AMEX Releases Social Media Tool for SMBs
American Express Open yesterday launched YourBuzz, a free tool developed with Clickable, a provider of online advertising solutions, to help small and midsized businesses (SMBs) manage their online presence, learn what customers are saying about them and their competitors, and connect with customers via social media.
YourBuzz allows business owners to:
- view and edit existing business listings and create new ones;
- see how they stack up against the competition;
- view an aggregation of customer reviews and online mentions;
- respond to, re-tweet, take action, or create new conversations on major social sites;
- get recommendations on different actions to take;
- import customer profiles and contact information to segment direct marketing efforts;
- highlight influencers in their social customer relationship management systems; and
- market to these contacts directly based on available public information.
YourBuzz aggregates conversations across review sites like Yelp and CitySearch, and social networks like Facebook, FourSquare, and Twitter. The tool also helps businesses ensure that their listings and other information about them on social media, review, and business directory sites is accurate and up to date. "Many small businesses have the wrong information posted or no listing at all," says Robert Ciccone, vice president of American Express Open.
YourBuzz also aggregates Facebook “fans,” Twitter “followers” and other customer contact information from the Internet. "Users can manage those contacts all in one tool and identify those with the most influence," Ciccone says
The tool, Ciccone says, "is critical to small businesses that want to manage or establish an online presence."
Though YourBuzz is geared toward SMBs, companies of any size can take advantage of the tool, according to Ciccone. "It's just that small businesses have been asking American Express for help in growing their business. They want real tools and insight to help them gain and attract new customers," he says. "They face unique challenges because of their size. They're more pressed for time, and having all this information in one place is huge."
YourBuzz is the latest in American Express Open's Business Apps suite of software products. Other applications in the Business Apps Portfolio include AdManager; SearchManager; AcceptPay, a Web-based tool that allows small business owners to accept online payments and electronically invoice; InsuranceEdge, an online portal that offers small business owners real-time, competitive quotes from some of the nation's leading insurance carriers; FX International Payments, a service that allows businesses to make international wire transfers; and Ariba Discovery, a next-generation online business matching service that helps buyers and sellers connect for new business opportunities.