Love the customers who hate you

Shannon Stairhime is in Europe today, so we've asked WOMMA member Paull Young of Converseon to serve as guest editor of the day.
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Jeff Jarvis writes a typically insightful piece for BusinessWeek looking at the opportunities companies have to boost their customer service by proactively monitoring and engaging with the online conversation and social media. This was one of the key articles in BusinessWeek's recent customer service feature edition.

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Corporate social technology strategy, purists, and corporatists -- why companies CAN participate

Josh Bernoff of Forrester Research attempts to answer the question, 'can companies be a part of the social world'? and looks at common responses from two groups he names as 'Purists' and 'Corporatists'. It is a thoughtful piece, worth reading by any company looking to engender word of mouth by actively engaging in social media. As Josh says: "If you're in a company, your company can participate. In fact, you must participate."

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Amazing customer service is the new marketing

Neville Hobson writes a detailed example of the power of customer service through social media in the era of the empowered, vocal, online consumer. Neville recounts his experience dealing publicly with Dell customer service through his blog and notes "This experience with Dell is what customer service is really about - the genuine desire to cement a relationship with a customer, and take the actions you need to do that clearly prove that desire. To do that, you have to have the freedom to deliver. Your organization and its structures must make it possible to deliver, to match the desire of your employees to actually deliver."

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The power of cooperation

Finally, a fitting post for the end of the US winter as Australian blogger Lee Hopkins points to a great example of a simple yet brilliant idea sparking a great deal of viral buzz for next to no cost. Comedy group ImprovEverywhere staged a stunt in New York's Grand Central station with 200 of their croneys 'freezing' in place (and thoroughly confusing the passing tourists). The result? Over 8 million views of the video on YouTube in the month since it was posted.

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Announcing: WOM Wednesday Teleconferences!

Announcing: WOM Wednesday Teleconferences!
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Join us Wednesdays at noon EST for WOM Wednesdays, WOMMA's ongoing teleconference series. Just register, dial in, and listen up to get the ideas that will truly expand your marketing horizons.

UPCOMING WOM WEDNESDAY TELECONFERENCES
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Wednesday, Mar. 19, at noon EST -->
>> Unleashing the Power of Global Social Networks: How To Get Global Category Influentials Talking About Your Brand: Join WOMMA and Nick Chiarelli, Director of Consumer Trends, GfK Roper Consulting as he gives global marketers an up-close look at the Global Category Influentials segments -- the consumer groups most likely to recommend your products and services and to influence the purchasing decisions of others in their vast, worldwide networks.

Wednesday, Apr. 2, at noon EST -->
>> The Law, The FTC, and Word of Mouth Marketing: Learn the legalities that every word of mouth marketer needs to know in order to adhere to the word of the law and do WOMM right. Also learn the latest from the FTC -- as it pertains to word of mouth marketers. Featuring Tony DiResta, a partner at Reed Smith and WOMMA's Counsel for Regulatory Affairs.

Wednesday, Apr. 9, at noon EST -->
>> Customer 2.0 -- Five Rules to Engaging a New Breed of Customer: Never before have customers morphed so quickly. Enabled by new technologies with accelerated adoption rates, customers have attained a level of control never before seen -- and it's something that established companies have to work hard to adapt to. Join us Wednesday, Apr. 9 and learn five rules for engaging "Customer 2.0." Featuring Brandon Evans, Managing Director and Partner, RepNation Media

Wednesday, Apr. 30, at noon EST -->
>> 7 Radical Rules to Leverage Online Sports Fan Buzz: It's no surprise that sports fans like to talk about the teams they love. Join presenters Kathleen Hessert and Dexter Bustarde of Sports Media Challenge as they explain how they've leveraged sports fans' enthusiastic online buzz for a variety of clients, including NFL, WWE, Ticketmaster, and more.

>> Cost is FREE for WOMMA members; $60 for non-members.
To register now, visit:
http://www.womma.org/events/teleconferences/