Cheeze Blog

Last week we talked to Simon Larcey of Martech Global, on the subject of branded social networks. Simon and I worked together to bring you our five top tips for building your own social network.

1. Research your market

If you have an audience with a specific interest, find out how many use social networks and ask if they would benefit from a dedicated network. Make sure their is a need before you invest in the project. Think also about the content, will the audience really want to connect over an insurance product?

2. Give members benefits.
The success of a network comes down to the amount of people that join and utilise the service. Networks should offer benefits and incentives to each member and encourage them to invite their friends and use the platform. If your audience is active in other social channels there needs to be a compelling reason to take them away from their day to day activities to connect on a new channel. Niche networks should also provide some level of content about the interest as a hook to get members in - it should be a combination of information and UGC.

3. Regularly communicate with your members.

When you have created a network, regularly communicate with your audince. Martech, for example incorporate M.Direct - an email system that allows you to email your members and share news and updates. If you use Facebook make regular use of the email members function to ensure there is a regular dialogue. Regular communication with members will improve the sites usage and will encourage loyalty from members

4. Provide Intelligent Targeting Solutions

Most networks can generate additional revenue from advertising. Niche networks provide better responses, at the potential expense of volume. If you are looking to build your own network, do ensure there are a variety of advertising solutions to maximise their responses and the level of income you can generate. Remember, if this is a branded social network you may not want to give access to other advertisers so look at these placements for cross selling or upselling the business.

5. Be aware of the potential down side.

The potential downside should not be ignored, nor should it stop any business looking at social networks as an opportunity. The downside could be financial, we’ve heard of a dog food company investing invested a reported million pounds developing a network then didn’t launch.Similary if a brand launches and nobody comes, what does that say about the brand [again, we've heard  of a radio station building a network that never took off.] Again, there is no need to reinvent the wheel, but that does not mean you rely solely on parterning with the major social networks. By planning from top to bottom, including the plan for potential downsides, you can achieve a succesful social network.

So, these are the first 5 steps - there are many more to be done but it may set you in the right direction. If you need help, then talk to Cheeze, we help clients develop succesful social media strategies as part of our wider digital marketing work.

Thanks to Simon Larcey at Martech Global for contributing to this article.