I always thought about how companies actually knew if their use of social media was effective or not, and if there was a way to measure it. In this article, Coke's Carol Kruse, vice president of global interactive marketing, talks about Coke's use of social media and how they go about measuring it. She measures in Coke brand value, if the social media is driving brand health and brand love.

Kruse says brand measurement is important, but she also states, “You have to be careful how you go about the measurement because you might undo all the goodwill you have built.” You have to be able to measure without disrupting the consumer experience. 


http://www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?R=1007345

Just read an interesting article on how a brands relationship with its customers differs through social media and paid search advertising.

"GroupM Search and comScore Tuesday released the results of a study that examines the relationship between social media exposure and search behaviors. The study, 'The Influenced: Social Media, Search and the Interplay of Consideration and Consumption,' reveals the correlation between the discovery of brands through social media and search behavior."

The research explores the correlation between social media exposure and search behavior. Consumers were broken into three segments: "Consumers exposed only to a brand's paid search, consumers exposed to social media that was relevant to a brand's category, and consumers influenced by social media that was specific to a brand."

"The study found that consumers exposed to a brand's influenced social media and paid search programs are 2.8 times more likely to search for that brand's products, compared to users who only saw paid search."

To read more, follow the link below.

http://www.mediapost.com/publications/?fa=Articles.showArticle&art_aid=114922