Social Media Analytics in Business

Question: Discuss about theSocial Media Analytics in Business. Answer: Introduction Traditionally, banking sector has been a customer-focused industry. The banks strive to establish relationship with the customers to identify their needs and gain trust. However, with times, the need and the relationship of the customers with the banks have changed. The young generation has become more demanding in terms of service and with the onset of digital; their perspective towards the banking or service sector has changed. In the present times, the customers demands have heightened and want prompt response from the companies and want that all their problems and issues should be resolved instantly (Hai-Jew, 2016). In consideration to these changes in the consumer behavior, many financial organizations have initiated to establish their presence on social media. Social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter have become a part of daily life of the customers; therefore, banks should also focus on engaging customers on different social media channels (Sponder, 2011). The banks are only capable of competing with their competitors and engage with the customers by integrating social media analytics in their operations. Social media offers an opportunity to enhance the consumer engagement with the banking sector. DBS bank has been a pioneer in the adoption of social media analytics in the Asian banking industry. It has several wide range applications and can be used by banks to gain customer insight. Clearly, social media analytics is essential is essential tool in the present business world (SAS Institute, 2011). In this regard, in this report, the growing importance of the social media for business organizations has been discussed. In the report, the case of digitalization of DBS bank has been discussed and recommendations are made so that DBS remains at lead the digital innovation in banking industry. Importance of Social Media in Banking Industry Social media is dramatically changing the consumer behavior and the banking industry. Today, most of the banks have established their presence on the social networking sites. It includes leading bans such as Citigroup, HSBC and NatWest. These banks engage with the customer through Twitter, Google+, LinkedIn and Facebook and posts, attractive content and videos to engage the customers. However, posting updates on these social media websites is not as essential as interacting with the follower, listening to their feedback and distilling meaning out of it (Ganis Kohirkar, 2015). In the previous times, the banks focused on the push strategy to connect with the customers which includes strong advertising methods such as face-to-face interactions, e-mail marketing, advertising and point of sale methods. However, in the recent years, the banking organizations are focused on building two-way mode of communication to engage with the customers to enhance customer trust and loyalty towards the organization. The customer engagement is the process of business communication between a consumer and the organization through different correspondence channels (Finger Dutta, 2014). This form of communication requires a reaction, interaction and a thorough consumer experience. The consumer engagement can be realized at both online and offline platforms. However, in order to create consumer engagement the companies need to identify the consumer need, desire and sentiments. The consumer behavior on social media can give the banking companies can have deep insight related to sentiments and the needs of the consumer (Fu, 2014). Banks can use the information in the social media to identify the impact of the response of one consumer over the purchase behavior of other people, measure the impact of the social media marketing and increase the decision-based marketing. The banks can use the text analysis and sentiment analysis methods to develop insight into the consumer behavior which was previously unknown to them. Meanwhile, the banks should also focus on ensuring that the traditional business intelligence systems are integrated with the social media analytics to increase the robustness of the analytic system. The traditional business analytics system used in banks include dashboards, advanced visualization and direct consumer interaction. When the social media analytics is integrated in analytics strategy, the companies can transform the customer relationship management system. The information from the social media analytics can be used to enhance the insight regarding customers such as their sentiments and wish which leads to informed decision-making for the customers (Ribarsky, Wang and Dou, 2014). The banks can use the gained insight to create pricing models for loans and other financial services provided by banks. The combination of social media analytics in the traditional analytical system will can be used to determine the competitiveness of the prices determined by the organization. Several banks are monitoring the customer conversation on the social media websites and using their recommendations and services to improve the customer services. The social media itself can be used to enhance the customer service as the customer can use their Twitter accounts to retrieve their account information and check their bank balance (Bekmamedova and Shanks, 2014). The social media channels were primarily use for establishing e-reputation and enhancing the brand reputation of the company. However, clearly, social media has more potential in predicting the consumer behavior and the social trends. The banking companies can also use the social media by identifying the fraudulent activities and the possible loan defaulters by their behavior in the social media. The government organizations can also use social media analytics to control money laundering and curb black money. It not only increases the customer satisfaction but also leads to acquisition of new customers (Feige, 2013). Background of the Company and Current Strategy of DBS Bank DBS bank was founded in 1968 in Singapore and presently, has become the largest bank by assets in Southeast Asia. It has established a strong presence in China, Southeast Asia and Asia and its profits are also growing phenomenally. The bank is well-recognized in the international scenario, and received numerous accolades such as Safest bank in Asia and the Best Bank in Asia Pacific competing with the industry leaders such as UBS, Citigroup and Credit Suisse (DBS, 2017). However, previously, its physical presence was much smaller than its counterparts in the Asian countries. In its expansion phase, it tried to achieve the position of largest bank in Asia. The management recognized the high potential of Asian economy and its growing middle-class. It tried to penetrate the Asian market by following acquisition and merger as the expansion strategy. Nonetheless, when a large number of acquisition and mergers failed for the company, DBS recognized that it has to adopt a different strategy to access the Asian market. It also observed the growing trend of mobile banking in the younger Asian generation. In this essence, DBS bank implemented several methods such as building technology platforms, designing consumer experience and implementing mobile banking and e-payment system. Social media was also use to connect with the affluent customers and creating awareness regarding the flexible interest rates offered by the company. Social media can also be used to understand the local culture of a place and implementing successful regional marketing initiatives. The substantial investment in the technological infrastructure has resulted in positive outcomes for the bank. The alignment of the business activities with the IT has made the organization competitive in the digital medium. Nonetheless, there is still a large scope for the organization to make use of technology to increase their productivity. DBS is in early phase of adoption of the social media analytics as it has ado pted social media to predict the consumer behavior (Bloomberg, 2016). Benefits for the Adoption of Social Media in Banks The banks can gain numerous benefits and minimize several risks from adopting social media strategy. With the social media, the banks can create an improved CRM platform for the customers. The banking organizations can learn about the anniversaries, birthdays and other important dates of the customers and use them to offer customized products and services to the customers. The banks can also use the social media to connect the information across the enterprise and analyze their financial strength. The companies can use this information to suggest accurate financial products like mortgage and wealth management. Social media can also be used to communicate with the customers and educating them, regarding new policies and the operational changes (Russell, 2012). It is an interactive method of creating awareness regarding new product launches and examining the consumer reaction. The social media users can raise concern and questions regarding the services. In the social media platforms, the consumers post, like or comment on updates which provide the companies with the general idea regarding the features well-accepted by the customers. The social media can also be used by the business organizations to expand their customer base and penetrate the existing market. The banks can penetrate the geographical locations where they have no physical existence. The company can also adapt their services according to the majority of customers. For instance, it can provide no-frills account opening services to price-sensitive customers. The social media channels also contain information regarding the competitors products which can be used by the companies to examine the needs and the requirements of the customers. The social media analytics can also be used by the company to identify how they can convert the enthusiasts and fans into the advocates of their products. With the implementation of the right social media strategy, the companies can enhance the customer satisfaction by being more prompt to address the customer issues and needs (Potential, 2015). Proposed Strategy for DBS Bank DBS can use social media analytics to create brand awareness and attracting new customers in the geographical locations where it has limited physical presence. In order to increase the customer base and enhance the customer loyalty, the business organizations should personalize their experience with the banks rather than treating them as consumer segments. Traditionally, the banks rely on relationship managers to create personalization element in the banking process. However, the banks cannot follow a single strategy to connect with the customers of all segments. Therefore, to bring some relevance to the bank relationship, consumer segments were formed. The traditional model adopted by the banks was passive in nature. In this approach, the various phases in marketing were realization of need, reaching out to customers and proposing a product. The companies adopt the strategies to optimize the expected returns and reduce the risk. According to the IT Portfolio theory, social media ana lytics comes under the transactional costs which have high returns and low investments. It includes the cost of participating in the market; however, with proper research the risk associated with social media analytics can be reduced (Aaker, 2009). DBS can use predictive analysis theory for the identification of needs and best suite alternative products. At present, the banking organizations require a strategy to create a subset of products towards which the customers will be attracted and personalize it to suit the taste of the individual customers. The predictive analysis can be used to create an algorithm that can determine the products and the services that a customer will seek. Due to the increased competitiveness, the banks can use the active approach to track events in the life of customers, identify the customer needs, create product and propose the product to the customers. The Life events play a critical role in the determination of the financial products. For example, a bank can introduce a new baby saving scheme if the customer registers the addition of a new family member (Chorianopoulos, 2016). The information regarding the life events of a person can be collected through Facebook and Twitter as maximum people use these social media platforms to share the significant aspects of their life. The external events can also be determined by examining the web browsing patterns or the enquiries on social networking sites. The amount of information obtained by the social media websites can be used by the companies to understand the consumer intent and engage them with the organizations products and services. After the identification of the customer needs, a bank can publish auto deals on the social media platforms that a consumer uses. Banks can also suggest adapting the product or adding add-ons according to the consumer interest. In order to increase the sales, the companies can launch time-based coupons or rewards for the customers. The personalization of the product offering includes the personalization of products, personalization of prices and personalization of communication. In the price personalization, the banks should focus on pricing the products attractively so that the customers are com pelled towards the product. The communication message of the advertisement should also be designed in such a manner so that the customers connect with the message rather than sounding intruding or interfering (Corporation Essvale, 2011). Conclusion It can be concluded that the advent of internet and social media has changed the business scenario and consumer behavior. DBS bank founded in Singapore in 1968 is one of the leading banks and recipient of various awards. In order to tap the increased potential of the growing Asian economies understanding the consumer behavior in different nationalities, it can adopt social media analytic. Nowadays, social media has become a part of the daily lives of the customers. Therefore, it can be used to examine their perception, needs and requirements of the consumers. The social media can also be used to increase the customer base and enhance the brand awareness. In this essence, DBS can use predictive analysis to increase their knowledge of the consumers and use it to increase the customer base. It includes examination of various events in the life of the customers and use it to offer the products that best suit their needs and desire. Most of the people use Facebook and Twitter to share the important news of their lives; therefore, they are ideal social media channels to implement the predictive analysis method. References Aaker, D.A. (2009). Brand Portfolio Strategy: Creating Relevance, Differentiation, Energy, Leverage, and Clarity. Simon and Schuster. Bekmamedova, N. and Shanks, G. (2014). Social media analytics and business value: A theoretical framework and case study. In System Sciences (HICSS), 2014 47th Hawaii International Conference on (pp. 3728-3737). IEEE. Bloomberg, J. (2016). How DBS Bank Became The Best Digital Bank In The World By Becoming Invisible. Forbes. 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