Salesforce, a leading cloud-service provider, recently announced that they have entered into agreement to acquire the popular social media monitoring platform, Radian6 for $326 million. Radian6, used by more than half of the Fortune 100 companies like Dell, PepsiCo, GE and Kodak offers companies social monitoring services that enable them to better connect and engage with their audience online. The acquisition demonstrates how social media is changing business transparency and fusing online and offline engagement.

“In order for a business to become a social business, it requires the creation of bridges between business functions and social customers and bridges between existing silos,” said Principal of the Altimeter Group and social media expert, Brian Solis, about the acquisition. The new media guru, along with the Pivot Research Team surveyed 700+ marketers at the end of 2010 and found that in 2011, marketers plan to increase social media usage by 75 percent. More than 50 percent of the surveyed marketers plan on handling the social media marketing in-house. Tools like Radian6 will give organizations the software to better understand and serve their social consumers, as well as monitor complaints and competitors.

The report also showed that aside from age group, 84 percent of brands and agencies participating in the Pivot Study see the social consumer as a primary or secondary target in 2011. 59 percent also view social consumers as pivotal to the brand. Who is the social consumer and how can businesses target them?

Who is the social consumer?

While the social consumers are largely dominated by millennials, they are present at all ages, according to Solis. They surf social networks looking for reviews, coupons, customer feedback and special deals. They are social and tech-savvy individuals, spending most of their time on social networks, new media apps and services. They are quick to try new social platforms and typically pay more attention to what other social consumers are saying before they listen to any marketing campaigns.

Now that we have a better understanding of the social consumer, how do companies target them? For one thing, companies have to work hard at staying ahead of social consumers. This is not an easy thing to do. To start, make sure your company has an effective social media strategy and is aware of all social media risks. This will help with brand awareness, as well as managing your online reputation.

Here are some additional ways to target the social consumer:

• Design for the “Facebook generation.” Is your website fresh, engaging and social?
• Target through search - it is the first step to most online experiences.
• Incorporate video on your social channels and website.
• Get personal - make your customer interactions memorable using personalized marketing.
• Talk with your customers and not at them - ask questions and listen to their answers.
• Whether it’s custom-built metrics or a third-party service like Radian6, use social monitoring tools to track and measure engagement, as well as define the social media ROI

These are only a few effective methods to market to the social consumer. The challenge of today’s marketing industry is building relationships with customers, while leveraging the latest tech tools. Companies really have to show a human side and provide a memorable connection for marketing success. If your company is having a hard time transitioning or you have any additional ways to target the social consumer, please contact us or leave a comment in the field below.

If you are thinking about integrating Salesforce as a CRM and want to take advantages of the new Social Monitoring services with the Radian6 acquisition, be sure to contact Verndale, a certified Salesforce Partner, to answer any of your questions.