Mastering Social Ecosystem Marketing -- Summary

Companies must understand more deeply the influences that social networks and household types have on customer buying behaviors. Such an understanding, paired with sophisticated analytic tools and dashboards, can drive revenue and profitability growth, as well as improved loyalty and customer retention.

To address the industry challenges created by new and evolving consumer behaviors in a convergent world, Accenture conducted a global Digital Household Segmentation Study.

We surveyed consumers in the United States, Europe and Asia about preferences and usage of home entertainment, communications services and devices. By combining study findings with Accenture’s insights from global client engagements, we have developed a set of compelling insights about new and evolving consumer behaviors and the influences of households, social networks and new interactive technologies on buying decisions.

These insights about consumer behavior changes, and the practical steps they suggest for implementing more effective business intelligence capabilities, can help communications, media and technology companies influence customer purchasing for profitable revenue growth.

• Companies must now create and implement marketing strategies based on an understanding of people’s active interaction within social networks and extended households, which they influence and by which they are influenced.
  
  
• High-performance companies will capitalize on the strong emerging consumer interests in creating and sharing their own digital communications and entertainment.
  
  
• Individual and centralized decision making about consumer purchasing is being replaced by collective and decentralized decision making. Companies must understand and influence how households make purchasing decisions based on their social ecosystem and within an overall household budget.

In Phase 2 of household segmentation research, we used statistical techniques and computer-based tools to test and prove the existence of new and distinct segments across markets. We identified and characterized eight distinct household segments, present to different degrees across the globe.

The segments include “Early Adopters”—high-value users who are extremely interested in the “latest” devices and services; “Family-Centrics,” who are interested in mainstream family TV and entertainment content offerings; and “Socialites,” who are personally involved in the creation and sharing of media content.

By compiling data across these categories, a number of insights become clearer—insights that can give companies guidance in how to influence buying decisions within that type of household.

In response to the findings from the Accenture Digital Household Segmentation Study, companies now must develop new capabilities and adopt new approaches. They must:

• Understand Customers “In Motion.” Companies must devise ways to analyze customer activity, not just the types of devices owned by customers and the products and services they use.
  
  
• Think in Terms of Households. The Accenture study shows clearly that the buying decision process is much more household centric than individualistic.
  
  
• Establish “Viral” Household and Social Network Marketing Capabilities. Using a “viral” marketing approach to market to a community—where a message is delivered to one entity in the household or network, who then influences other members—spreads marketing messages more effectively than simply marketing to individuals.
  
  
• Partner with Other Companies to Create Richer Customer Data. The effectiveness of marketing, sales and service depends on the quality of customer data. Accomplishing this may necessitate alliances with new partners external to one’s own industry, to enable the sharing of customer data.
  
  
• Develop New Analytic Techniques and Tools. Along with a richer set of data, successful companies will need new analytic capabilities to deliver insights about customers’ buying habits, needs and desires within households and social networks.