Social Proof
In case you missed it, Pace Salsa got trolled this week and they didn’t even have a Twitter account for the brand. Oops…
Definition: Also known as Informational Social Influence, the positive influence created when someone finds out what the majority are doing, following the assumption that popularity equals valuable information
When utilized the correct way, social proof can be an effective marketing strategy. By playing off of people’s need to go along with the crowd, it makes them look to others for assurance that they’ve made a correct, or acceptable, choice. There are many different kinds of social proof online, such as case studies, testimonials, reviews, or even widgets that display the number of views, shares, or comments on an article or a website. The number of Facebook likes shown on a landing page has been positively linked to an increased conversion rate when all other landing page elements were identical!
Conversely, you can also generate negative social proof. By not paying attention to detail or inviting people to follow a page that is unmoderated or otherwise forgotten, you are showing the consumer that your brand is not worthy of their business or is generally unpopular. A perfect example would be Pace Salsa, owned by the Campbell Soup Company. You can read what happened thanks to comedian Kyle Kinane, and let this be a great lesson to you who don’t use social media to protect your brand. Or, use those automatic services to post on your behalf without reading your own messages. This causes diminished confidence in the potential consumers decision to move further into your orbit.
What other brands have fallen victim to negative social proof?
