Twit of the Week: Shiv Singh

Each week we conduct a Q&A over Twitter (using the #tweetfreak hashtag) with a top marketing or media person using the service. This week Adweek's Brian Morrissey (@bmorrissey) exchanged tweets with Shiv Singh, (@shivsingh), Razorfish's social media lead and recent author of the agency's Fluent social media  report.

Q:  What’s one myth you encounter when it comes to brands and social media?
I'd say that participating opens up the brands to greater risks than it is worth. Usually it’s the opposite.

Q: How about on the social media expert side? What does it miss when it comes to big brands?
That social media equals PR but with a different channel. That completely misses the point and needs to be refuted always.

Q: Razorfish’s recent social media study says top-down branding getting impotent, but TV ads still have high consumer trust ratings. Is there a disconnect?
While consumers trust TV, they depend on each other for advice. Trust in offline friends was double that of TV. Offline friends was defined in the survey as friendships that started offline and continued online in social media platforms. People we meet online aren't considered that trustworthy as yet. Understandable - we're still not sure if they're all authentic!

Q: So our online 'friends' are like second or third-class friends. Will that necessarily change?
Yes, that's what the research shows. You don't trust people you meet online as much as friends who've joined you online. It may change as our online identities become more traceable too. I'll trust a stranger I meet online if he is searchable and I know there's a real person behind that persona. And this is where social graphs serve as a security too. And this is where social graphs serve as a security too. I'll trust you because I know someone in your graph. That's the change

Q: Razorfish and others are trying to put hard measurement against social media. Is tying social media directly to ROI possible?
Absolutely but the social media effort needs to be on a scale that's large enough to neatly allow for the ROI tie. And this 1-800 Flowers example with sales within Facebook is just the most recent direct example of that.

Q: If social media destroys top-down branding, what's the role of the ad agency?
We do much more than top down branding. Agencies will help connect consumers to brands and vice versa. Only it will be where consumers want to be connected. We'll advise brands on those relationships and how to provide great value exchanges.

July 21, 2009 in Twit of the Week | Permalink