A new framework for quantifying social media investments: Part II

Transaction and Endorsement: The keys to ROI in DITE

As mentioned in our first post on DITE, marketers need a new framework to better engage with and leverage fans on social media. In 2011, 80% of marketers failed to achieve quantifiable ROI from their social media efforts, which isn’t surprising considering the latest Napkin Labs finding that only 6% of fans engage with company Facebook pages via ‘Likes’, comments, polls, and other interactions. Moreover, Napkin found that the larger a brand’s following, the less engaged that following was. 

This information clearly points out the folly of putting all your energy into growing a massive following. The key to social media success lies not with endlessly growing your social presence, but rather in activating your fans using the DITE framework of Discovery-Interaction-Transaction-Endorsement.

In Part I of this post, we described the Discovery and Interaction phases of the DITE framework. Read on to learn how to monetize your social following by driving Transaction and Endorsement!

Image 1: The DITE framework allows brands to activate fans and monitor social success

Social Transaction

This third step represents the transition from enticing customers into clicking on your content (Interaction) to actually completing some sort of transaction. Companies in this phase of social media marketing can utilize different transactional methods depending on the end goal, ranging from obtaining an email in exchange for a free download for lead acquisition, to hosting a flash sale on your Facebook page to close direct sales. The key in the Transac­tion phase is the completion of your call to action (CTA), whatever that CTA may be.

Success enabling Transaction

Home décor retailer Kirkland’s used the sweepstake entry-for-email transactional method to create great value for both fans and the company. Fans entered their basic information without ever leaving their Facebook page, combining Discovery (newsfeed), Interaction (promotion), and Transaction (entry-for-email). Using a Sweepstakes app, Kirkland’s was able to gather almost 2,300 new emails for their database.

Image 2: Based on the $1,500 prize, Kirkland’s cost per new email was only 66 cents

Social Endorsement

Arguably the most important step of the DITE framework, enabling social en­dorsement allows the social sales cycle to propagate itself. According to McKinsey Global Institute’s recent study, 1/3 of all purchases could be influenced by social, creating an enormous potential for companies to successfully utilize social media.

Social endorsements have a potent effect on sales; social analytics company Spinback claims that each social ‘Share’ of a product, service, or event, leads to an average of $2.10 in incremental sales. To leverage fans’ own network and marketing abilities, companies should easily enable fans to share with their social graph.

Adding a large, easily seen ‘Share’ button after completing a transaction is a good way to remind fans to share with their friends, and simply posting a call to action asking fans to share their transaction will increase their likelihood of sharing.

Success driving Endorsement

Composer Hans Zimmer used a Distributed Store to raise money for victims of the Aurora shooting in Colorado. The offer included clearly visible options to share the store on Facebook and Twitter, and because of the distributable nature of the store itself, fan-sharing actually placed a usable store on that fan’s wall and in the newsfeed of their friends.

Image 3: Social Endorsement helped Hans Zimmer raised money from over 8,000 donors

Using DITE to drive quantifiable success

Following Discovery and Interaction up with Transaction and Endorsement provides the framework to successfully drive fans through a new social funnel. DITE, like social marketing, consists of more than a simple sales funnel. By distinguishing between the various steps, and knowing how to lead customers through the DITE framework, your company can both achieve success via social and measure your Return on Fan and ROI.

For more information on DITE, metrics to use for ROF, and social media tips, download our latest industry white paper, 6 Best Practices to Get the Most from Your Facebook Presence.

Now that we’ve wrapped up our two-part series on DITE, we’ll turn it over to you: how do you implement and measure social media initiatives? Are there any aspects of DITE you currently use? Feel free to join the conversation below, or continue discussing on Twitter and Facebook.