No. 3: Defend your brand in social media
We all know of successful case studies in social media and brand management. Best practices to reach the Holy Grail of customer engagement, identify influencers, and measure sentiment are plentiful. Brands have shown marked success in incorporating social media feedback into product design and strategy as well as improving customer service and brand loyalty.
But there's one angle that hasn't had as much discussion: brand abuse in social media.
In this emerging category, the abuser is taking advantage of your well-known brand to drive traffic to their page, channel, feed, or website. Sometimes it's an over-eager affiliate who doesn't understand the rules about promoting their relationship or the use of the corporate logo. Sometimes it's a "mom and pop shop" that tries to ride on the coattails of a national brand by falsely associating their local business with that brand. In some cases, the intent is more malicious as the scammer exploits trusted relationships or the name recognition of a brand to collect passwords and other personally identifiable information for further nefarious purposes.
In any case, your loyal customers can be confused or sidetracked. The fact that it's happening in less-structured social media doesn't diminish the potential damage; in fact, because of the viral nature of social media, the damage can be even more widespread than in other forms of online abuse.
Leading social network sites have Terms of Service that cover these types of masqueraders. After all, it's in their interests that their sites are safe for users, and that the community isn't exposed to deception, scams, or outright fraud. The social network sites will have a link available for reporting these abuses and are usually very quick to resolve them. And, as with other forms of online abuse, the well-defended brand is less prone to attack. Scammers will simply find it easier to identify other, less vigilant targets.
No. 4: The new landscape in domain names: Start planning now
Sometime next year, the emergence of a new type of top-level domain (TLD) will represent significant opportunities for marketers. No longer restricted to ".com" or ".biz" or the other existing TLDs, companies will be able to acquire and manage their own TLDs, such as a ".brand" or a vanity domain.
With a ".brand," web surfers and search engines will be able to find your online venues more quickly and easily -- netting you better-qualified traffic and improved ROI. You may also share your brand's TLD real estate with partners, dealers, affiliates, and even user and fan communities.
Along with this privilege comes a number of critical tasks, so you'll want to begin your education and strategic efforts right away, whether you want your own ".brand" TLD or not.
First, there will be contention for some domains, which will be offered on a first-come, first-served basis. What if a famous rock band and a maker of construction components vie for ".doors" - or how about a fruit growers cooperative and a well-known European telecommunications company? What about your product category? Do you want to explain to your board of directors why your competitor got the "dot category" for your line of business and your company didn't?
Plan for substantial costs, as well. Applying for and launching a simple domain may cost $500,000, with another $350,000 in annual operational outlays. More complex domains may be much more costly.
Whether you think you'll apply for a ".brand" or not, start building your strategy now. Weigh the potential costs and benefits, and plan for monitoring ".brand" applications so you can object if someone tries to misuse your brand or lay claim to it. Once these new TLDs begin to proliferate, the opportunities for abuse of your brand will multiply rapidly, so plan to get help with automated monitoring and response.
No. 5: Traffic direction: Pair a good offense with your good defense
Fighting traffic diversion, discussed previously, will always be a necessity. But why not work aggressively to make your own online properties the easiest, most obvious places for users to go?
You can start by simply lighting up the path with a strategy for traffic direction. Show your customers how to reach your official Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and other social network accounts, so your customers are always sure that they are interacting with you, not an imposter. Publish this information prominently on your own sites.
Also, be sure customers know what communications they can expect from you, and give them an easy way to report imposters who send suspicious email or other messages. State clearly that you'll never ask for sensitive information, and that you follow other best practices. Making these policies easy to find and understand will build customer trust.
If counterfeits are a problem for your brand, educate your customers on what you are doing to solve the problem. Provide a means for them to help you stamp out fakes by reporting suspicious sites and stores to you via an online form.
You can also turn negatives into positives by taking advantage of domains you've reclaimed from cybersquatters. Point those URLs to the appropriate pages on your own sites, and let that formerly diverted traffic point squarely at your brand.
Bringing it all together: Your brand protection strategy
Any of the five strategies discussed above can help protect your brand, reputation, and revenue online. Combined with the others, each becomes even more effective. You'll see the fruits of your labors in more web traffic, more loyal customers, and a higher ROI for your marketing investments.
Frederick Felman is chief marketing officer for MarkMonitor.
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