1. Your fans your brand. They LOVE their ideas!

2. If Facebook were a country…

3. And marketers are reacting Social media is the top issue among Senior Marketers.

4. And budgets are swelling!

5. Marketers are starting to GET the need to be in the conversation “Social networks are where consumers feel comfortable expressing their feelings-good or bad-about companies, products and services… …Marketers have an opportunity to tap into this stream of information-sharing.”

6. Continuum of Engagement Uber-Costly Custom Events ???? Feedback/Polls Sweepstakes/Offers Updates

7. So how can marketers engage? It’s the ideas stupid! (not yours, your fans’)

8. Consumer have ideas they want to share! “THIRTY-SEVEN PERCENT report that they have developed ideas for new or improved products, and more than 9% REPORT BUILDING PRODUCT PROTOTYPES or even MARKETABLE PRODUCTS” The analysis shows that more than ONE THIRD of the respondents generated ideas for improved or new products…” “…in our sample 32.1% report have innovated” “We propose…innovation by end users within voluntary user communities - is a GENERAL AND WIDESPREAD PHENOMENON” 25 MILLION 84,694,035 innovators potentialbreakthrough products! *Source: Characteristics of innovating users in a consumer goods field An empirical study of sport-related product consumers; Dr. Christian Luthje**Source: How Communities Support Innovative Activities: An Exploration of Assistance and Sharing Among End-Users; NikolausFranke & Sonali Shah Vienna University of Econ. And Business Administration | MIT Sloan School of Management

9. And they share!! “Without exception, the innovating community members we surveyed do not innovate in isolation or secrecy; they receive important advice and assistance from other community members… Source: How Communities Support Innovative Activities: An Exploration of Assistance and Sharing Among End-Users; NikolausFranke & Sonali Shah Vienna University of Econ. And Business Administration | MIT Sloan School of Management

10. But why? “Monetary profit is not a key motivator for either innovators or those who assisted them; instead, survey respondents cite having fun…”** Source: How Communities Support Innovative Activities: An Exploration of Assistance and Sharing Among End-Users; NikolausFranke & Sonali Shah Vienna University of Econ. And Business Administration | MIT Sloan School of Management

11. It's all in the need! “Users generate functionally novel innovations becausethey experience novel needs well ahead of manufacturers,… The Principles of Distributed Innovation,Karim R. Lakhani and Jill A. Panetta

12. Ideas pay! 8852 ideas >30 initiatives $300 MILLION!!

14. But why? Source: How Communities Support Innovative Activities: An Exploration of Assistance and Sharing Among End-Users; NikolausFranke & Sonali Shah Vienna University of Econ. And Business Administration | MIT Sloan School of Management

15. The Point Fans’ ideas are your most powerful social media asset! Fans have lots of ideas Ideas are naturally social