Challenges of Building a Global Community
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This is the presentation I gave at the European eCommerce Conference in Bilbao, Spain in November 2015. It offers insights into the challenges and opportunities that exist when engaging online.
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Challenges of Building a Global Community
- 1. The Challenges of Building a Global Social Media Program Kristie Wells - @kristiewells Head of Global Social Media and Customer Engagement, Ancestry.com
- 2. Agenda 2 World’s largest collection of family history sites Since 1996 we now have: • 16 billion historical records • 70 million family trees • Over 200 million photographs, scanned documents and written stories from members • More than 2 million paying members @KristieWells
- 3. 3 Before I joined the company to lead social media globally, I had been a customer for six years. @KristieWells Ancestry.com
- 4. 4 mi abuelo y mi bisabuelo @KristieWells Ancestry.com
- 5. 5@KristieWells Using our DNA product: I discovered that I wasn’t as Spanish as my grandfather told us
- 6. Challenges of Building Global Communities
- 7. 7 Challenge #1: Expectations vs. Reality
- 8. Expectation: Big company = more resources Reality: In order to succeed in any business, you need to prove business value
- 9. Expectation: I was responsible for all social media within the company Reality: Everyone in the company is involved – you have to figure out how to work together
- 10. Expectation: My reputation would precede me Reality: You have to earn your reputation and trust with every interaction
- 11. Do What You Can. Now. @KristieWells Ancestry.com • Audit your resources • Partner in content development • What metrics really matter? • Don’t try to boil the ocean • Keep it simple, focused • Review efforts, adjust as needed
- 12. 12 Challenge #2: Community “Management”
- 13. 13 There were fights between: US vs. UK New members vs. experienced member Paid member vs. free member @KristieWells Ancestry.com
- 14. 14 Introduced myself and shared my background Created community guidelines focused on civil dialogue Explained that mean comments were not going to be tolerated @KristieWells Ancestry.com It went the opposite of this
- 15. Get to Know Your Community 15@KristieWells Ancestry.com Goals and desires Experiences Cultural differences Interests Triggers for participation
- 16. 16 Challenge #3: Turning Detractors into Advocates @KristieWells Ancestry.com
- 17. 17@KristieWells Ancestry.com It went the opposite of this Upset that ‘rules’ were implemented, some community members started to attack me personally This went on for months.
- 18. Throw Out a Line 18 • Proactively reach out to community members • Get to know them - communicate in a human voice, not a legal one • What can you do to solve their problem? • When handled properly, customer complaints can help drive positive recommendations and advocacy • Respect them and their expertise • Members sometimes know more than employees • Recognize their contributions and thank them regularly @KristieWells Ancestry.com
- 20. 20 We started working with 20 ‘detractors’ in the US. Sentiment has shifted positively on 16 of them.
- 21. 21 Challenge #4: Align Strategy with Business Objectives @KristieWells Ancestry.com
- 22. Improve customer satisfaction • Potentially long wait times on phone One CSA can answer multiple posts on social • Same question(s) asked daily, multiple times • Moved from 1:1 responses to 1:many • Creating educational material to support • Building archive of responses • Transitioned from knowing customer name to developing real relationships with customers Result: reduced costs in process@KristieWells Ancestry.com
- 24. 24 Seed & Strengthen Community • Awareness (focus is 35%) Contests, trivia, hot news items, quotes, photos DNA Programs • Retention (focus is 55%) Educational content Great customer support Encourage member:member connections • Conversion (focus is 10%) Support marketing campaigns Result: A lot happens organically@KristieWells Ancestry.com
- 26. 26 @KristieWells Ancestry.com You can find me online on Facebook: /kristiewells, Twitter: @KristieWells and Instagram: @KristieWells Where I share my thoughts, ideas and cool things I found in my grandfather’s storage locker…
- 27. 27 Questions? I may have an answer. @KristieWells Ancestry.com
Editor's Notes
- We want to help customers discover, preserve and share their family history. We use the social channel to connect with each other and use media to educate one another as a mechanism to increase awareness and usage of Ancestry’s products.
- The Spanish blood is strong. My grandfather was a romantic and a great storyteller. He was proud of his Castilian heritage and always hoped to return to his home country one day.
- It remains a mystery what he really was, but we know it was not Spanish.
- So now that I’ve shared some of my personal story, I would like to share my personal experiences
- I had even watched the online community for a month before I started, to get an idea of the posts the company was making online and the conversations our members were having with the company and with each other. While some were really helpful, there was a also a big dispute between several members, and even those in different regions. Realized I was walking into a hornet’s nest.
- Good tools are expensive, and sometimes you are a team of one. This is not an Ancestry problem. This is a problem everywhere. There are very few companies that will provide the perfect environment. You have the world you have. Adapt and reshape. It takes time.
- Core tools = want metrics need systems. New budget cycle every year.
- Have to earn respect - Internally and Externally. Build awareness with other departments. Find internal partners to support program. Show the community you can solve their issues and you value their feedback.
- (1) You don’t need a million dollars to drive engagement. (2) Who is in your eco system that can help generate content for you? Internal partners? Thought leaders? UGC? (3) What are the 2-3 metrics that really matter to your execs? What are they basing your success on? (4) We wanted to be on every platform and launch a global influencer program. We simply did not have the resources to do this. Start small. Scale as resources allow.
- I had even watched the online community for a month before I started, to get an idea of the posts the company was making online and the conversations our members were having with the company and with each other. While some were really helpful, there was a also a big dispute between several members, and even those in different regions. Realized I was walking into a hornet’s nest.
- I introduced myself. I set community guidelines based on civil interactions and no tolerance for defamation. Asked them to be nice. They revolted.
- I introduced myself. I set community guidelines based on civil interactions and no tolerance for defamation. Asked them to be nice. They revolted.
- Which behaviors are valuable? Which are the most valuable customers?
- I introduced myself. I set community guidelines based on civil interactions and no tolerance for defamation. Asked them to be nice. They revolted.
- The customer is not always right, but you need to treat them with respect. Even when they are disrespectful. Remember, they are still the customer.