Listening to consumer conversations is one of the good uses of social media.

As a result of sharing views, experiences and opinions on social media- people also end up influencing other people in terms of what products and services to patronize. Although not everyone shares product reviews to consciously influence other people- it becomes inevitable that other people also get persuaded or dissuaded to buy products based on the information people share on Twitter and other social media.

In fact, a strong product review written online can be a more powerful tool for selling than a paid advertisement. In fact, more and more people have learned to trust what people have to say online especially non-partial reviews. The increasing dependence of people on the internet for information has also made it a very powerful tool for influencing consumer behavior.

This is why as much as possible, it is important for businesses to keep track of the things that are being said about their products and services online.  Listening in to consumer conversations is also a very important part of PR management.

Twitter and other social media can prove to be important tools that will help companies listen in to consumer conversations. In fact, Microsoft sees the importance of social media in providing companies with the opportunity to gain insights on what the consumers have to say about their products and services.

On July 10, Microsoft released a statement regarding the inclusion of a “Social Networking Accelerator” in its CRM software Dynamics.  The new feature of the CRM software allows companies to listen in to consumer conversations in Twitter regarding their company, products and services.   The information that can be gained from the social media can be valuable for companies to improve their products and services, and resolve and issues that the customers might be having with them. The CRM software will soon feature other social media accelerators and not just Twitter.

The mere fact that Microsoft has integrated Twitter into its product proves just how valuable social media can be for companies. Even without the CRM software, companies can take advantage of Twitter and other social media for their business.  Twitter is proving to be a very good tool for marketing and other business processes.

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