How Can Image Recognition Help Your Company's Social Marketing Efforts?

We've covered relentlessly how influencer marketing can help a brand extend the life of its social campaigns. But how do you find influencers? One of the major ways brands are seeking out the influential people talking about their brand on social is through image recognition. Through the technology, brands can see how people are sharing their company's imagery and products on social channels. If they see that a certain person is getting tons of retweets and shares, then that company can reach out to that influencer. Ed Moed, ‎co-founder and CEO of strategic communications and marketing firm Peppercomm, told SocialTimes how vital image recognition is to Peppercomm and its clients: With the amount of images being shared on social each day, 1.8 billion to be exact, it is important for our clients to have a clear picture and understanding of how their brand is being used and visually represented across Social and Online mediums. As an agency, it’s really important that our clients are confident we have a 360 view of what’s happening with their brand. With image recognition technology seamlessly integrated into this user friendly platform, my teams can now harness the clearest pictures possible of our clients' online footprint. We can report on ROI from sponsorships and event efforts, track misuses of brand logos, and uncover deeper brand image insights by analyzing whether or not our messages are reaching intended audiences. It's important for a brand to have a firm grasp on how their company is being mentioned on social. Negative sentiment or mockery could mean it's time to change up the campaign. Conversely, lots of positive energy could mean that what your marketing team is doing is working well. Todd Grossman, CEO of the Americas for social media analytics and image recognition firm Talkwalker, explained to SocialTimes how vital it is for brands to keep a close watch on how their logos and creative are being used by fans and followers on social: Without image analytics, brands will miss a significant part of the online conversation as posts that don’t reference a brand in the text will remain hidden. Our research shows that up to 80% of posts that feature brand logos could fit it into this bracket. Not only do brands need to keep a close eye on the way their brand is being represented, but the messaging around a logo can significantly alter consumer perception — both positively and negatively. Grossman pointed to Starbucks as a major example. People all over the world are posting on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and every other network about how they love (or hate) Starbucks java. Occasionally, these people include super-influencers like Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk or One Direction. When they post about a brand, that brand should know (and react) quickly. These examples show super influential people talking about Starbucks, but not tagging Starbucks or using any Starbucks or coffee-related hashtags. Without image recognition, these opportunities might be lost or recognized too late. Citing a Salesforce study, Grossman noted that user generated content can improve social campaign engagement by 50 percent. So, once a brand discovers an influencer, what can they do to reach out in a way that doesn't scare them off? Grossman shared with SocialTimes some best practices: First, brands should interact with the user and join the conversation whether that be a tweet, re-tweet, a comment or a promotional offer. Next, brands should consider a personal reach out by sending the user or influencer a direct message that can lead to conversations down the road—perhaps the user will engage with a brand and post additional, positive content for future stories. Finally, brands should consider packaging messages for influencers and give them goals that encourage them to write more content in exchange for promotional offers such as free coffee the next time they visit their local Starbucks. Or offer the influencers' audiences special rewards or prizes by hosting a co-marketing competition. Readers: Have you used image recognition technology? Top image courtesy of Denys Prykhodov / Shutterstock.com.

Social Pro Daily

How Can Image Recognition Help Your Company's Social Marketing Efforts?

One of the major ways brands are seeking out the influential people that talk about their brand on social media is through image recognition.

Justin Lafferty

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Justin Lafferty