Social networks: integration instead of improvisation

The social media communications of companies and brands are currently still - despite the massive increase in importance - being carried out in a largely isolated manner, and focus on the mere distribution of information. ELAINE FIVE, the new eCRM software suite of the technology provider, artegic (artegic.net), overcomes the stage of isolated applications and places social network marketing in a new context: customer relationships. The innovative technical and conceptual approach focuses on people and not on the channel. The objectives are the early identification of customer contacts, the targeted conversion into lead generation as well as the comprehensive evaluation of the use of information. Anonymous profiles, which have not yet been personalised, are also recorded for the first time and introduced into an eCRM system. Consequently, the aim is to acquire important data for analysis and individualisation of lead generation as early as possible and, thus, increase the real-time capability and effectiveness of CRM measures in social networks.
Social networks are becoming an important contact platform with existing and potential customers.
According to a recent study by Nielsen people all over the world are spending more and more time in social networks such as Facebook, MySpace and Twitter. The number of users has also increased by more than 30 per cent since 2009.
It is no wonder that the significance of social media channels as a component of online direct marketing campaigns is likewise increasing constantly. This is because dialogue is desired and effective in social networks. Thus, a U.S. study has established that nearly 60 per cent of the female respondents and 44 per cent of all the male respondents would like to receive product information via social networks such as Facebook. (Anderson Analytics: American College Students Survey. 2009 Study.)
It is becoming all the more important for companies to integrate social media effectively into their business and communication processes. Up to now, many social media activities have, however, confined themselves to entering the myriad networks in any form whatsoever. A more efficient but also, basically, only a mono-directional method is the extension of email campaigns to social networks. The advantage of this is, in particular, the ease of using existing campaign formats and technologies. Thus, according to a U.S. study (StrongMail) 69 per cent of the companies surveyed are also, at present, consequently planning to combine email and social media with one another. To this end, the technology provider, artegic, launched the expansion of the ELAINE application to include functions for distributing content in services such as Twitter and Facebook as long ago as spring 2009. The capability of direct distribution or indirect distribution via further recommendations (SWYN) of email campaign information in social networks has now been successfully completed by the second important component: feeding back contacts into individual dialogue marketing.

ELAINE FIVE: from social network visitor to CRM contact

The nucleus of the new application is the Advanced Fingerprinting Technology which has been developed by artegic. This technology allows the identification and re-identification of internet contacts as well as the anonymous profile creation based thereon. Therefore, it should be possible to draw conclusions regarding the use of information, the users' activity and the proliferation of campaigns.
In addition, it is possible to directly connect social networks, publication services, communities, media networks and book marketing services via social network middleware.
Thus, both an anonymous view of user contacts and, depending on the network, a direct view of friends and/or followers in ELAINE's eCRM customer management are possible. Depending on the service, direct messages can also be sent to friends and/or followers and target groups selected from these.
The identification of channel leaps – for example, by forwarding a Twitter Tweet to the Facebook profile of a user is also important for a comprehensive evaluation of the user activity and the dissemination of information. To this end, extended tracking via an integrated URL shortening service is also possible.
“Social Media is not a notice board, but a contact platform. What is taking place as public dialogue must not stop when it is viewed by spectators, but should form the starting point for effective lead generation,” commented Stefan von Lieven, CEO of artegic AG. “Not only does the new ELAINE help to control public dialogue efficiently, but above all, it helps to convert social media contacts in a targeted manner into true customer relationship management and an individual dialogue.”

artegic AG is a consulting and technology provider for digital dialogue marketing. It focuses on the improvement of loyalty and profitability of customer relations in online channels based on comprehensive analytical user profiles (customer intelligence).
With international representatives and 40 employees in its German offices in Bonn and Cologne, artegic has developed client-specific ECRM strategies and has realised these via email, RSS and mobile marketing.
As an associated company of the Fraunhofer Gesellschaft, artegic draws on the know-how of the latter, as well as the expertise from long-standing best practice with international clients, such as RTL, AdLink, Schlecker, QVC, PC-Ware, apetito, Siemens Healthcare and the German Federal Ministries of Finance and Justice.

Contact:
artegic AG
Dreizehnmorgenweg 40-42
53175 Bonn
Germany
Tel: +49(0)228 22 77 97- 0
Fax: +49(0)228 22 77 97- 900
http://www.artegic.de

PR contact:
pr://ip – Primus Inter Pares
Mauritzstraße 23
48143 Münster
Germany
T: +49 251 49095970
F: +49 251 49095972
M: presse@artegic.de

This release was published on openPR.