Behavioral Segmentation with Social Web Ladder
Social Web Ladder is an audience segmentation tool that categorizes online speakers by social media involvement and influence. Recently announced to the public, the tool was developed by Harris Interactive (Nasdaq: HPOL) to help PRs make better use of media monitoring reports, and develop targeted crises strategies, where each scenario requires a different approach based on type of user.
Social Web Ladder organizes fans into behavioral buckets by the frequency, type, and influence of their participation in social media. This classification system eliminates overlapping categories too common in demographic-based laddering. The tool is best used in conjunction with Harris’ Research Lifestreaming social intelligence platform that allows you to monitor social media membership sites like Facebook and LinkedIn; listen to unfiltered social media conversations; and gather unique behavioral, attitudinal, and contextual information.
The platform gets even better with the engagement options, allowing you to probe and engage with respondents; create a two-way, moderated discussion; and task respondents to generate content. You can also observe behavioral patterns of individuals using Harris Mobile GPS technology to garner real-time survey information based on their physical location. Finally, Research Lifestreaming allows you to profile the consumer by over one hundred variables; obtain baseline information with traditional, pop-up, and mobile surveys; and target respondents by segment.
“Social Web Ladder demystifies the who behind the what and helps businesses identify the most valuable brand influencers, then streamline engagement strategies around them,” commented Jeni Chapman, Executive Vice President of Brand and Communications Consulting and Head of Innovation.
For example, some companies may choose to ignore discussions carried by re-tweeters and fans that simply “like” a post, without adding any thoughts to spark a conversation. On the other hand, when discussions are initiated by social media influencers, intervention might be needed to redirect the flow from negative to positive.
