In the News
August 27, 2009
More marketers use social networking to reach customers
Social-media services, such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and countless other websites, have had a profound effect on how millions of Americans — especially those under 35 — interact with others (or don't), shop, and view brands. It's a real-time digital lifestyle, powered by smartphones and netbooks, that often colors what products they purchase, how they view brands and where they spend most of their waking hours. Marketers have noticed, and social-networking services are increasingly indispensable business tools to help mobilize a company's best advocates — their customers. Best Buy and MyFICO, the consumer division of Fair Isaac, which invented the FICO credit-risk score used by lenders, have built specialized online communities where their customers freely evaluate products and services. Those who visit MyFICO's community website are spending 41% more than other customers, says Lyle Fong, CEO of software company, Lithium Technologies, which helps build online communities for more than 150 companies, including MyFICO. Nine in 10 consumers trust their peers more than marketers, according to a recent survey of 25,000 by Nielsen.