Reader vs. Writer Survey Results – Part 2

Posted by George San Jose in CPG, Digital Consumer Lifestyle, Healthcare, Insurance, Multicultural Marketing, Nonprofit, Total Market, Travel and Leisure | 3 comments

As consumers continue to lead lives in the digital world, marketers must find places to meet them. One of those places is blogs.

If you’re on the Internet, and certainly if you’re reading this, you’ve been exposed to blogs. More often than not, people seek out blogs for quick access information on the web. The San Jose Group (SJG) found in a recent San Jose Group interoffice survey that 94% of people read blogs multiple times a week, and 41% read blogs daily. Don’t be fooled, blogs come in several different shapes and sizes: standard text (like the one you’re reading now), microblogs (tweets), video (YouTube channels), Photo (flickr), Music (what MySpace is trying to become) and audio (Podcasts). In other words, much of what you might gain access to on the Internet is a blog.

In the early days of blogging, each blog usually had only one author. But the World Wide Web has since then evolved and with it so has blogging. Today, multi-author blogs make up a large portion of blogs from those posted on corporate websites to universities to newspapers. While multi-author blogs are great in terms of getting to hear from different voices and opinions (this is America after all, we’re none too fond of propaganda here), readers realize they will not always know who is writing the content.

Blogs provide an effective way for brands to market their products on the web. Therefore, blogs supply great rendezvous points for brands and consumers, whether the brand appears in the specific content or places ads around the blog. However, one blog will not reach and/or resonate with every demographic, and marketers must note some blog reader behaviors.

For instance, teens have great spending power, but, as a population, they lack attention spans. So, aiming for teens on traditional blog platforms might not be as successful as targeting them on a microblog format (i.e. Facebook or Twitter). On the other hand, older audiences tend to use more traditional blogging platforms with career oriented content. With this in mind, companies can choose a blogging platform tailored to the specific age group they are trying to reach.

Marking the movement towards a more mobile world, daily readers utilize their smartphones to access blogs. According to the survey, Latinos stand at the forefront of the trend in reading blogs on their smartphones. This is perhaps another steadfast example of Hispanics leading the shift to an increasingly wireless society. Because mobile blogging and microblogging are trending in the United States, marketers must make sure their blogs are available and reader/viewer friendly on the mobile net (adjust size and images for better readability and adjust to the acculturation level/language of target audiences) and make sure they are using microblog/social network platforms.

Blogs are arguably social networks— bringing together people of shared interests to discuss topics. As with any social network, they require engagement. Blogs naturally seek engagement from their readers (or viewers depending on your platform) by simply allowing readers to comment on the post. Engagement’s importance, aside from letting the writer know people are actually reading their content, lies in exposing the writer directly to reader feedback. Additionally, posts and comments spread the blog content around the web.

The main concern for advertisers is connecting brands to blogs with a good following of subscribers. Some might infer that the more subscriptions, the more engagement. While that is true to an extent, reader engagement does not significantly increase with subscriptions. According to our survey, not having enough time in the day has everything to do with engagement: 100% of bloggers who do not engage cited lack of time as the cause. Therefore, advertisers must motivate readers to generate engagement by ending blogs with not-so-rhetorical questions, invitations to contests or sweepstakes, or direct calls to post (i.e. “Tell us what you think.”) Even blogging about current (and in some cases, controversial) events can spark reader engagement.

While not every reader engages, almost 50% of those who do comment do so to voice an opinion. Encouraging consumers to voice their opinion gives advertisers great opportunities to get consumers talking about their brand and get direct feedback on how their products are viewed.

“More and more, people, especially Hispanics, are relying on the Internet for information and entertainment,” said George L. San Jose, president and chief creative officer at The San Jose Group. “Through various blog platforms, companies can creatively educate their consumers while simultaneously engaging them in creative memorable ways—reaching more consumers and giving them reasons to emotionally connect to their brands.”

With over 90% of the population frequently visiting blogs, marketers must find ways to connect their brands with blogs. If advertisers are not utilizing blogs, then they are missing much of the Internet traffic and opportunities to connect with their consumers. Blogging, even personal blogging, is a marketing tool; blogs provide a way for both individuals and brands to raise awareness, dispel information and stay relevant. As with any marketing campaign, a blog must keep its focus on the target.

Among the biggest blog mistakes marketer can make is limiting themselves to a single blog platform; instead, marketers must branch out to microblogs and even video, audio and photo blogs. The more places your brand exists on the net, the easier it is for consumers to find your brand, get to know and like your brand, and engage with your brand. Your blogs could be the first step in building a consumer brand relationship.