It seems odd to critique a program that just gave $5,000,000 to non-profits, but that’s exactly what I’m about to do. The Chase Community Challenge ended on Friday with some happy people and more controversy. You’re connected to the Challenge if you ever dated someone in high school who was a friend of a friend who went on to be the cousin of a guy’s college roommate who started a non-profit. Such connections earned you dozens of emails, facebook messages and tweets begging for your vote. As much as I appreciate Chase donating so much money to so many non-profits (100 were whittled down from 5,000) and as much as I don’t actually mind voting for people who ask me, there was a misfire here. The non-profits that enter these contests must be happy or things tend to go poorly. Remember: they’re more than purveyors of positive sentiment, they’re also the loudest when they feel wronged or unhappy. You have to leave them happy and moneygrabs aren’t the best way to do that.

That’s not to say these contests can’t be useful to non-profits. Those that could use both money and exposure get it. I didn’t know the “Feel Your Boobies Foundation” existed before the challenge. Not only do I now know they exist, but that they are headquartered a short drive from a family member that could benefit from their services. I tell that family member and offline action ensues. If they win money, that helps too.

The problem is that I see them becoming more and more less useful. Non-profits (and their supporters) are starting to show signs of VBCB (Vote-Base Contest Burnout). Do you know how hard it is for many of these (*generalization alert*) super nice, wouldn’t hurt a fly, non-competitive, non-profit leaders to BEG their friends, family and supporters for votes over and over again? The first time is exciting and exhilarating. The next time a little less so until finally it becomes a painstaking “I know I bug you all the time, but” email that scrapes the bottom of their social capital piggy bank. In the end, you run the risk of them not liking you very much regardless of the opportunity.

If you want to build actual brand ambassadors using this formula here’s one simple way these contests can evolve to bring all the good (and more) with less of the bad.

Don’t make it all about the money.

Only 2% of all Chase participants won money and that’s actually pretty high. Future contests need to start from the premise of “how do we bring value to the other 98%?”

You have to give people a reason to participate beyond the money. Better yet, don’t make it about the money at all. Until about a year ago I was the community manager at Ideablob – a vote-based contest platform that granted $10,000 a month, but also crowdsourced and encouraged new ideas. Actually, we were a crowdsourcing platform that used the $10,000 a month prize to encourage people to participate. A vote was great, but how about a piece of advice that could fundamentally alter the way I think about my organization or services? That’s priceless. We also worked hard to understand each participant and actively looked for ways to grow community through introductions between users or an industry expert. We wanted every user to feel like they were a part of a larger, valuable, energetic community of organizations working to improve some aspect of our world. We worked to grow their social capital, not just give them a reason to spend it. Whether they won or lost (*generalization alert*), they loved us for it.

After Chase finalist Jessica Rauch won $10,000 on Ideablob for The Generation Project she told Beth Kanter about her experience and didn’t mention the money:

“The website is such a great way to connect with entrepreneurs. We received some really great advice and encouragement and met a lot of people who want to help us develop our idea.”

That’s exactly how we wanted people to feel. Users had an intangible benefit from participating and their satisfaction meant we both benefited in the end.

So what do you think? Am I off-base here? Does VBCB exist? Please comment and let me know. Also, stay tuned for a post later this week on some things brands should keep in mind if they decide to dive into similar contests.

The model is simple: offer a huge cash prize to non-profits or social entrepreneurs who will then creatively, enthusiastically and relentless beat the bushes to win. It’s like creating a seemingly infinite amount of brand ambassadors virtually overnight. Chase competitors recently hit me up an incredible 9 times in one day via email and Facebook.

The question that haunts me (and one that the Pepsis of the world need to carefully consider) is whether people care more about Chase now than they did before the $5million was up for grabs. If the goal is to create buzz online then it’s probably been a success, but if the goal is more focused on their bottom line (like hoping people now or in the foreseeable future will choose Chase for their banking needs) then I’m afraid this will come up short.

Here’s a perhaps oversimplified reason why: of the “tens of thousands” of non-profits that competed in the Challenge, only a handful had any connection with Chase’s core business – banking. A quick scan of the $10,000 winners reveals groups like the “Cavalier Drum and Bugle Corps,” the “Phantom Regiment Drum and Bugle Corps,” and the “Feel Your Boobies Foundation.” I’m sure all are fine organizations, but why would Chase giving them $10,000 make me more loyal as a customer or motivate me to actually become a Chase customer? Wouldn’t a similar commitment exclusively to, say, microfinance organizations or New York City non-profits make more sense, though still only marginally interested in Chase? Without even getting into what I suspect is the main reason people choose their banks – convenience and interest rates – or the fact that hosting a free-for-all contest brings up problems like this, there is a huge strategic piece missing here. Unfortunately, that missing piece is critical if Chase hopes to receive a sustained, positive brand impact from their efforts.

Before succumbing to the economy, Advanta bank – a small business credit card company – developed ideablob.com as a forum for people to crowdsource new business ideas while competing for monthly $10,000 grants. As a special incentive, existing customer could win $20,000. Advanta generated an enormous amount of loyalty from existing customers and positive publicity in places that were relevant to our business, including  The Motley Fool, The New York Times small business section and the social entrepreneur-focused TriplePundit. We also partnered with Kiva during that time.

It’s very possible that Chase just felt like giving $5million away and was looking for a way to do it that was more engaging, fun and promised more publicity than just writing another check. Maybe they just wanted to give money away without worrying about “maximizing” ROI. If that’s the case, then I can appreciate that. As a business accountable to shareholders and one with some slip ups in the recent past I don’t understand it, but I can appreciate it.

What has been your experience with the Chase Giving Challenge? Am I way off base? Are you more likely to become a Chase customer because of the Challenge? If you’re a Chase customer do you think of yourself as more loyal now?

“All you have to do is follow three simple rules. One: never underestimate your opponent. Expect the unexpected. Two: take it outside. Never start anything inside the bar unless it’s absolutely necessary. And three: be nice. If somebody gets in your face and calls you a [insert insult here], I want you to be nice. Ask him to walk, be nice. If he won’t walk, walk him. But be nice. If you can’t walk him, one of the others will help you. And you’ll both be nice. I want you to remember that it’s a job. It’s nothing personal.”

When managing a community there are many times when someone will try their best to disparage your brand, organization, leadership or product. People find dozens of rational and more often irrational reasons to tell your constituents and anyone who will listen that the brand you represent is a close cousin with the devil himself. In a few minutes the accusation is shared on every single mainstream social media tool in the world, including your own community. How do you respond?  I ask myself, What Would Dalton Do?

First, don’t underestimate the person behind the vitriol – no matter how nonsensical they seem. Ignoring them might be the first step you take hoping they’ll just go away, but it might not be that simple and you shouldn’t presume it to be. You shouldn’t also make the mistake of thinking that just because their accusations are simple-minded that they aren’t capable of more complex attacks, including drafting friends and colleagues to their cause. In short, don’t knee-jerk, bring out the heavy PR firepower, but don’t simply wish it away. Chances are they aren’t going anywhere soon. So what do you do?

Take it outside. Getting into an online shouting match within your community or a social media platform is not a smart way to go. You will end up looking like a petty bully who foolishly took the bait. Many communities require personal information like email and sometimes even phone numbers. If you have the person’s phone number, give them a call, introduce yourself and ask them to elaborate more on their beef. If you can’t call them directly, email them an impossibly friendly note asking the same. Disarm them. Make sure you’re prepared to have anything you write to them thrown back in your face. If they post your email with their own snarky commentary you will look like the victim if your note was nothing more than friendly, empathetic and genuinely concerned with their issue. “But I want to tell them to go to hell!” Don’t do it.

BE NICE. Dalton picked up where Shakespeare left off in the 1590s in The Taming of the Shrew. You have to kill them with kindness. Don’t be a push over, of course. As Dalton says, feel free to walk them out of your community (give them the boot), but be nice while you do it. Remember, you are trying to foster a community. You’re the mayor, the principal, the head honcho. If you want your community to be filled with nice people you need to lead by example. The easiest way to be nice is to not take anything personally. You pour your heart and soul into fostering your community and it’s hard to hear someone openly disparage it, but you can’t take it personally. If you do, you’ll easily join them on the low road and trade immature zingers until you realize it’s gotten you nowhere (except in the blogosphere). In the end, you’ll wish you followed Dalton’s sage advice. If you do, you’ll suffer some scars here and there, but in the end you will come out stronger and wiser.

How have you successfully dealt with a troublesome user? Did you close their account and wipe your hands of the situation? Were you able to turn them around and move forward? Did you ignore them and let the problem successfully take care of itself?

Would you buy from this man at a party?

When companies struggle with how to leverage social media to help sell more widgets it’s because social media is meant to be social – not a market to sell more widgets. Selling in social media channels is the equivalent of setting up a display table at a friend’s cocktail party. Do you remember the episode of The Office when Dwight spends an entire Valentine’s Day party trying to sell paper to a prospective single? He didn’t get the sale.

Don’t sell. Don’t try smiling, acting friendly and then selling. Just be social. Be the life of the party. Tell great stories, introduce people to each other, listen, ask people how they are doing today and listen to their answers. At the end of the day, you will leave people (your customers) chatting about how damn cool you are straight through until the next cocktail party (where you will once again be unimaginably charming).

People will undoubtedly like you, but will you sell more widgets? That’s the hard part – the bottom line brainteaser. Clear your mind and think about it. What do you think?

Your Customers Know the Difference

An increasing number of companies rightfully see social media and online communities as an opportunity to grow their brand, name and bottom-line. The question is, “how?” and the answer is surprisingly simple:

Listen, engage and (please) be sincere.  

Companies that listen to, engage and show a sincere desire to connect grab headlines. It’s not rocket science. It’s how we hope people socially interact with us throughout the day, whether we’re in line at the grocery store or online checking status updates.

The beauty of social media and online communities is that they give companies the unique chance to listen, engage and provide a sincere voice to the world every second of the day. It’s an amazing opportunity. Whereas Coca-Cola always had a brand, they now have a potential voice in the conversation. Coca-Cola, Comcast or Southwest can all talk with their customers and they all have a chance to leave those customers feeling good about their company. Does anyone doubt that Zappos is a stronger company due to the wildly engaging, witty and sincere voice their CEO, Tony Hsieh, gives them on Twitter?

For those companies trying to navigate the confusing world of “social media strategy,” we at SocialHerder would argue that the easiest part is knowing how to do it. The challenge comes in finding the right people with the skills to listen, engage and (yes) be sincere.