Using Social Network Data to Identify Key Influencers for Social CRM Activities
Social network data can be used to identify key influencers within a company’s customer database. Key influencers are consumers that are equipped with a large and strong network of connected neighbors. Within such a strong network, marketing messages can be passed on easily via the key influencers. The purpose of the chapter is to elaborate on the social effects of customer networks and the possibility to use data from these networks for Social CRM. First, the foundations of social contagion in networks and the relationship between social effects and Social CRM performance measures are explained. Second, possible ways of data acquisition and data integration are discussed and an overview of analytical software solutions is given. Fourth, the implementation process and its challenges are elaborated. The chapter closes with an outline of further research directions.