ChatterBox

ChatterBox Works for Every Company

In my previous post I promised to describe some ways that companies and individuals can benefit from using ChatterBox. Today I’m going to write about a common scenario that I call “The Every Company”. Your business falls into this category if it:

• Sells stuff (products, services, etc)
• Competes against companies that sell similar stuff
• Is aware of relevant industry-specific OR company-specific mentions being made on Twitter. (this is important- even if your company isn’t heavily discussed on Twitter, chances are there’s still discussion going on about your industry)

You probably just read through those bullets and are saying to yourself, “well, that is every company.” And so therein lies the truth and simplicity of the title of this entry.

By now I’m sure you’ve read all about social media and why you need to pay attention. Anyone can initiate a Twitter Search and see the latest conversations on any topic. Michael Jackson, the Red Sox, alligators, you name it. Twitter Search can provide information, opportunities and feedback for folks from many different backgrounds. However, there are limits to what Twitter search can do for you:

1. Due to the sheer volume of tweets that accumulates on Twitter, the scope of the information you’re searching is limited to the previous 7 days. The good news is that the Tweets you’d like to rescind are harder to find 1 week after the fact; the bad news is this limits you from finding and preserving all that useful information that can benefit your business.
2. Once you’ve narrowed your Twitter search, what can you do with the information besides read it? There is no capability to categorize, tag, or otherwise take action on specific items that matter to you.
3. In the increasingly common scenario where there is shared responsibility for listening and responding to Tweets about your company, products, services, etc., it is challenging (if not impossible) to ensure that you don’t trip on other folks who are doing the same. This tracking becomes even more important when responses are coming from a single Twitter handle.

So how can ChatterBox help you extend the power of a Twitter search? You can read about it in more detail here, but to give a quick summary:

1. Once you conduct your searches through ChatterBox, they live within the app. The Tweets you choose to archive will be searchable days, weeks, or even months after the fact. The 7-day search limit no longer applies!
2. ChatterBox allows you to categorize, prioritize, assign, tag, and apply status to Tweets so that you’ll always know why each one is valuable to you, and which ones require follow-up action.
3. Each ChatterBox you create is its own world, a collaborative team space for Twitter! Shared responsibilities for listening and engaging are natural because ChatterBox lets you know where each item stands. You can even specify a common Twitter handle from which all the responses for a given ChatterBox will originate. Tripping over fellow team members becomes a distant memory.

Now that you know some of the ways ChatterBox can help you bring more value to search, you might be wondering how to make this happen. Here are a few ChatterBox ideas to create your first ChatterBoxes:

ChatterBox #1 – Your Stuff

1. Create this ChatterBox using the name(s) of your company, products & services as search terms
2. Adjust the Categories and other metadata values as you see fit. For example- you might want to stick with the sentiment analysis (Postive or Negative) approach that comes by default, OR you might opt to change these values to be more support-oriented (Question, Problem, Complaint, etc.)
3. Determine if you’d like responses from this ChatterBox to originate from a single Twitter handle (your company’s handle), or you may allow users to respond from any handle they have access to.
4. Share this ChatterBox with anyone you would like to listen and engage on your company’s behalf. This can include folks from outside agencies such as a PR firm, as we do not restrict who you can share each ChatterBox with.

ChatterBox #2 – Your Competitor(s)

1. This ChatterBox should be a place to listen in on what others are saying about your competitors’ products & services. If your competitors’ have a particularly high volume of tweets, then you may opt to create separate ChatterBoxes for each competitor.
2. For Categories & metadata values, think about what you want to do with this information once you collect it. If you plan to be a passive listener then your approach might be different than someone who wants to actively lure competitors’ customers over to their product or service.
3. Share the ChatterBox with the appropriate audience. This ChatterBox might be better suited for team members who have a vested interest in understanding competitive offerings and developing strategies to counter them.

ChatterBox #3 – Industry Voices

1. Make this ChatterBox the home for people who like to talk about your industry and other relevant topics. You might be surprised at how many Forrester analysts are active on Twitter! You can use Advanced Search to define a list of Twitter accounts you want to listen to, and you can combine this with certain keywords to further narrow the search. This way you won’t have to hear what people having for lunch that day .
2. Set up your Categories and other metadata values so that you can track trends and intelligently contribute to these conversations. Sometimes these analysts will be looking for products & solutions to solve a particular problem. A recent ChatterBox blog post was a direct response to a challenge issued by Forrester Analyst Jeremiah Owyang.
3. Share this ChatterBox with members of your team (internal or 3rd parties such as PR firms) who are responsible for engaging with these influential voices and staying on their radars.

ChatterBox #4 – Events

1. Is your organization participating in an upcoming event such as a tradeshow, conference or TweetUp? Why not create a ChatterBox to listen and engage in the buzz leading up to the event. The current trend is to use hashtags for tweets that relate to a specific event, such as the TwtrCon series.
2. Use your Categories and other metadata values to prepare for the event and interact with folks who will be there with you. Once you’re at the event, you’ll have an easy way to listen and engage with your fellow attendees.
3. Share the ChatterBox with co-workers and 3rd parties who are responsible for promoting your company’s participation.

There you have it- 4 simple ChatterBox ideas that will help you get started! As always, we’re here to help. Please contact me directly if you have any questions (@chadnorthrup on Twitter), or feel free to pose them in the comment section below.

Posted by: Chad Northrup  |  August 19, 2009  |  categories: Using ChatterBox  |  tags: competitors, events, Jeremiah Owyang, pr, search, Twitter, use case