Beyond the Numbers
The value of engagement marketing—social media, blogger outreach, etc.—can be hard to capture because so often the metrics are “soft.” To add some legitimacy to engagement efforts it’s tempting to rely on the numbers that we do have: followers, retweets, etc.
But as this interesting Vocus study about perception of online influence shows, that’s kind of missing the point. This marketing is about influence—about quality, not quantity.
The key finding here is that there is a clear difference between “influence” and “popularity.” About 90% of respondents noted this distinction; however, 84% also said there is a correlation between “reach” and influence,” which adds a bit of ambiguity.
According to the survey, the top contributing factors that make a person or brand influential were all based on quality rather than quantity. Around 60% of respondents cited the “quality or focus of the network” (e.g. 4chan) and 55% cited the “quality of content” (e.g. Andrew Sullivan) for what defines an influential.
Digital marketing success doesn’t come from “making viral videos” or getting a million Twitter followers overnight. It’s the real work of building a trusted brand presence through quality content and real relationships with influencers. The internet moves fast, but (as ever), slow and steady wins the race.
(Hat tip to Debbie Stier and Swiss Miss for the link)
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