Surveys Get Social with DoubleTree by Hilton

January 23, 2012

By Kirsten Stubbs

Like eco-friendly light bulbs and stocking up on economy sized packages of paper towels at Costco, even before social media can make you money, they can inherently save you money. And when it comes to market research, social surveying can save brands time and money with significant and valid results from a substantial sample size to help better serve customers.

Such is the case for DoubleTree by Hilton, the socially savvy hotel chain known for its comprehensive social media training at each of its 250 international properties as well as last year’s social-centric nationwide Cookie CAREavan Tour. The brand is now using social media to identify how it can improve travel for guests and continue to deliver the DoubleTree by Hilton brand promises. Additionally, the brand is using this unique method to engage and further enhance their online community.

In support of DoubleTree by Hilton’s slogan “The little things mean everything,” the brand is asking guests to answer a few simple questions on a Facebook tab for the chance to win a tin of their signature chocolate chip cookies. The instant feedback allows DoubleTree by Hilton to get a true sense of how their community defines and experiences travel. The tab is being marketed via promoted tweets and Facebook ads to create a comprehensive campaign bridging all of the brand’s social media platforms in a way that benefits both brand and guest.

The mix of valuable feedback for the brand and a sweet prize for guests, as well as heightened awareness of both, is resulting in exponential growth in DoubleTree by Hilton’s online community. In ten days following the campaign’s start, the brand’s Facebook likes have grown more than 30 percent, Twitter followers have grown more than 15 percent and their weekly ‘People Talking About This’ metric (the brand’s Facebook engagement) has increased by more than 427 percent, now encompassing a staggering 14 percent of their total Facebook fan base.

To hear more about DoubleTree by Hilton’s “Little Things” initiative, follow along with the conversation on Twitter by searching #LittleThings or read the recent HubSpot article featuring the campaign, or fill out the survey  for a chance at winning DoubleTree by Hilton cookies yourself.

Sina Weibo: Breaking Down the Social Language Barrier

January 18, 2012

By: Britt Johnson

This week Digital Royalty client Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson kicked off a 25-day worldwide press tour in Taiwan to promote his upcoming action-adventure film, Journey 2: The Mysterious Island. Amidst planning the social strategy to support his appearances, one hitch became more and more apparent: How will he share his experiences with his Chinese fans?

Due to strict government restrictions, popular American social platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube are banned throughout the country of nearly 1.3 billion residents. The regulations have spurred the rapid development of native platforms, one of which being Sina Weibo. The Twitter-like website allows users to post short-form bulletins, repost interesting content, and engage in two-way communication with friends.

Weibo currently boasts 250 million registered users, and nearly 80 million posts per day. Despite these statistics, very few American-based brands have taken the opportunity to extend their online influence to China and its surrounding counties. Digital Royalty helped Dwayne launched his Weibo account upon his arrival in Taiwan, joining the likes of other notable users such as Starbucks, the NBA and actor Hugh Jackman.

Several trans-continental e-mails and phone calls later, here are the lessons we learned from creating a Weibo account:

  • Content is Key: Just like your English posts, Weibo fans want to connect with the human aspect of your brand. Quality photos and videos can cross the language barrier and communicate messages more effectively than text. Plan to utilize a media-rich content strategy if creating an international account.
  • Ask for Help: Traditional Chinese is a complex language. Despite numerous translation tools available online, these methods cannot identify the subtle nuances in grammar and figures of speech. Identify resources that can assist with the translation of posts, and the optimization of brand accounts.
  • Don’t be Afraid to Repeat: One look at your Facebook and Twitter insights will tell you that your content is not reaching much of the Chinese-speaking demographic, if at all. Re-purposing messaging from these sites is permissible, given the very small overlap in fans. For example, Dwayne utilizes his Taiwan-specific tweets and posts as material for his Weibo account.
  • Acknowledge Cultural Differences: The beauty and challenge behind managing a Weibo account is finding messaging that will resonate with a new and unfamiliar audience. Acquaint yourself with the holidays and notable events that may affect your brand. Finding content that is specifically tailored to their interests will help your account to grow more quickly and accumulate dedicated fans.
  • Get Certified: Much like Twitter, Weibo has a verification process for high-profile brands and personalities. Be sure to obtain the badge upon launching an account. Chinese fans rely heavily on the “certified” status. For this reason you will likely see a large spike in followers after Weibo has granted you the badge.

If your brand is seeking a comprehensive international social strategy, I highly recommend checking out what Weibo has to offer. So with these tips, I say, 好運氣. (Good luck!)


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