Vodacom is Africa's top social brand

Social Brands 100, which benchmarks brand engagement and industry leaders in the global social space, awarded Vodacom second place in the telecommunications category, on Thursday, 23 May at an event held in London.

Over 700 top global brands were included in this year's research. Brand performance was measured on metrics across Facebook, Twitter and YouTube over a six-week period earlier this year.

"It's not always easy to know whether you're doing the right things in social media, so to come out tops in Africa and second in telecommunications globally is a big deal for us," says Richard Boorman, Vodacom's Head of Corporate Communications.

"Our agency, Cerebra, has been there every step of the way and provides invaluable strategic advice and community management services. Recognition in the Social Brands 100 report is a testament to the entire team, both at Cerebra and at Vodacom."

Cerebra has managed Vodacom's Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and LinkedIn presence since their inception in April 2010. By providing a real time conversational platform that puts consumers directly in touch with the brand, the team has effectively aligned Vodacom's social presence to their business goals.

"We couldn't be more proud of our client and the Cerebra team who manage the Vodacom account," says Mike Stopforth, CEO of Cerebra. "Together we've evolved their social media presence from pure marketing to customer service resolution, and now to the stage where hundreds of thousands of community members engage readily with the brand team on an hourly basis. This has fundamentally changed the way Vodacom sees its customers, and the way customers see Vodacom."

In addition to Vodacom, Cerebra has spent seven years building, engaging and activating communities around big brands such as Toyota, Lexus, Nedbank, Amadeus and Altech.

To view the full Social Brands 100 report, go to www.socialbrands100.com