…so declared the writers declared of The Cluetrain Manifesto back in 1999. It’s still enormously relevant and important, even though many of their predictions haven’t yet come to pass, and the old ways of Business As Usual have proved remarkably resilient. But broadband technology and the growth of social media in the last 2-3 years is now providing the environment for these conversations to flourish and grow.
Markets are conversations. Barter economies were based around individuals trading with each other to exchange goods. Information spread through word of mouth. Wise men kept their ‘ear to the ground’, and those with the best networks could command the best prices and biggest markets.
In recent times these inter-personal conversations were drowned out: new technology and communications media enabled those with money and resources (companies and their brands) to shout louder and for longer. Advertising and marketing campaigns became monologues; broadcasting messages from brands to persuade rather than engage or provoke any response besides purchase. They effectively overtook the individual’s ability to conduct conversations.
Now the technology has developed further, and is giving those abilities back. News spreads fast; review sites and social media enable strangers to recommend or condemn brands and products. In some companies and sectors faster than others, this is and will require a fundamental change of approach.
Many companies still “BAU” (Business As Usual) as an everyday term, which seems to imply that they are trying to preserve what has gone before, and everything else is perhaps “nice-to-do”. The very use of language is conservative and incrementalist, suggesting that change will only come when it arises from the pre-existing models.
Marketing Sherpa has recently published research indicating that Social Media and Search have overtaken email spend, and already significantly exceed display advertising. Companies are having to work differently…
It ain't about advertising...
However, many are still clinging to their historic approach to media. They claim to want to engage their consumers more directly and personally, yet they continue to spend a tiny fraction of their time and effort on this. They prefer to spend money advertising in traditional ways through traditional channels rather than hiring staff or systems to engage in conversations with their customers directly. They seem to fear the lack of control and certainty that comes from interacting with individuals, rather than the comfortable assumption that consumers are all the same. Well, we’re not.
Technology is giving people back the ability to engage each other more directly. There’s more truth in The Cluetrain Manifesto’s 11-year-old declarations than in most marketing reports published last month. We’re starting to help some of our clients learn how to face the future, and it’s already beginning to demonstrate results…
Filed under Advertising, It's about people, Search, Social media by Chris | 0 comments...write one
If you’re wandering along Oxford Street on a Friday feeling in need of a caffeine injection head on over to Debenhams, check in with Foursquare and collect your free coffee.
Debenhams is one of the latest national retailers to get on board with the emerging location-based social network Foursquare. If you’re not familiar with this new phenomenon, the basic idea is that you ‘check in’ to real-world places from your GPS-enabled mobile device and earn points for doing so. And what do points mean? Well, free coffee in Debenhams’ case but the possibilities are endless for retailers to utilise this service to retain their customer base and gain new customers.
When you check in, your foursquare friends are notified of your whereabouts (hmmm… a bit Big Brother) and you can automatically Tweet and update your Facebook status too. There are other features of the service like ‘tips’ (if the place you’re in does the most awesome hangover bacon butties) to help you spread the word about what’s great … and what’s not so great about where you are.
Of course, the potential for bricks & mortar retailers to capitalise on this are significant. Offer discounts, freebies, new services to loyal customers who check-in with foursquare and they’ll spread the word for you. And hopefully a good word at that.
Foursquare in the UK is in its infancy. But it looks set to become big in 2010. Who knows, with national retailers like Debenhams coming on board, it might even see growth like Twitter saw last year. Watch this space.
Filed under Social media by Matt | 1 comment...write another
Poor old @VodafoneUK have fallen victim to the dangers of social media - and boy have they done it in style(!!) On Friday afternoon, someone posted this homophobic remark on their @VodafoneUK twitter feed to their 8500+ followers.
Ouch.
Disgruntled employee perhaps? Or ‘innocent’ mistake posting to the wrong account? After all the apologising that they did, it seems it was a “A severe breach of rules by staff in our building“. Either way, despite their swift attempts to delete the tweet, it had been re-tweeted and captured for posterity for all to see. A quick Google now shows over 1,200 results for the exact offending phrase.
Interestingly, the blunder gave them a bit of a boost in followers. People wanting to witness in person their next public fail? Hmmm…
Just goes to show that measuring social media success by number of followers alone isn’t appropriate! I guess Friday’s incident just highlights the power and speed of social media. And the inability to retract our digital utterances, thanks to it’s real-time and re-publishable nature. Social media can be quickly damaging to a brand if care isn’t taken.
In this increasingly socially digital world of ours, brands are being forced to be more open, more honest and more able to engage in real-time conversations. All power to the consumer! Not since the birth of the internet itself has something had such a levelling effect on the way we all communicate.
Of course, social media is here to stay and it will reap significant benefits to those who use it well. And for those who don’t? Well, they’ll probably be left out on the street - presumably like that Vodafone employee.
Filed under Social media by Matt | 1 comment...write another
We’ve always believed that marketing and advertising works best when it delivers an emotional connection between whatever is being ’sold’ and whoever is supposed to be doing the buying.
No emotional reaction means no response or action.
Bigger, better, faster, cleaner, tastier is all very well. But it doesn’t ‘get’ you; like Don Draper does in this fantastic scene from the first series of the excellent Mad Men.
Good luck in your next meeting…
Filed under Advertising, It's about people by Chris | 0 comments...write one