Gray Dudek

Since posting my original thoughts and social measurement on the Compare the Meerkat campaign some time ago I’ve been asked a few times about the definitive results. Having been a casual observer of the campaign and measuring via a social media monitoring system only I was not aware of the hard fact around ROI.

However, I have dug around across a few sites and it seems that following are consensus results for the campaign(s) so I thought I would publish them here.

My original posts can be found here:

Compare the Meerkat – Case Study – Part 1

Compare the Meerkat – Case Study – Part 2

As mentioned above these are not numbers direct from Compare The Market, VCCP, or anyone similar who I can authenticate so please take them with the necessary pinch of salt. They are also from quite a few months back as that was all I could dig out from my searches. There was a stat in there around Facebook Fans which I have removed as that was inaccurate.

That said they do seem very impressive and gut instinct makes me think that they could well be in the right ball-park.

Superb video using social apps and channels to show you your life can change in one evening…

Just what I have been looking for ever since I saw Socianomics last year – a UK view versus a global view.

Clients look out, I now have the video I have been searching for so it’ll be coming to our next meeting!

One of search engine giant Google’s priorities is to improve user satisfaction by quickly delivering the desired result for every search term entered – for every user, every time.

As part of that it is constantly looking at ways to index the entire internet. At the moment though there is one barrier to Google achieving that goal: Facebook.

Facebook presents a real challenge to Google as the majority of activity by Facebook’s 500 million users stays on the social network’s servers and cannot be indexed. This has the search giant seriously worried, as status updates alone are estimated to amount to more than ten times the number of words written on blogs worldwide (thanks to AllFacebook for this and other excellent reporting on this topic).

The ‘Like’ is released

Google’s concern over this issue runs in parallel to Facebook’s recent launch of the Open Graph Protocol, which extends the ‘Like’ function outside of the network. It allows webmasters to install Like buttons on their sites and lets users share their ‘Like’ (or vote of approval) for content outside of Facebook on the popular network.

Despite Google’s concern about Facebook’s ‘hidden’ data this all seems reasonably inconspicuous. That would be unless external content wasn’t showing up in Facebook search…which it is.

Thanks again to AllFacebook, who reported this was happening earlier in the week for certain TripAdvisor listings:

These results pop-up as ‘Pages’ in Facebook search but are not pages on the network. Instead clicking on the link takes you through to the TripAdvisor listing.

This is fascinating stuff and makes Facebook’s future plans a really compelling mystery. In one move it has effectively produced a brilliant way of indexing content. And if they can keep spamming under control this could well become the people’s search engine.

Facebook is clunky and so is its search function

While the potential for this is enormous there is a real danger that Facebook is trying to run before it can walk in the search game.

Its current internal search function is truly appalling, with pages regularly disappearing out of search altogether.

More fundamentally, Facebook has to figure out how to describe the search results generated through the Open Graph if it is ever going to meet Google’s ability to satisfy users. What are these results? Are they a product of the people’s search engine I described above? Or simply a popularity contest that is therefore both unreliable and biased?

Links are just one measurement that Google uses to rank content in search results, Facebook needs to identify other ranking factors that will balance out the ‘Like’ and make this form of search credible.

Battle lines are drawn

These questions do need to be answered. But in the meantime we can be in no doubt that Facebook is squaring up to Google and wants ‘Like’ to become the new link.

Another big question is how Facebook will move out into the wider internet over time. It is still largely a closed system. To compete in the search world data from the Open Graph will have to be available and searchable outside of the network.

Alternatively, Facebook may become the homepage of choice (some would argue this is already happening) and form a portal or conduit to the rest of the internet, with the ‘Like’ search engine an integral element of that.

So what should you do?

There is really only one thing to do right now, and it plays perfectly into Facebook’s hands. Any webmaster with a busy site would be stupid not to implement the company’s Open Graph Protocol and to see how things play out.

If you haven’t already, then also definitely create a Facebook page for your organisation or company, as it is likely they will also form part of the ‘Like’ search engine in the future.

Other than that, just pull up a chair and watch as two of the internet’s titans go head-to-head in a battle that will shape the way we use the internet.

(source content – Corporate Blogger and AllFacebook)

[Updated - 29th June 2010 - see below]

I had a young chap come to my door today.

Now I am very aware of the situation of many people currently with the economic situation so when this young chap asked me about windows and doors I thought the least I could do is listen.

Give him his credit he said “you don’t need your doors or windows replacing, I can see that” – doesn’t take a genius to figure out that they have all just been replaced however he did spot the soffits needed doing and I agreed.

So he asked if he could make an appointment for his chief to come and give me a quote. I thought why not, after all he gets paid per appointment confirmed and I do need the work doing (at some point) so why not.

He told me his chief would have to call me tonight to confirm the appointment which in lamens terms is “my boss will call you to make sure I am not full of shit and making it up and just trying to earn some money” – how trusting of Anglian towards their staff, I am sure he feels very motivated and part of the team.

That’s not the fun bit though as this chap was a decent guy trying to earn a crust.

The fun started when his ‘boss’ called me on my mobile at around 8pm to seal the appointment.

He asked me if we had agreed to an appointment tomorrow at 7.15pm to which I said to him “yes, I told the guy who works for you 20mins ago”…odd question I thought…

He then asked me if my wife was going to be in at that time. I asked him why? He said it was (quote) “Anglian policy to see both husband and wife at the same time”

So my reply was, “what if I wasn’t married?” to which he answered “but you are”.

So I said what’s my wife go to do with and his reply was “well, seeing as she jointly owns the home we need to see both parties” – I asked him how he knew my wife owned part of the house?

And his reply was (quote) “well she does, doesn’t she, she’s your wife?”

So I asked why this was important to him. He replied by saying “can you make decisions yourself as regards to expenditure on the house without your wife being there?”. WTF?

You can see where this is going…

So what’s the point I am making?

The point is that times have changed but so many businesses fail to see this and continue with their old practices and wondering why they are having sales attrition, needing to discount services, pay more per lead conversion, etc, etc. Someone at the top (a very aged person) has the jaded view that all women make the calls on expenditure in the house just like car dealers always thought it was ‘the missus’ who would sign the paperwork for hubbys new motor a few years back.

The point here is that the old tricks don’t work.

The sales processes and marketing tactics of yester year are dead, buried, gone and have been replaced by customer power. Talk to me properly, ask me what I need and don’t, for god sake, tell me what to do to benefit you on our first encounter as I will think all you give a toss about is yourself…and there is the answer.

Brands and businesses who try to control and remain “on message” / “targeting the brand bullseye” / “within the brand pillars”…are simply talking to themselves.

So I wait with anticipation to see who turns up for the appointment.

I am thinking ill-fitting suit, loud tie, shiny Next shoes, smelling of CK One, large shiny (but shit) watch, gold ring on the little finger, clip board, you get the picture…

This should be fun!

Ps. Google “Anglian Windows” and check result number five (if you can’t be arsed here it is) now that is serious customer power…it dates back to 2005 but STILL ranks above   AnglianWindows.co.uk and their own home improvement blog that was updated on the 23rd June as this guy is pissed and is optimising his aged blog post so it keeps on ranking.

LOL…

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So, it’s the 29th June 2010 and I have just had a follow from Anglian Windows/Homes on Twitter. (@AnglianHome)

No contact from them or even a reply on my blog about what I have said – Acquiescence maybe Anglian?

Regardless good on you for spotting it and doing ‘something’ (albeit not much) about it.

So the next challenge is do you guys ditch that old sales tactic (the Anglian Policy as it was told to me!) that you have to see husband and wife at the same time or are you going to come into 2010 with us all…

Oh and by the way Anglian I am loving your supposed to be ‘customer’ Tweeting about how excited they are about their Anglian Installation… LOL  http://twitter.com/DarkenGold

That’s not how to do it either…