When a friend invites you to dinner, you bring wine or flowers – not $100 cash – as a gesture of thanks. That goes without saying. But if a brand comes to dinner, what should they bring? When it comes to social media, there are unwritten rules for how to behave that many brands simply aren't getting. Brands are grappling with social media as they try to find a place at our virtual dinner table. Some brands get it, some gaffe it. The rules, it turns out, are hidden in basic social psychology. The established behaviors of friendship are the prevailing rules of the road in social media: sharing valuable information, entertaining one another, support in a crisis, celebration of a personal achievement. But the established behaviors of transactions (the way we historically interact with brands) can feel awkward and forced in social media. So how can brands build trust with their networks while being social like a friend? This session will look at social media behavior and what brands can do to become a delightful guest and valuable contributor at our virtual dinner party.
Ben McAllister is a Senior Strategist at frog with a background in strategy, brand, and social media. His work at frog focuses on the intersection of user needs and business objectives. Ben specializes in research-intensive projects where major strategic decisions are at stake.
Before coming to frog, Ben worked in strategy and marketing for several firms including The Boston Consulting Group and advertising agency GSD&M. Ben has led projects for clients including Delta Air Lines, Intercontinental Hotels, The U.S. Air Force, VeriSign, Dixie, and Komatsu.
While at frog, Ben has advised multiple clients on their social media strategy, including the maker of a social networking aggregation application.
Kate Canales is a Creative Director at frog design. Kate has a background in product design, design research, and design strategy. Her work focuses on strategy and creative infrastructure design. She has built internal innovation teams for Fortune 500 companies, studied patient needs in hospital systems in the US and the UK, and created new board games for tweens. A systems thinker, Kate leads initiatives for clients looking to refine strategy or increase innovation capabilities in retail, online, consumer packaged goods, toys, financial services and healthcare. Previous clients include Cargill, Mattel, T-Mobile, PepsiCo, Procter & Gamble, the UK’s National Health Service (NHS), and the World Economic Forum. Prior to frog, Kate operated her own innovation consulting practice and prior to that was a content leader at IDEO.
Kate has contributed to GOOD magazine online and The Journal of Applied Behavioral Science. She has been a guest lecturer at The University of Texas McCombs School of Business, the Acton School of Business, and the Stanford University Product Design program, but prefers the “Thinking With Your Hands” after-school curriculum she created and teaches each week to 6th and 7th graders in East Austin.
