Listen and grow your business
So what’s the priority, creating more advocates for a brand or reducing the number of badvocates?
It surprises some to learn that badvocates have 3x more impact on growth than advocates. Last week Dr Paul Marsden reminded an audience of this at a Weber Shandwick Advocacy event in London. His study at the LSE demonstrated that a 2% reduction in badvocates equated to a 1% increase in growth (you would need to increase advocacy by 7% to achieve the same result). Also interesting is what drives badvocacy. Research indicates that up to 50% of badvocacy is caused through frustration at a company not listening.
So, set up your Ideastorms, Mystarbucksideas and other channels of communication and get listening. It’s an easy way to grow your business!
Still waiting for a reply on Twitter as to what advocacy means. How does this apply to Howard Schultz, who are the advocats at Starbucks.
Badvocacy is pertinant point. Cluetrain speaks highly of this Richard, so I am here with you. If you had to write a summary for PR Week of what Advocacy is how would it go. Perhaps it can illustrated by Starbucks and hope you have been inpired by my questions not preturbed. I feel your ahead of the curve.
Dara Bell
Thanks for your comments, Dara, and for your interest in advocacy. We at Weber Shandwick believe that advocacy is the highest form of loyalty — it has the power to move businesses, brands, people and ideas forward. It represents a profound shift – from passive to active recommendation and importantly, action. Today’s world is filled with advocates—people who talk or act on behalf of companies, organizations, issues, brands, causes and products, sometimes quietly and sometimes loudly. Some advocates are badvocates—people who criticize companies, brands or products.
CEOs (including Howard Schultz as you cite) are the top advocates for their organizations. They need to drive advocacy and minimize badvocacy among a host of stakeholders, such as employees, investors, business partners, the media, the communities in which they operate, and perhaps regulators. The reputations of their companies rely upon their ability to advocate openly and ethically on behalf of their firms.
Funny that you suggest we write about advocacy in PR Week…our chairman, Jack Leslie, did just that in an op-ed a few years ago. Here’s the link: http://www.webershandwick.com/Default.aspx/Insights/ThoughtLeadership/ThoughtLeadership/2007/OP-EDbyJackLeslieAdvocacy-TheNextWave-PRWeekUSMarch122007
Again, many thanks for your comments and especially your support of advocacy!