Only the truly geeky would do this kind of analysis but over the last couple of months, I have been running correlation matrices against various pieces of data on Facebook.
For those of you with, you know…lives; correlation matrices essentially tell you how much a various metric syncs up with other metrics. In this case, I was looking at fan growth and engagement versus various types of consumer behavior on Facebook Fan Pages.
The amazingly consistent element across all industries, products and strategies was the effect of user-generated content on overall fan growth and engagement. When users post either videos or photos to a brand’s Facebook wall, I saw consistently higher numbers of comments, likes and, most importantly, new fans.
Explaining the Data
At first, this appears to be rather self-evident; if a brand excites a fan enough to create and post their own expression of that brand, the brand is naturally going to attract a larger share of fans than a less naturally popular brand. We see this frequently with entertainment brands vs. consumer goods brands but there’s a wrinkle that makes this insight much, much larger than simply boring vs. exciting brands.
When you look at brands in the same category or in the same industry; you frequently see the same thing – the strongest correlation is between the number of videos or photos posted and the higher rates of engagement. In other words; regardless of the size of a brand’s page fan growth will be more aggressive when consumers feel free enough to share their own content.
Taking Action on These Insights
What this means for brands is that they should do the requisite legal footwork and consult with their creative partners to find ways to allow consumers to express something about their brand, and through that the consumers themselves, through user-generated content. It’s not always the easiest thing to do since many brands view user-generated content as a wild card tactic that can result in as much negative content as positive.
To that point; there are ways to hedge your bets when dealing with user-generated content. For instance, brands can use guide-rails when creating contests calling for user-generated content. If you set honest and transparent expectations and clearly explain the context, purpose and incentivize the call-to-action; users are likely to respond with their own honest expressions of their feelings for the brand.
Ultimately, nothing substitutes for consumers generating content on their own. It’s those honest, unsolicited expressions that gain the most traction. However, you can also create the right climate and responses to allows users to understand that they own the brand, just as much as the brand manager behind them.