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While
the Internet’s roots can be traced back to the Cold War era, the
current permutations (email and Web browser) could not have been
foreseen or understood. One aspect of the Internet that has changed
little since its creation is the usenet/newsgroup. It is not only
one of the most valuable sources of industry and customer insight,
it’s a wonderful platform for brand extension, but it has a dark
side.
WHY
BOTHER?
Nothing says "I care" more than a personalized conversation.
If your company’s brand is service and/or technology-focused, newsgroups
are a natural extension to sales and marketing efforts. In addition,
conversations can be monitored and insightful information about
your product or a competitor may surface.
Newsgroups
are very similar to email conversations, in that they can be very
personal, yet can have a much broader audience. Due to the community-based
nature of newsgroups, lows can be amplified (remember the Intel
chip floating point error?), yet highs can also benefit (a fence-sitting
buyer is swayed by new product information or an unhappy customer
is turned around via conversation with a smart tech support representative).
The potential is huge.
 A
LITTLE BACKGROUND
Newsreaders have been available for years, more recently embedded
into Web browsers and email applications. The software allows access
to over 30,000 highly focused communities, from alt.honda to rec.tennis.
Similar to a domain ending like ".com," prefixes like
"alt" determine what kind of community it is (in this
case, alternative). Most newsgroups are open to anyone interested
in the subject matter or specific topic being discussed in (known
as threads).
While
the newsreader can be convenient for power-users interested in select
topics, the value of newsgroups as an insightful tool has been limited
by the technology. When Deja.com <http://www.deja.com/usenet>
launched a usenet/newsgroup reader/search engine, it opened up a
whole new universe for marketers, sales and support teams. Deja.com
offers a huge opportunity to locate sales opportunities, address
support issues and identifying potential PR crisis or opportunities.
SOME LIMITATIONS
With Deja.com, registered users are able to create an identity,
search for specific keywords or phrases across multiple newsgroups
and track those groups or individual threads within newsgroups via
personalized Web page. Users can lurk or post, save searches and
more. The end result is a highly efficient marketing tool. It does
have limitations however.
- The first
hurdle is being able to locate relevant posts while sifting through
millions of conversations. Much of this challenge is overcome
with the use of Boolean search terminology, like using quotes
to find an exact phrase, or using "not" to help ferret
out irrelevant results.
- The second
hurdle, after locating appropriate posts, is knowing what to do
with them. Do you respond via public post, send an email directly
to the publisher, or not respond at all? Experience and common
sense usually dictate the answer.
- The third
hurdle is locating the appropriate representative within the company
to respond. In some cases, a sales person is appropriate for basic
product questions, in others; a tech support person can address
current customer issues (which is quite popular in newsgroups).
These people need to be properly trained on how to use the technology
like Deja.com and versed in communications and corporate messaging.
- The final
major hurdle is management. It’s common for initial interest to
fade in regards to regular monitoring and posting, if a manager
is not tasked with owning the program, it will fall through the
cracks.
A FEW
RULES
Due to the relative large number of specific newsgroups and long
history, there are many participants and rules that have been developed.
If you spend plenty of time monitoring various newsgroups (aka lurking)
and follow the rules when posting or responding to posts, you should
be fine. If you do not follow basic etiquette, you’re running the
risk of permanently damaging your reputation. Here are a few tips
and tricks to keep in mind when working with newsgroups on behalf
of a company:
- It’s usually
best not to open a new "thread" or discussion within
a newsgroup unless you are completely comfortable introducing
the issue and feel you are both knowledgeable and open-minded
regarding possible responses.
- It’s generally
much easier to respond to existing threads or questions. It must
be timely and relevant to the newsgroup. If you’re not sure, lurk
until you get a good feeling for the audience and receptiveness
to "newbies."
- When in doubt
about whether or not to respond to a post, don’t. No reason to
jeopardize the brand or the relationship if you don’t have anything
to offer. If you do decide to post, treat it like an email pitch,
focusing on subject and short copy
- Never "cross
post" or post a response to multiple newsgroups; that is
considered spamming.
- If you decide
to respond to a very happy or unhappy participant, it’s usually
best to send an email directly to them rather than post a public
response (their email is available on their post). Depending on
the situation and the participant (you can see their posting history
on Deja.com) you may not want to respond at all. Generally, it
can’t hurt to let them know you’re aware of them and willing to
lend an ear, it can turn an enemy into a lifelong friend.
- If a specific
question is repeated multiple times, or a thread is generating
tons of interest, it may be appropriate to post a public response.
- If your company
or client is public, do not discuss financial information at any
time. For pre-IPO companies, do not respond to any posts at any
time.
- It’s usually
best to have an authentic company representative respond to a
post, whether they are a sales, support, PR or executive person.
Executive participation is good for high level branding and technical
experts are best for product support issues, which are most common
in newsgroups.
- It is critical
to educate all company employees regarding proper newsgroup etiquette
and the impact to pre-IPO and public companies valuation. Once
employees are properly trained, they will require ongoing management
to make sure only authorized employees are posting.
- Reporting
is important: track posts by topic (company product or service),
category (sales, support, PR) and tone (positive, neutral or negative)
and create a call to action and owner, where appropriate.
Once
you’ve mastered basic newsgroup etiquette, you’ll find your return
on investment will be worthwhile. Newsgroups aren’t the panacea
answer to viral marketing, but they can make a minimal amount of
effort result in increased sales and happier customers.
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