Social Media Runs on Reaching the "Niches"

Dunkin' Donuts (DD) trend #WaffleWeDD had me "waffling" -- or thinking -- once again about how companies can utilize Twitter to reach niches in market. A large, franchised company, like DD, can use advertisements to reach the general masses while simultaneously building an online presence to reach the segmented groups within the masses.

When I walk into DD, its clientele differs somewhat from Starbucks. When I go to DD and order my medium, iced coffee, skim milk and sugar (please?), I generally see construction people, police officers, mothers, and younger people who are on the go. Starbucks generally attracts the artsy folk, who free ride on internet wifi.

That's why DD's #WaffleWeDD was an interesting hashtag because it completely contradicts the slogan, "America Runs on Dunkin'." Yet, it still was a great attempt to build more than a strong online presence, but an online community. Online communities are developed when companies create the foundation for open communication.

Social media networks can connect users through a market of free thoughts type of communication. Yet, even though a company cannot control users conversation content, it still can build online communities while upholding branding efforts.

How does this happen?

1. Probably the most obvious, create strategic hashtags. These hashtags are probably most effective if they create content that the average person can use in a sentence. For example, my friend's tweet said, "@DunkinDonuts I'm waffling about what to pack for the beach! Just because I'm ready for summer doesn't mean Maine is! #WaffleWeDD.
2. Encourage user interactivity by asking for feedback. Not only do users engage in thoughful conversation, but they can share their life with the company. The result? Increased customer loyalty through a more personal experience.
3. Retweet users who have used hashtag in witty way. This encourages more conversation, interactivity between different users.
4. Tweet at users who are opinion leaders! This relates to my last post and is especially important to increase social media outreach.

DD's waffling was successful because it did all of numbers one through four and made it a contest! The only opportunity cost to win a $50 gift card was taking maybe two minutes out of your life and tweet.

So lets sum this up. Social media is an effective platform for community building for niches, not mass media. Online communities can be built through message outreach. Yet, a company's brand does not have to be sacrificed; instead, users and companies through content creation create a brand through a collaborative team effort.