Marketing and social networks – l’Agefi

Discover an interview with Olivier Perez Kennedy in an article on marketing and social networks, by Anne Réthoret.

Enigma Productions, an advertising agency located in Geneva, set up a team of professionals that has created web-based communication strategies for two years. Their clients include the Sandoz Family Office, the Liberal Party of Geneva, and brands such as Nespresso. Its CEO, Olivier Perez Kennedy, analyzes the new trends in web strategies that are adapted to social networking.

How do you see the evolution of social networking?

Today, Facebook and Google comprise over 90% of Internet traffic. In Switzerland, Facebook is the second most visited website, and Twitter ranks 10th, before 20 Minutes or the Neue Zürcher Zeitung (two news media). Which news media can claim such a high market penetration rate? Social networking has become an essential communication tool.

Do companies that try to communicate more actively use new methods to attract customers?

This type of media has a double impact on the products that are bought, even in banking or insurance. Most companies thus have a visible presence in social media. However, the added value is bigger in terms of client relations than in the number of Facebook fans. What I mean is that too often, companies are dazzled by the number of people who like their profile. Of course, this number is important; but interactivity is the real indicator to evaluate a strategy. Advertising is now evolving towards this type of marketing.

How did Google+ perform in marketing terms?

To get twenty-five million members in one month is quite impressive. The difference between Google+ and Google Buzz or Google Wave had to do with internal support. Google asked its employees to participate in a project that was coded “Google Me.” In this day and age, it is essential to involve one’s staff in a 2.0 strategy, in order to create a sense of adhesion. The other advantage is to improve the product through Beta-testing before the launch. The terrain had been remarkably prepared. For example, the button +1 was never going to work until a Google+ layer was added. Google managed to integrate the human interaction that Facebook was lacking. In fact, the Google+ member with the largest number of contacts is a man named Mark Zuckerberg.

AGEFI of August 15, 2011:

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