Screw Focus Groups, Use Social Media

Social media is not only great for building relationships, it is great for collecting feedback as well. But how many companies actually take feedback seriously? How many are like Starbucks and Dell, which actually turn feedback into change for the better?

We all know that we don’t have the whole universe in our hands, and that some feedback generate either too expensive or infeasible ideas. But if you are looking at the long term, you must be ready to commit resources to improve product flaws.

That brings me to using social media in product development. Instead of burning money on focus groups and surveys, try getting feedback and ideas from social media users. In film production, they have already started using YouTube as a channel for marketing research. Part of the film would be uploaded on YouTube for users to comment on. There, free access to over 120 million video viewers who most likely love movies too.

Get social media users involved with your product development, or go ahead and let them create your next product. Set up Facebook and Twitter polls, upload YouTube videos, and let fans send in their ideas. However, do so carefully and make sure you are not broadcasting your business and product strategies to your competitors.