Guest Blogger John K. Thompson: Think of Twitter as a Real-Time Search Engine to Discover Its True Value
Okay...let's all take a deep breath. Now exhale. And for just a moment, let's get this Twitter-mania out of our system.
Don't get me wrong...I appreciate Twitter. I use Twitter. Yes, I've even tweeted and re-tweeted several times about stuff that really isn't all that important. Yet, there's a growing realization that the true value of Twitter -- the value that will make it a valuable business tool, and what it means to us as marketing professionals -- has nothing to do about Twitter's ubiquitous question: "What are you doing?"
We've already seen signs of where it's headed. When Captain Sullenberger landed his jetliner in the Hudson River last January, Twitter had the news ahead of any other medium. Faster than Fox, more timely than the Times -- Twitter users were blasting out the news, firsthand, literally as it happened.
Which, of course, caught the eye of trend-seeking reporters, who used that and other incidents as proof that Twitter was the wave of the future. But I'd point you to something that happened more recently: When Pepsi put out a controversial, suggestive iPhone application for its Amp soft drink, the reaction was immediate.
The Twitterverse exploded, and from Pepsi's perspective, it may not have been a good explosion. Thousands of messages like, "Pepsi's iPhone Amp App Is Mobile Trash--Good Riddance," and "Pepsi, you tools!" were posted. These weren't reporters posting this stuff online. These were consumers, some of whom said they'd buy Coca-Cola in protest.
How consumers react is of paramount importance to companies everywhere. Increasingly, how quickly their attitudes can be monitored and analyzed is at the heart of marketing efforts. Or it should be. So, if you don't think of Twitter as a cute communications tool, but think of it as a real-time search engine, then you're starting to perceive its real value. What if Pepsi had been monitoring Twitter, and caught the swell of messaging as it happened before it exploded into the media? Could it have avoided a PR black eye? (Of course, there are those who believe Pepsi wanted all the attention for Amp, either good or bad. But that's a subject for another column.)
So, now that we perceive Twitter in another light, we also have to think about the tools we're going to need to analyze all the data that's pouring in by the second, whether they're news feeds, happy sentiments about a product, disgruntled comments about a bad service, or just random tweets. Companies could do very well if they use the tools available to harvest the data put out there via social media in real time.
In Twitter, we have what may be the first real way to enable immediate online monitoring of consumer sentiment. It won't be the last. The opportunity exists to begin tracking, in live time, the attitudes that will help us do our jobs more effectively. It's where the market is headed. And you shouldn't need a dozen tweets or retweets to make that clear.
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About the Author: John K. Thompson is CEO of North American operations for Kognitio
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