imperfect, making acting on feedback a game of guesswork. Million-dollar decisions should be based on real-time and authentic data, not “spaghetti on the wall.”

Social data offers a way out of the conundrum. As consumers offer opinions, expose their likes and dislikes, and express emotions and sentiment online, they produce a treasure trove of intelligence that can be translated into wisdom with the right methodology and technology. Socializing the feedback process offers advantages instantaneously: you get real feedback in real-time and can make data-driven decisions on a dime, translating feedback into informed action at lightning speed.

Underpinned by technology and with a team of smart people ready to listen, interpret, and act, Social Business Intelligence can offer you unparalleled advantages as you make new product decisions, develop in new markets, and abandon unprofitable areas in favor of growth. When you make advertising and media decisions, and socialize your systems and incorporate social data into everything you do, your decisions systems are enhanced and provide a more immediate ROI. You make the right media decisions and hone your products and services in accordance with the articulated needs of your audience.

Classic Business Intelligence yields data from the inside out. Social Business Intelligence works in real-time and leverages powerful technology to offer you the outside-in view. Now there is no more excuse for navel-gazing. The outside world is now available to you!

Paul Dunay is the Chief Marketing Officer of Networked Insights, a leader in social media analytics, and author of four “Dummies” books: Facebook Marketing for Dummies, Social Media and the Contact Center for Dummies, Facebook Advertising for Dummies and Facebook Marketing for Dummies 2nd Edition. You can learn more here.

What do the NBA Playoffs look like through the eyes of social and factored in social media presences? Well, it would have LeBron James of the Miami Heat winning his first finals MVP. theScore has run some interesting analytics with our old friends at Sysomos and found that James beats Kobe Bryant, placing the Los Angeles Lakers into second spot.

The road to the finals was a tough one, with factors such as: Facebook likes, Twitter followers, Google+ circles and Twitter Interactions to decide each round of the bracket.

NBA Social Media Playoff Key Findings*:

• Most Connected: The team with the most overall connections (Likes, Followers and Google+ Circles) was the Boston Celtics with more than seven million.
• Least Connected in the League: The team with the least overall connections was also the league’s worst performer on the court (and worst winning percentage in NBA history)- the Charlotte Bobcats with just over 166,000 total connections.
• Most Interactions on Twitter: The team with the most interactions (@reply’s, RT’s and tweets) was the Miami Heat (@MiamiHEAT) with over 1 Million during the season.
• Least Interactions on Twitter for a Playoff Team: The team with the least interactions who made the playoffs was the Indiana Pacers with 212,000.
• Total Connections: The total of NBA Team Connections on their official Facebook Fan Pages (Likes), Twitter handles (Follows) and Google+ (Circles) pages compiles to over 55 million.
• Linsanity: There were more than 3.1 million tweets about Linsanity or Jeremy Lin – more than the sum of all tweets to or from the official handles of all Eastern Conference teams (2.8 million)
• NBA Mentions: “NBA” was mentioned more than 18.6 million times on Twitter throughout the season. More than 3x that of the NHL or the MLB
• Kardashian Effect: Lamar Odom who was actually released by the Dallas Mavericks on April 9th due to his poor play and inconsistency, managed to find himself in the power rankings of most followed players in the NBA. This is possibly due to his marriage to reality TV megastar Khloe Kardashian, who has more than 6.7 million followers.

In this simulation Kobe cost the Lakers the championship. If Kobe ever does join Twitter, will he overtake LeBron?  And would his following be enough to close the gap to defeat the Heat’s collective following?

*Note all statistics were as of April 26, 2012, the final day of the 2011-2012 NBA Regular Season
*For all twitter data – popular social media monitoring solution Sysomos was used.

Traditionally, marketers think of outcomes like they think of the weather – you sit back and see what happens.  Suffering from the lack of true and authentic knowledge of their audiences, or any provision for real-time data or analytics, they are consigned to a passive role: spend money and hope it creates the intended outcome. Well “hope” isn’t a strategy.

Not so with Social Media.  With Social, there is no passive tense.  Social media allows the marketer to jump into the fray and to CREATE outcomes instead of being a victim.

Take for instance the example of TV.  In the traditional model, media buyers would buy spots, ensure that the commercials ran, and then get feedback on their reception 3 months after the fact.  Furthermore, the feedback they got was not particularly nuanced.  So if change was in order, they had to employ their best guesswork based on 3 months of retroactive data to tweak and hone.  Then, another “Hail Mary” pass resulting in hope becoming the marketer’s best friend.

Today, the opportunity to make the switch from hope to strategy abounds.  With over a billion people offering opinions and discussing their likes and dislikes on the social web, marketers have an incredible opportunity to understand their audiences in real-time and to use this data to make instantaneous data-driven decisions across a host of areas from; new product development, creative messaging, campaign development, TV buying, digital media buying, keyword buying, content creation and the list goes on and on.  With the data, smart marketers can make mid-stream changes to the expressed interests and attitudes of their target audience.  At the heart of this is technology and an interpretation methodology that offers deep insights and takes the guesswork out of marketing.

Passivity is anathema to today’s marketer, brand manager, media buyer/planner, advertiser, and content creator.  Real time-data-driven decisions allow for the industry to get on its front foot and create more engagement and dynamic outcomes.

Paul Dunay is the Chief Marketing Officer of Networked Insights, a leader in social media analytics, and author of four “Dummies” books: Facebook Marketing for Dummies, Social Media and the Contact Center for Dummies, Facebook Advertising for Dummies and Facebook Marketing for Dummies 2nd Edition. You can learn more here.

Brought to you by MWW GROUP
 
Even as digital advertising is up (it’s no secret of the declining engagement within traditional), it is clear that consumers are not interested in repeating the same invasive advertising experience at a time when recommendations from family, friends and professional peers are more trusted sources of information. There is a reason that the banner ad is also on the decline.

And then there is Facebook, protecting the interests of community by eliminating ads as noise with a preference towards advertising as relevant content.

Advertising as being a part of the conversation. Advertising to be shaped by the consumer, in real time, if relevant, if it brings value and connects in a way that friends want to share.

Nielsen analyzed results from 79 ad campaigns on Facebook over a period of six months to determine the effectiveness of social advertising. They found that social advertising, on average, generates a 55% greater lift in ad recall than non-social ads. In a separate study conducted in 2011 they found that 76% of U.S. web consumers said they most trusted recommendations from personal acquaintances.

And so the data shows that yes, the future of digital advertising is most definitely going to be social, but I don’t think that Madison Avenue will be able to effectively service it for a few simple reasons:

1. Creative Control: Mad Ave is still about creative control. It is the discipline you need to create magnificent commercials but not the skills required for social advertising.

2. Silo’d Traditional Media Buying: The traditional media buyer gets in- then gets out. They do not participate in the conversation, nor do they help shape the story or adapt the buy based upon the conversation. The media buyer of the future will follow the conversation, create engagement and participate in the flow of the story.

All of these things are what we in PR have been doing for years. Authentic engagement combined with earned media expertise that allows us to turn on a dime and evolve the story to bring relevance to the conversation and make you, our clients, matter more.

 
Jared Hendler, MWW Group EVP, and global director of digital and creative services, brings over 20 years of creative management experience in branding, advertising, digital media & technology forged from over a decade in the corporate world along with having founded and managed 2 new media startups. Jared is a member of the New York Advisory Board for Social Media Week and can be reached at jhendler@mww.com or @JaredHendler. This post was originally published on Jared’s blog.

Let’s be clear.  Most people who write on social media outlets don’t do so just for the sake of doing it.  Some might, but the vast majority of people who share content, post comments, or offer sentiments and opinions online do so because they are in what Andrew Jeavons of Survey Analytics calls “the point of emotion.”  In other words, they are emotionally invested in the product, service or experience about which they are opining.

As Jeavons points out, most feedback is conducted via traditional methods that suffer from huge structural deficits.

1. Surveys – break-down for four reasons:  they are episodic, have limited sample-sizes, the answers are effected by the way the questions are posed, and because they rely on the concept of “recall.”  And recall is imperfect because it asks a person to offer information on a past event outside of the context and situation in which he or she experienced it.




2. Focus Groups – are skewed in three ways:  small sample sizes, self-selection population, and the dreaded “decibel rule’ – the loudest person in the room wins.  They are not real-time or data driven and they don’t parse their findings with the objective use of technology.

It appears to us that companies that make million-dollar decisions on this kind of “static” data are doing themselves a disservice.  We believe they should be using more authentic and real-time data in order to make data-driven decisions.

That is exactly why Social Media is so special, so different.  Because with Social Media, people become “micro-authors” when and where it matters.  Instead of a laborious production process, Social Media reduces the distance between the production and consumption of opinions; in fact, it even obliterates it.

In some contexts emotions are considered bad.  But if you truly want to know what consumers really think and want to be able to predict how they might behave, find them at the point of emotion.  Very likely that means you’ll find them on Social Media.

The opportunity is yours for the taking!  What you really need is real-time data, gathered and interpreted by smart technology and then put into practice by a team who now understands your customers’ REAL attitudes and interests.

Paul Dunay is the Chief Marketing Officer of Networked Insights, a leader in social media analytics, and author of four “Dummies” books: Facebook Marketing for Dummies, Social Media and the Contact Center for Dummies, Facebook Advertising for Dummies and Facebook Marketing for Dummies 2nd Edition. You can learn more here.

twintangibles, our city organizers for Glasgow, hosted a series of discussions on the topic at the beginning of the year. And we think it’s worth revisiting them:

Time has come for Crowdfunding
Social history of crowdfunding
Equity based crowdfunding
Crowdfunding platforms: to each their own
Components of a good crowdfunding campaign
Interview with Luke Lang, Founder of Crowdcube
Interview with Stuart McLaughlin, Founder of @Fund_It
Crowdfunding bicycle building

Do you have something else to add? Let us know in the comments below.

Created by: MBAOnline.com

1. There is a battle for our identities.
The Fab Four of Google, Amazon, Facebook, and Apple are the modern equivalent of radio and TV. But what makes this more unique is that it’s the first time in history private global media companies controlling so much public space and information about us. Apple’s iTunes account is the new digital passport and ties all devices to this account. Amazon puts our credit cards as the starting point for our identity. Ecommerce has broadened from physical commerce to digital consumption, and Amazon’s formula for success is Digital Identity + Digital Media Consumption + Mobile Devices= Control of the Market. Google has less of an universal identity but has concentrated on serving as many ads to as many customers as possible. To do this, they have focused on getting their operating systems on as many devices as possible which encourages more users to use their products and see their ads. Finally, Facebook has emerged as the identity broker. They have learned how to monetize this identity opportunity and with the Facebook Connect and Like buttons have promoted their ownership of digital identity.

 
2. There is a danger of lazy marketing.
Being present on these platforms isn’t enough alone. The prevailing belief is “You don’t have to think about it too much; just be there.” But in reality, there are no easy shortcuts. As a marketer you should think about what your brand says and does more instead of just where it does it. At the end of a campaign, it doesn’t matter where you have those conversations if you’re having an uninspired and boring conversation. If it’s boring, they’ll drift off just like they would in real life. The benefit of these platforms, in particular, Facebook, is that it revolves around hyperpersonalization. Marketers can more efficiently target the right people at the right time, and users get more relevant helpful content right when we need it.
 

3. We are craving more human moments of discovery.
Brands will need to put a greater emphasis on discovery and randomness to really connect. We have to ask ourselves if everything is updated automatically is it really discovery or is it just a machine-based information feed that we would really call spam? Most times it’s spam and that doesn’t connect people to brands. You need friction to make things human and real. Active and mindful sharing is valuable and entertaining. That’s what brands want. By making it frictionless we dilute the significance of what people really care about and lump the big items that are close to a person’s core values with the small interests and pieces of information we like to graze on.
 

Bonus: The pace of innovation accelerates as the people in society become more connected.
There are many arguments that social media is making us less creative by allowing us to only choose to follow what others are doing. We have moved more from being a culture of active hunters and gatherers to passive cutters and pasters. We keep sharing with each other the same things over and over again. But what history teaches us is that this is great time for innovation. We are on the cusp of a renaissance of global information. Literate educated individuals can contribute to shared ideas of understanding. While it is harder to recognize originality, it has never been easier to access and research information. And that’s the building block of creativity- existing ideas. We now have the massive opportunity to tell new engaging, memorable, behavior-changing brand stories across numerous platforms to ultimately build the strongest possible meaningful interactions with consumers.
 

So, what does this all mean? We are going to see a shift towards moderation. While frictionless sharing is great for overall activities, like where we eat and who we hang out with, the need for a unique space to share what’s really important is mounting. We won’t lose Pinterest or Facebook, but we will see the rise of a more personal and curated social site, where the real user is showcased. Brands that help users do this and convey an interest in those things that are personal to the individual user will only gain more trust with consumers. I have a feeling this is the next big area of innovation for social platforms.

Watch all our keynotes from February 2012, and don’t forget to share your thoughts on David’s presentation below.

We have two special offers to join our friends at the Guardian and at Benchmark with our own founder, Toby Daniels.

Activate New York
The Guardian’s second annual Activate New York is a one-day summit focusing on how we can change the world through technology. All taking place at The Paley Center May 3rd. An open and digital first approach to journalism has helped to drive record audiences for the Guardian and deepen their engagement with readers. This reflects a wider shift in business and society towards a more open way of operating. This summit will ask how we can use openness and digital to be the best in their field. Activate New York brings together the experts, innovators and thought leaders to start answering these questions in a more intimate forum. A major theme will be on the battle for the internet at a time that couldn’t be better. Speakers joining Toby will be

• Arianna Huffington, The Huffington Post
• Jeff Jarvis, CUNY Graduate School of Journalism
• Wadah Khanfar, The Sharq Forum and Al Jazeera Network
• Om Malik, GigaOM Network
• Clay Shirky, NYU
• Alan Rusbridger, Guardian News & Media

Our community receives an exclusive 30% off your place using this bespoke code CROWD30 when booking. If you’re not able to join, you can keep up with the conversation at @ActivateSummit.

Benchmark
Then, on May 9th, you’re invited to join Benchmark, an interactive conference focused on case studies from some of the biggest brands in the social space. Benchmark features the opportunity to sit down with presenters over lunch for discussion and questions in an intimate environment. Best part? We get a special rate of $199 with Promo Code: BMSMW (case sensitive).

We hope to see you there!

To celebrate our sixth global event this coming September, we are asking people around the world to Instagram Your City. There are many photo programs such as Instagram, Nokia Creative Studio, Lightbox, Hipster and StreamZoo that enable you to make beautiful images and share with your friends. So, we’re asking you to use one of these platforms or any filter (or none at all!) to showcase the uniqueness of our host cities. We are looking for the Top 14 submissions to represent each of our 14 cities participating in Social Media Week this coming September, all from your perspective.

Submitting is incredibly easy (And don’t worry, you can still enter even if you don’t have the Instagram app):

1. Take a picture: Using any smartphone device, take a photo that captures the uniqueness and heart of one of the 14 host cities for Social Media Week. (Note: To qualify for the grand prize, photos must be taken with a smartphone and must be of one of the 14 participating cities.)

2. Add a filter: Using any social photography platform, such as Instagram, Hipstamatic, Nokia Creative Studio, StreamZoo, or Lightbox, make your photo stand out. While a filter isn’t necessary to enter, it does make it more fun!

3. Tag & Share: Using #InstagramYourCity, share on Twitter with the city you’re capturing. For example, “Just submitted my entry to @SocialMediaWeek’s #InstagramYourCity for Berlin!”

There’s no limit to the number of entries you can submit, so get creative!

In the coming weeks, we will launch the Instagram Your City special website, which will feature the top 14 city shots. One “Best-in-Show” picture will then be selected from these with the winner being given the opportunity to travel to any Social Media Week city of their choosing during the September 24-28 event.

September’s Social Media Week, powered by Nokia, will be the biggest, most diverse and expansive to-date, with 14 cities hosting, including London, Glasgow, Torino, Barcelona, Berlin, Doha, Jeddah, Hong Kong, Seoul, São Paulo, Bogotá, Chicago, Los Angeles and Vancouver.

“As we continue to add new Social Media Week cities and expand to incredible parts of the world, we are looking to fulfill the adage of ‘a picture is worth a thousand words’,” said Toby Daniels, Founder & Executive Director of Social Media Week. “As a celebration of the uniqueness of all of our local cities, the Instagram Your City competition will provide a way to tell stories that cross cultural and geographic boundaries.”

The deadline for submissions is June 29, so grab your smartphone and show the rest of the world what makes your city unique and beautiful.

For full rules and guidelines, see here.

Images courtesy of @rocktheretweet, @vutheara, @shelserkin. This contest is not endorsed or certified by Instagram or Burbn, inc. All Instagram(tm) logos and trademarks displayed here are property of Burbn, Inc.