Here’s a mini case study of social media marketing in action that I think contains a number of marketing lessons.
It starts with me logging in to my personal Facebook account to check up on a couple of social activities I’m involved with.
And on my wall I notice this…
“The Rolling Stones – Here are Mick and Keith talking about the release of the ‘lost’ live album (and oft bootlegged) The Brussels Affair”
…with this video…
Wow! A “lost” album! This looks interesting so I check out the video…
…which is informative and does a pretty good job of reviewing the album without being too “salesy”.
Such a good job, in fact, that of course I check out the sample track…
…a stormin’ version of “Gimme Shelter”…
…plus the other snippets from the album.
By this stage, I’m thinking that I’ve got to have this thing.
No matter that I already have numerous live albums by the Rolling Stones…
…and multiple versions of their classic tracks.
Do I really need another version of “Gimme Shelter” (or “Jumpin’ Jack Flash” for that matter)?
No…but I WANT It!!!
At this point I’m away from Facebook and on the “Rolling Stones Archive” site…
…where, of course, I can very conveniently purchase The Brussels Affair via download.
And at $7 for the MP3 format, it’s a pretty easy decision.
So let’s review how this mini social media marketing case study unfolded…
1, Firstly, of course, I ended up on a Rolling Stones list of some sort. I don’t exactly recall how that happened. In my profile I’ve included the Stones in my music “likes” so I suspect that’s the connection.
2. Interesting, relevant content is posted. Note the power of video here. Also, they could have simply made an announcement about the album, but the interview is so much more interesting and informative and does a better job of persuading people to take a look.
3. Away from Facebook and on a “home” site, there’s a sample to draw prospects in further.
4. Finally, there’s an invitation to buy. Could have been done a little better in my opinion. But, hey, I ended up buying.
Now, of course, the Rolling Stones have a pretty big advantage in that they already have a massive fan base. So for them, social media is simply another channel to reach those fans in some form.
But note how they’ve provided content here and made a deliberate effort to add some value rather than simply push product.
And make no mistake, the Stones are a very slick marketing machine. Just take a look at how they are working their back catalogue with reissues and “special editions”.
One other marketing point to note in passing. A “fan” will happily buy what is basically the same content multiple times in different formats. It might seem strange, but take a look at your own behaviour. If you’re interested in a subject, you probably don’t have just one book but many…even if some of them cover very much the same sort of ground.
So in your own business, look for ways you can repurpose your material, or add a new angle of some sort or add a new format. You could well find that there is a lot more life and sales in a product or service than you might think.
UPDATE (30 January 2012):
One point I forgot to mention, was that of course I told a couple of friends about my discovery and at least one of them bought the album. So there’s often a strong “viral” component associated with social media marketing…provided you offer something of value.
Also (and this is implied above but worth emphasising) note the appeal of something that’s “little-known” or “secret”. Fans love obscure stuff and “rarities” for the “one-upmanship” and “snob” appeal (“I don’t have just the regular live albums…I’ve got this killer bootleg that is MUCH better”!)