Ever feel like there are too many social media sites?
Like every week there’s a new fad that reigns sovereign for a month and then falls to the background, replaced by a newer and better option?
If you’re looking for something more lasting, more concrete, online community tools are the up-and-coming solution for your business. Customers are already using the web to talk about your business, whether you are aware of it or not. Why not join the conversation? By using online tools, you can help facilitate discussion as well as have more input in what is actually being posted. Two up-and-coming sites to get you started are “Get Satisfaction” and “TownWizard.” These networking sites offer companies the ability to set up a forum for conversation with their clients in a more personal way than ever before.
“Get Satisfaction”
“Realize that simply engaging your customers in conversation won’t earn you a gold star and it won’t make your customers happy. Conversations are everywhere these days, and it seems like the more everyone talks about conversations, the harder it is to start the ones that matter.”
Get Satisfaction allows companies to create websites that facilitate communication between company employees and customers, as well between individual customers across the globe. The site allows customers to report problems, suggest ideas, and make recommendations to the company as well as its audience.
Another bonus of such a community is the ability to ask questions and quickly receive individually-tailored answers. Rather than directing customers to FAQs or automated responses, you can individually interact with your target audience and provide them with a more personal experience.
Get Satisfaction, in effect, cuts out the annoying “middle man” that is usually represented by cyberspace lag time, phone conversations with endless hold, or continuous referral to a different department. By creating a community online, your customers can easily reach out to you at any time, and you can contribute to the conversation about your services.
TownWizard
“Our TownWizard software package includes everything that you need to quickly and inexpensively launch your town’s first mobile guide, including a custom iPhone app (and an optional Google Android app), a complete website, an easy-to-use Content Management System (CMS), marketing support, press release and marketing collateral templates, sample ad sales guides, step-by-step video tutorials, and much more.”
TownWizard represents a similar principle to Get Satisfaction, but focuses on the overall experience of where you live. You can “apply” to manage a site for your neighborhood or town, giving you a voice on everything from concerts to restaurants to charity events. Think of it as a place where Map Quest meets Urban Spoon and all of the other apps you have to check to compile information when visiting or exploring a town.
TownWizard combines all of your need-to-know information in one place! It gives you the power to communicate reviews of businesses and services in your area. You can upload pictures and videos of events you attend, share information about recreational activities, report scores of athletic events, and so much more! If you want a louder voice in your community, look into starting a website through TownWizard, and your options are endless.
Services such as TownWizard and Get Satisfaction are still growing. A lot of businesses are not yet aware of the extraordinary opportunities that these sites provide. However, these types of tools are on the rise, and you can be on the forefront of change by starting your very own site!
