The Royal Society of Arts was a grand venue for what felt like an eye-opening Co-creation Hub event on something that, really, we all should know. In fact, throughout the talk, I began to feel slightly unnerved by the accuracy of a theory that I’d known so well through growing up – although back then it had no fancy name. I wanted Adidas popper trousers and Kickers shoes because they were what the cool kids wore. They would make me popular.

As Mark Earls, author of ‘The Herd’, broke the news that our decisions aren’t based on what we, ourselves, believe in or agree with, but by that of influencers – like our friends or other respected sources – it got me thinking about some decisions I’ve made recently and how they may have been based on my social circle. Did I break up with my boyfriend because my friends were all becoming single? Did I move to a rough area because my friends were nearby? Am I thinking about my next holiday destination based on the stories I’ve been told? Probably, yes. Definitely, I’m sure Mark would say.

And it doesn’t stop there. The story of Colin was a clear example of how we are influenced by the people around us, not the other way around. Let me set the scene. You’re at a festival. There’s music. There’s sunshine. Everyone’s relaxing on the grass, apart from one crazy guy dancing on his own. This guy is Colin. At first, you look at Colin and think he’s a bit mental, but he’s relentless and carries on despite the whispers. Soon, another nutter joins him and the onlookers whisper a bit more. When the third dancer joins the spontaneous rave, a seed of doubt starts to grow. Maybe they’re not mental and they’re just having fun? It is at exactly this moment that a small group of revellers more than double the party and your doubt is confirmed. Before you have time to put on your flip-flops, twenty more people have arrived and you’ve become outnumbered. It’s time to join in. Now who’s the crazy one?

In practice, Face’s Director of Research, Francesco D’Orazio explained perfectly how brands should harness this information and use it to engage with customers through social media. His main argument was that people really don’t care about the brands themselves, they care about their personal relationships. So if a brand can communicate in the space between people, it will be much more successful than if it speaks to individuals directly.

O2 have taken this on board and created the RTO2, which, as Jake Steadman, their Brand and Social Media Insights Manager explained, crawls the web to pick up every conversation about the brand. It is fundamental for a number of reasons, from defining their lead influencers to reacting to customers in real time. Ultimately, it gives them access to the whole truth by tapping into a space where people are comfortable and open to opinions on a wider level. After all, getting a positive reputation in that space is arguably the most important of all. Brands become cool through word of mouth and when people don’t think they’re being advertised to, they’ll become much more susceptible.

Upon leaving the seminar, I became increasingly aware of this theory of influence as I unwittingly decided to take the tube from Charing Cross rather than the quicker, more direct route from Holborn. That could have been because it was cold and the walking distance was shorter but I’ve never been one to trade time for comfort. On reflection, I’m pretty sure the decision wasn’t wholly mine. I blindly followed my friends, who in hindsight probably would have followed me, had there been more people travelling in my direction.

Getting Under the Skin of Men.

Taking place on the 9th November the event will consist of four short presentations from industry experts and Hub members. This will include research findings from our new co-creation community for men – Betterama.

We have been working closely, both on and offline, with men to understand how they view the communication aimed at them, especially around the Christmas period, and what they think can be done to make it more appealing. Speakers include:

• Andrew Marrs, Head of Audience Insight @ IPC Media
• Craig Harries, Planner @ Farm Communications
• Paul Cox, Managing Director @ Opticomm Media

The Event will taking place:

Tuesday 9th of November @The RSA, 8 John Adam Street, London, WCN2 6EZ

If you would like to join the discussion please RSVP to info@co-creationhub.com

Spaces are limited so please get in touch ASAP. For more information please click here.

We look forward to seeing you there!

We have some good news about our Social Media in Research project… Research Magazine are going to publish the results!

This means the output of our current Social Media in Research survey, and all the other elements we are covering, will be gracing the pages of Research’s November issue.

Check out what Research magazine have to say about the study Here

If you are in the research industry and would like to get involved in the Social Media in Research project, please read the info and complete the survey below:

Face and the London Co-Creation Hub are currently undertaking a study to understand how the research industry uses social media.

The study is titled Social Media in Research and we’re hoping to make it an annual thing. SMinR will be a comprehensive look at social media trends within in the research industry and will cover all aspects of research, from brand team ,to agencies, to freelancers.

The first step in making our study come to life is a short survey about your social media life. If you are in the research sector and have a few minutes spare we would love to hear your thoughts! The results of the survey will be published in October and we will be giving you regular updates of what we’re up to.

If you would like to take part in the 2010 Social Media in Research survey please click here.

If you would like to keep up to date with all the latest project news please follow @SMinR

We are currently undertaking a study to understand how the research industry uses social media.

The study is titled Social Media in Research and  we’re hoping to make it an annual thing. SMinR will be a comprehensive look at social media trends within in the research industry and will cover all aspects of research, from brand team ,to agencies, to freelancers.

The first step in making our study come to life is a short survey about your social media life. If you are in the research sector and have a few minutes spare we would love to hear your thoughts! The results of the survey will be published in October and we will be giving you regular updates of what we’re up to.

If you would like to take part in the 2010 Social Media in Research survey please click here.

If you would like to keep up to date with all the latest project news please follow @SMinR

Last week, there was a very enjoyable and insightful gathering for the first London Co-Creation Hub drinks evening (see each member here: Face Group, Farm, Opticom and thrudigital). After several short presentations, which are embedded below, a conversation emerged between several brands and agencies.

The key points of debate were:

• Isn’t openness opposed to the commercial aims of companies?
• How does this affect a research/IP-driven company, who is by necessity private?
• Where is the line between public and private, and does it move?
• Does defining the purpose of engagement bring greater meaning to open conversation with customers?

Below the next section of rambling (please skip if time is short), I want to answer these questions with an easy-to-use but research-driven framework. (And for even more time-constrained people, just look at these summaries: left & right).

Our general opinion is that

1. Openness wins. And companies will continue to open up. Social-media enabled co-creation is a key facilitator of this.
2. A campaign-based approach to marketing must move to an ongoing conversation-based approach, to facilitate the new expectations of consumers and capitalise on the deepness of interaction that this engenders.

Having said that, I do understand that some organisations have elements of their business that WILL NOT open up, or become subject to pubic opinion. And that is completely acceptable. As Ian Green from No. 10 Downing Street pointed out last night, he tweets and blogs all day long about the activities of the Prime Minister, but there is a clear expectation. Although he will post as the human face of No. 10, with details of Ministerial engagements and duties, he will not be broadcasting details of conversations, especially sensitive ones.

Brands are coming (by necessity) to this same realisation. Openness wins, BUT it doesn’t mean that you have to open everything to the public.

As emerged from further discussion, Apple is a great example of a company that is HIGHLY secretive about one aspect of its research and development (the hardware), yet very open about another (anyone can build an application for their hardware). So, as a brand, it is vital to identify the most suitable and effective areas for openness and social media engagement.

Neilsen’s research into social media opportunities for enterprise (2009) identified 5 areas of an organisation that will benefit most from social media-enabled implementation in 2010.  There is no ‘one fix’ for every company. No one way of engaging that works for everyone. But I have NEVER yet found a company that cannot benefit in measurable ways from a social media engagement/co-creation strategy that operates in at least one (usually at least three) of the following business areas.

The good stuff

Customer Support

Probably the most obvious win for many brands and customer support is a huge cost line for product-driven business and even the most traditional manager pricks up his ears at the cost savings and service delivery improvements that can be achieved.

Social media is now an established channel for customer support. If you aren’t responding there, you can bet your brand reputation that others are. People love the immediacy and ease of sending off a tweet, writing a query on a forum, or googling for an answer to their product issue. The beauty about customer support systems that use social media platforms is that there is a powerful opportunity for crowd-sourcing, customer service issues. Allowing fans to solve other customer’s problems, give advice, and make recommendations for best courses of action might sound scary from a brand perspective. but in addition to reducing support costs and improving customer service, it can also build a much more approachable  brand, with deeper and more meaningful customer relationships.

Insight & Research

One of the key points that I presented yesterday, was that the new media environment rewards (and perhaps will even require) companies to become more customer-centric. Understanding what your fans, general customer base, and the market as a whole want and need is vital for creating products and services that lead the market. By observing general trends beyond the specific remit of your role or position in the market, holistic and forward-looking strategies can be formed.

This goes far beyond the “focus group” approach that has been adopted in the past, although it doesn’t necessarily replace that. Distilling what the market is saying about your company and your competitors, over time, can give you superb (and statistically significant) insight into your competitive positioning and evolving brand perception.  And because what the market is saying is now trackable and public, you can be sure that even if you are not listening and gaining insight from it, your competitors are!

Product Development

At the London Co-creation Hub, one of the key uses for co-creation (doing things with people, not at people) is for product or service development. Now, since this is the area that sparked debate last night, with several brands defending a disengaged process due to security and competition concerns, let’s unpack the issues.

Yes, many elements of product research and development must be kept private, so that the company can build and maintain a competitive advantage. This is especially important in a world where unlicensed product copies can appear within days, from the very sophisticated factory operations in China and elsewhere. Firstly, no one is arguing that all R&D should be done in a goldfish-bowl with everyone looking on. However, as a point of interest, there are companies that have done this successfully, betting that the buy-in and loyalty that is built from an open product-development process will surpass the danger of other companies replicating (cue future blog post with a case study…).

Secondly, even when a brand’s core product research is private, there are always less sensitive areas that can be communicated and co-created. Perhaps the service element of the business needs work and could use customer engagement and conversation. Or incremental improvements to an existing product. Or a new approach to environmental packaging. Or new ways of using the product can be found. Et cetera.

Reputation Management

There are now an abundance of social media monitoring tools in the marketplace,  and although creating lots of data might be all the rage now, creating insight is where the real value lies. There are robust technological approaches to monitoring conversations across the web, identifying those that are most influential, classifying them according to topics, geographies and other attributes, and analysing them for insight.

Conversations are happening all around the web, with or without you. Whether viewed from a crisis-management perspective, or from a more general public relations remit, it is vital that every brand is at least listening. In fact, research by Trendmonitor shows that the mere fact of demonstrating you are listening increases brand perception considerably, even if you never do anything with that insight!

Marketing

It is often the marketing department that experiments first with social media; seeing the buzz and the potential opportunity for reach, engagement, and even (that horrifically overused word) ‘viral’ promotion. The media and advertising industries are in upheaval, with brands realising that they can now speak to customers directly, as well as through media channels and advertising campaigns. This proximity of audience means that brands can build direct and deep customer relationships, if they are willing to spend the time to engage. So let’s touch on 3 ways to approach co-created marketing.

1. Firstly, we have the opportunity for brands to engage fans in the actual creative process. What better way to ensure a message resonates with its audience, than by allowing the opinion leaders in that audience to float ideas and discuss the creative delivery? There are many brands already doing this, from crowd-sourcing ideas through virtual communities, through to actually commissioning and utilising videos produced by fans of the brand as advertisements on other channels.
2. Beyond the idea generation and creative process, there are massive opportunities for cost-effective distribution, if fans are engaged with the campaign that is being delivered. Whether described as ‘friend recommendations’, ‘word-of-mouth’, or ‘social referrals’, enabling and empowering your customers to actually deliver the brand message brings true authenticity and weight to the conversation.
3. And finally, an area which hasn’t been fully explored, but is just around the corner, is targeting and segmentation based on the customer’s social media footprint. Yes, customers can help create the campaigns, deliver the campaigns, but also decide to allow brand’s access to their profile data so that better and more relevant conversations can arise. Think it of eCRM 2.0. An easy way to start is by monitoring social media for an “intent to purchase”. Then engaging. Simples.

The obligatory call to action

If you are interested in finding out about any of the above, please do get in touch (or @cocreationhub on Twitter). Between the partners of the London Co-Creation Hub, we have experience in addressing each of the above business areas.

Slides from the event

Changing Consumer Landscape

This is to be expected as the consumer landscape is changing fast. It is common knowledge that the advent of Web 2.0 has given consumers the confidence and the ability to take more control of the relationship they have with brands. It has given rise to the term “empowered consumers”, a new breed of customer who have a strong belief not just in their own voice but also in their own creativity, ideas and self-expression. It is no longer about what your brand does to the consumer but what consumers are doing to and with your brand.

Impact on Financial Services Industry

This trend manifests itself in the Financial Services Sector in a number of ways. The first is that the empowered consumer of today sees openness as key to building trust and accountability with the brands they engage with. This is critical for banking brands where events from the last two years have seen trust and fairness eroded. This has been picked up by the FSA’s ‘fairness’ objectives where banks are now being tasked to provide fair products and deal with customers in a fair way. Secondly there is a drive to streamline consumer interactions and make customers lives easier by combining products. The social web will have a big impact on financial services marketing, sales and business communication processes with demand from consumers for new service designs and interfaces. This will enable consumers to draw upon a wider base of advice from places such as twitter, opinion aggregators and financial forums and will lead to real time customer service becoming a top differentiator. And finally customers are moving away from conventional advice channels (IFAs, banks) and moving more towards peer advice because social media has made this possible in ways that were not there before.

New Rules of Consumer Engagement

All of this calls for a new set of rules for consumer engagement and requires the industry to look outside its own category to the world of FMCG and Technology to find better ways of involving consumers in the research and innovation process. And they won’t have to look too far or too hard as the idea of co-creation – doing things with people not at people – has been embraced by the likes of Unilever and Nokia for a while. Co-creation takes consumer involvement to another level by bringing brands and consumers together on the same level and involves consumers at the beginning of the process rather than at midway or at the end. This can take place in on-line communities or offline in workshops or both. It is through our co-creation communities for young people namely Headbox and for women aged 25-50, namely Mindbubble that we have been helping Unilever to co-create a range of new products. The most exciting example has been our co-creation of Axe/Lynx’s 2010 variant in terms of both the product and also the fragrance – something that has never been done before – which was launched globally earlier this year.

Some important guiding principles

As with all new approaches though there are some significant lessons that we have learned along the way. The first is that when you are bringing leading edge consumers together with brands it is vital to have a coherent and well structured process that gets the best out of your combined creativity so that it delivers better outputs. The second is that within this structure it is important to have a mix of online and offline methodologies because they produce more ideas of better quality and are able to involve consumers more quickly in what you do. It is why we have inverted the traditional research approach, starting the process by gathering quality insight from thousands of consumers rather than just a few. Our proprietary tool Pulsar has allowed us to listen and to observe to what consumers are saying in real time on the web as well as measure the influence these conversations are having. Being able to combine qualitative and quantitative research in this way means we are able to help brands respond much more quickly to the speed, volume and quality of consumer interactions that are taking place with their brand, product or service. And finally the role of the consumer is critical; treating them as active participants in this process and giving them as much responsibility with direct involvement throughout the entire process. If the Finance Industry wants to stay ahead of their consumers and the fast changing landscape they occupy then they would be wise to adopt the principles and philosophy of co-creation.

Andrew Needham – CEO and Founding Partner @ Face

When Face set out on its journey to change the world of research and innovation 4 years ago we did so on the belief that the rise of the empowered consumer was going to change the media landscape forever. And we have been proved right.

We recognised that brands needed to find new ways to deal with the same old research and innovation problems. We pioneered the co-creation approach based on a new philosophy of doing things with consumers rather than at them.

This required a fundamental shift in clients research approach, moving them away from thinking of consumers as passive respondents and seeing them more as active participants in the research and innovation process. In this sense we would like to think that we lead our industry to a place where the approach of co-creation has now become widely accepted. But we would not have got there if it were not for the perspicacity of a brave client – a certain Ana Medeiros who was the Global Research Manager of Lynx/Axe at the time. It is fair to say that we both lead each other to a new horizon where the consumer was placed firmly at the centre of a new marketing model.

As I predicted last September in my blog – Co-Creation Will Create a New Breed of Agency, the debate around new industry approaches has moved beyond research and innovation into brand planning and communications. The world of advertising has been slow to react. It is why we were one of the founding members of the London Co-Creation Hub.

It is a debate that has been picked up by the outgoing Marketing Chief of Unilever, Simon Clift. In April he warned of a “lost generation” of brand managers who do not understand the web and social networks. In his final interview before retiring he said he believed public relations agencies were best placed to profit from the rise of Facebook and Twitter, as traditional advertising agencies struggle to adapt to the digital world.

Clift - Brands Need To Catch Up With Consumers

It is not just PR agencies that are moving into the space traditionally occupied by advertising agencies it is everyone, from research to experiential companies; they are all in on the act. And the reason for this is we have all recognized that the consumer is at the heart of the new marketing model not the brand. As Clift remarked “We are all learning. Unilever is ahead of much of the competition but behind consumers, which for marketers is not a comfortable place to be.”

He is absolutely right. A lot of us are behind consumers and it makes for a very bumpy ride – they are the ones leading the media industry to a new approach, one that is based on doing things WITH not AT. We have a duty both as clients and agencies to the consumer who are, after all, our ultimate customers to develop a new marketing approach that meets their needs more appropriately.

This is not going to be easy but we have to start now. As Clift says it “requires a cultural change for companies like Unilever. We have to listen to genuine customer concerns. Companies aren’t set up for that”.

The worry is they need to be and fast.

Andrew Needham
CEO and Founding Partner of Face