We are in the digital age. In this age, social networks are the wave of the future. Today’s consumer is empowered. Social consumers quickly share their thoughts about a product or an experience on Facebook, Twitter, Google and many other networks. Brands need to be present on social networks to interact and engage with the empowered consumer. More consumers are consulting their social networks for product recommendations. It is important for brands to listen to their customers on social networks.

image via Shopify.com

Scenario

An article goes out on Twitter about how a customer credits a particular tool with helping her improve business results. A group of disgruntled Influencers and Industry insiders reply negatively claiming the story was paid for or sponsored by the company.

I would do the following to address the issue:

• Handle the situation right away stating that the story was not paid for and that the customer was a satisfied user of the product
• Edit the content to state that no one was paid for their opinion

To address Tweet that said, (“Company X just takes money from people to put up this crap- that tool sucks.”)

I would:

• Ask them to explain why they felt that way and if they had an issue with the product
• Share this with the company so they could address any issues these customers may have had with the product

I would take immediate action to make sure the situation was contained. My priority would be to protect the company brand.

How have you handled challenges on Social Media? Comment and share below.

About the Author

Dan is passionate about using Marketing to help businesses drive sales. Certified in Inbound Marketing, Dan has worked on various marketing assignments including: Start Ups, a Political Campaign & a Digital Marketing Conference.

Prior to serving as a Classroom teacher, Dan served customers as an Outside Sales & Marketing Rep in NYC. In this role, he taught & trained Dentists on the company’s products & services using a consultative selling approach combined with direct marketing. He also supported the company’s marketing efforts at industry trade shows.

He writes & publishes a business blog on the topics of Sales, Marketing & Social Media entitled Sales, Marketing & Social Media Today; which has grown to over 17,000 followers on LinkedIn & over 15,000 on WordPress.

Dan’s articles & insights on Sales, Marketing & Social Media have been featured, mentioned & referenced in major Business Publications such as:

The Arizona Republic

http://yourbusiness.azcentral.com/handle-top-10-sme-sales-objections-24845.html

Twitter Ads Blog

https://blog.twitter.com/2014/how-smartphone-users-engage-on-twitter-three-key-findings

Yahoo! Finance Blog

https://es.finance.yahoo.com/blogs/fintechnologiayredeses/cueva-arma-secreta-obama-110427857.html

Paper.li’s Wall Of Fame via Scoop.it

http://www.scoop.it/t/all-things-paper-li/?tag=Dan+Galante

Dan has been honored for his Social Profiles & Content

•Recognized by Klout for having a Score putting him in the Top 10 % of Social Media Users

•LinkedIn Social Selling Index Score in the Top 1%

•Honored by SlideShare for being in the top 5% of profiles viewed in 2014

•Honored by LinkedIn in 2012 for being in the top 1% of profiles viewed out of 200 million members

Dan is seeking a full-time marketing role in Direct, Inbound, Digital, Content & Social Media Marketing. He is willing to be a CMO to create and build out the Marketing function of your organization if it does not exist. Contact him to set up interviews. dan@dangalante.com 

Social Networks are places where people congregate; making them great sources of Market Research and Revenue. As a result, Social networks are looking for new revenue streams. The latest revenue channel for them is E-commerce.

Facebook is partnering with Shopify to launch Facebook shops. The social network is the latest to get in on the E-Commerce business.

Last year at SMX East, Google and YouTube shared how they are allowing people to shop online for products. Google also shared people’s buying behavior. I have included parts of the article below.

In Google’s Keynote, I learned how businesses can get an edge during the holidays. I also learned of Google’s plan to use Google Images and YouTube for E-Commerce. Google is also allowing businesses to use location-based Ads in Google Maps.

The key insights of the presentation were:

1. According to Google most shopping visits start online.

2. When diners search for a great place to eat the searches are probably happening on a smartphone.

3. When people are online in cars, more than half of them are searching for information on a mobile device making localization and targeting important.

4. 2/3’s of shoppers say that online video has given them insight and inspiration to make purchases.

5. Shoppers use at least 3 channels or more when shopping.

6. Brands need to provide an omnichannel channel experience all year, especially during the holidays.

7. Sales are happening online and offline. As a result of this shift, Brands need to serve customers on the channels of their choice.

Would you shop on a Social Network? Share your thoughts.

Trends in AI & Generative AI: Insights from The 2023 AI Summit New York 

Last week, I covered the AI Summit in New York. I was excited to learn about the trends in AI and generative AI and to see some commercial applications of these new technological advancements. 

Patrick Murphy of UAB led the AI Exhibitor hub. Patrick shared insights from his research on Entrepreneurship. He shared how start-ups use AI, and Generative AI to scale up and bring products to market. 

Generative AI is being used in the following eight ways:

1. Content and Asset Generative
2. Automated Processes
3. Ideation
4. Financial Management
5. Project Design
6. Optimized Structures
7. Acceleration and incubation
8. Ethics and Risk Management. 

There was a pitching completion where start-ups did pitches in multiple rounds. At the beginning of the competition, they received advice from judges on best practices. 

One of the start-ups that was of interest was Botwise. Jan Nowak shared how his team shared a use case on how they leveraged Language Learning models (LLM)using statistics and GPT solutions for rapid automation in customer service for Mylead.global is a platform that allows influencers to earn money. As a result, MyLead.global was able to screen influencers faster and better for their big brand clients.

AI-Powered Use Cases from across the board panel discussion

Leaders Saira Kazmi Ph. D. (CVS Health), Matthew Blakemore (Creative Industries Council) Taha Mokfi (HelloFresh), Kriti Kohli (Shopify), and Kris Perez (Data Force) share how they use chatbots, improving both the buyer and seller experience using AI. How AI can be used in video games to identify levels of violence and how AI can improve in healthcare and Radiology reducing the amount of time images are read while improving accuracy and detail. 

Another interesting Panel was by Tim Delesio CTO of techolution

Tim asked What’s driving the explosive rise of AI all of a Sudden?

The answer is the economics of the labor market.

On the demand side, he cited labor shortages and persistent high inflation. 

On the supply side, he cites the rise of ChatGPT and, major scientific and Technological breakthroughs in the past five to seven years. 

He shared trends in AI for 2024 that include:

1. Physical Labor with AI to help deliver small batch sizes with high-precision quality control
2. Improved customer engagement by providing a new generation of customer service agents using Generative AI 

Tim demonstrated some of these trends when he ordered a soda using an AI-powered robotic arm. 

The booth had another machine showing how AI can enhance inventory management when items are ordered. 

I was amazed to see some AI Tech that techolution brought to the marketplace.

On that note, I saw an AI-powered Kiosk by Graphen where a man ordered his food and paid. This company is using AI to revolutionize all industries.

Man orders food AI Kiosk

Man pays for food at AI Kiosk

There were so many great talks and exhibits. 

Additional pictures can be found on Instagram. 

I want to thank the AI Summit for having me as their guest. If you want to use AI and Generative to improve business outcomes, sign up for the AI summit in your city.

What do you think is next for AI and Generative AI?

Comment and share below.

Additional pictures can be found on Instagram.