Contrary to popular advertising and marketing beliefs, you can’t sell a future that people don’t want or need anymore. The Obama Campaign was promoting a future that the people wanted. People wanted the future, thus they promoted the story and in the end acted to fulfill the story.
Social media are like the wind. It is there. You can see it moving. And more importantly, you see the effects. Social media are all about developing and engaging in consistent intentional conversations around relevant content within a meaningful context within an eager community.
Yes, that is a mouthful. If you look at that statement at a surface level you will most likely continue to advertise and market in the same manner that you have for years, and you will get the same dwindling results. However, with a true operating understanding of new media, that statement above not only sounds impressive; it is actionable and measurable.
Again, we witnessed the monumental rise of Senator Barack Obama to the White House using this new media and networking platforms as a catalyst for actionable conversations.
The proof is in the case studies, the businesses, the individuals and the causes that have been brought to the forefront of traditional media because the story was first carried by social media.
Social media is about communication. Not the one-way communication from a company to consumer that has been the standard for centuries; rather, true conversations and two-way dialogue based on common interest and concerns. The glamour and push methodologies that worked for decades are no longer valid.
Your customers can know more about your company than you do because they are able to understand and evaluate your:
o company
o products
o services
o customer service
o culture
o people
o reputation
before you have the opportunity to make your pitch. Thus the tables have turned. Companies come to pitch and convince and the marketplace comes to simply decide if this is a good fit based on everything you say and the world says about you. What you say now is not enough.
Now you are known by your content and context. And it is up to you to fill the void in the marketplace via reputation with the narrative that you want to be known for.
Now you are evaluated by the conversations that you are in, the conversations that you are and the conversations that surround you.
Those with power and money have typically controlled communication lines. At the present time, anyone with an Internet connection, a keyboard and an idea can broadcast to millions. This is the shift that was illustrated on a global scale in the 2008 presidential campaign.
Simple ideas are being promoted by ordinary people to the world without needing your blessing. Scary, isn’t it?
The power of communication – and thus, commerce – now lies with the individual. Not the corporation. Not the advertising agency. Now the power is with the individual who understands and uses communication technologies effectively.
Technology has finally made communication a commodity.
How are you going to increase the value of your message to lift yourself above the noise like a Senator from Chicago?
You have an opportunity here that never existed before.
Are you going to seize the moment?
Do you know how to seize the moment?
