3 ways SAP uses social media to connect with consumers

SAP’s online community boasts over 2 million global users, but how is the software giant driving such impressive interaction via social media? According to Mark Yolton, senior VP of the SAP Community Network, it’s largely down to addressing the specific needs of individuals within its network. Here are some tips on how to get consumers to participate in your community:

1. Provide unique value

SAP Community Network is cleverly constructed, with content and capabilities based around different roles, for example customers, partners, suppliers and developers. Its members can easily connect and help each other, using discussion forums, blogs, wikis and downloads, depending on their needs. Beyond the core community sits EcoHub, an online app store works like an iTunes for SAP, enabling prospects to discover SAP and its partners’ solutions before purchasing.

2. Think of each consumer as an individual

This applies even with a corporate account of 200 users. Each person visiting your online community has a specific challenge at that time, so meet their needs with rich resources, be they white papers, downloadable tools or connections to other users facing similar issues. Yolton believes that a great online community begins with one business problem that can be served through social media, and one willing executive to back it. Focus on solving that one issue and the community will expand organically from there.

3. Extend the community offline

Organising physical get-togethers creates long-lasting relationships that can augment your online community. SAP held a recent event in Berlin, and is soon hosting 5,000 of its community users in Las Vegas, followed by gatherings in Shanghai and Bangalore. Use Twitter to promote the event in the lead-up, to tweet live action from the event and encourage your guest speakers to drum up interest through the social media platform. SAP also uses Twitter marketing to promote each new blog posted by some 6,000 active bloggers within its community.

“Twitter is embedded in everything we do,” said Yolton.

Everybody is free to observe and join SAP Community Network at www.sdn.sap.com