Marketing to the Social Web: How Digital Customer Communities Build Your Business

Chapter 5. Step One: Observe and Create a Customer Map (Otherwise, You Can't Get There from Here)

Marketing to the social web is increasingly important, but is it right for you and your customers? To avoid the "build it and they will come" syndrome, you have to do your homework, build a solid foundation for your community, and get a dialogue going. So Part II of this book is all about the seven steps and four platforms you need to harness the power of marketing to the social web.

First I'm going to outline the seven steps and then explore each step in more detail, chapter by chapter. To show you how the process works, I'll use Saturn as an example. Let's assume Saturn has four large competitors fighting for the top spot among its particular target consumers: Toyota, Hyundai, BMW Mini Cooper, and Honda. The competitors have been gaining share and consumers no longer value Saturn as a groundbreaking leader in automotive manufacturing and business practices. Management wants to reestablish Saturn's position as the leader of this industry.

If Saturn were a client (it is not) and if Saturn management wanted to market to the social web (and I have no idea what Saturn's management is up to these days), we would first observe what is happening on the Web as it relates to Saturn. That takes us into step 1.

Steps to Marketing on the Social Web

1. Observe. Go into the social media and the blogosphere to understand the most influential places within the social web. What are the largest communities? ...