Time was when social networking for businesses meant cocktail parties, tennis clubs and the Freemasons.
Time Was.
However Time Is and in the modern commercial world social networking means Facebook, Twitter, X-ing et al
Not only as a marketing tool but also as an increasingly important instrument for communicating with customers, gathering feedback and handling criticism.
In addition a recent survey by Edison Research among twitter users in the USA indicated that for many consumers Twitter is an important source of information on products; not just in terms of getting basic information, but also exchanging views and opinions.
Research by smow.com has revealed that although the use and acceptance of Twitter amongst the leading designer furniture producers has grown in recent years; the utilisation of social networking in the designer furniture industry lags far behind that in other commercial sectors.
For (smow) report author Kelly Felten, a problem "Given the rapid rise in the number of "design blogs" in recent years it is increasingly important that producers are able to both follow and respond to discussions concerning their products. If that is happening on twitter, the producers need to be there!"
According to Felten more targeted twitter usage could also prove helpful in areas such building brand loyalty amongst consumers or organising more efficient publicity campaigns ahead of large trade fairs.
"Imagine if when designer X launched a new product for producer Y, a Twitter chat with X was organised over Ys Twitter account" says Felten, "you've got an instant online buzz"
In addition better, consumer relevant content could help the designer furniture producers solve their principle problem: the relatively low numbers of followers.
Alone Herman Miller with some 62,000 followers can claim to match the leading commercial brands in terms of twitter numbers.
That designer furniture customers are interested in using Twitter, for example, can be seen in the case of Kartell. The Italian producer started tweeting in April 2010 shortly before the Milan furniture fair and now has over 600 followers.
According to Kelly Felten on its own Twitter won't change the design furniture industry, but targeted and professional Twitter usage will play an increasingly important role for designer furniture producers.
"The old distribution structures are changing, and with them the communication paths between end customer and producer", says Felten, "The designer furniture producers have recognised that, however, they're still learning the ropes"
The (smow) Designer Furniture Twitter Top 11: Producer Twitter Name Followers Klout Herman Miller @hermanmiller 62038 24 Vitra @vitra 3588 18 Knoll International @knoll_inc 2918 05 Droog Amsterdam @droogamsterdam 865 05 Ligne Roset @ligneroset 840 06 Fritz Hansen @fritzhansen 694 10 Kartell @kartellpeople 635 16 bludot @bludotnews 531 05 e15 @e15_furniture 221 00 Droog New York @DroogNYC 205 00 Thonet @THONET_GmbH 182 00 (As on 18.08.2010)
(for comparison http://twitter.com/smowblog has 220 followers and a Klout rating of 05)
