Thinking Digital Conference: Virgin reveals internet plan

May 14 2009 By Andrew Mernin, The Journal

AS THE economic downturn rumbles on, businesses are using the internet in increasingly innovative ways to hold on to their customers.
 
The region’s digital community were today given an insight into just how one of Britain’s largest corporations is doing just that by one of the expert speakers at the Thinking Digital conference.
 
Alex Hunter, head of online marketing at Virgin, told delegates at The Sage Gateshead how Branson’s empire is changing as the internet evolves.
 
He said: “There’s so much consumer choice at the moment. Consumers are so conscious about the choices they make, in relation to price and to ethical choice.
 
“We now know when we are being marketed to. We no when something is being spun and when a celebrity is endorsing a product because they are being paid to do so.
 
Over the last 18 months Virgin has embarked on a fact-finding mission within the digital industry to find out about the most effective ways of communicating to its customers.
 
“Social networking is not about contacting people with a brand, they want to talk to someone real.
 
“We have created a community platform to give the Virgin brand to the people that have created the brand – the users – to allow people to have conversations with us.”
 
Hunter said it is also important to use the internet to find out what your customers and the media are saying about your brand.
 
He also pointed to social book-marking tool Digg as a prime example of how the internet can be used to talk to your customers.
 
As well as running Twitter feeds and blogs from key members of its hierarchy online, Digg hosts live shows based on the content of the website which have given its presenters rock star-status despite being self-confessed geeks.