I rarely do this, but somehow the stars aligned where I actually spoke to 3 entirely different groups of people, 3 days in a row about social marketing and macro level trends that are happening in the marketing communications space. The audiences were as follows:
1. Technology Council leaders of North America
2. A global provider of testing & certification centers.
3. A large law firm.
This proved to be very interesting for me, because 99.9% of the time I speak to marketers. So, taking essentially the same message and applying it to the non-profit, testing & education, and legal professions proved to be interesting, and it worked.
The one nugget that I found to be the most interesting of all was that EVERYONE GETS IT (for the most part). I started every presentation with 4 key MACRO trends, the first one being that marketers finally understand, and get the fact that we are now in a two way media landscape. The batch and blast mentality of one way media is so old school, and so foreign to the modern marketer. I feel people are starting to get this on a broader level, and they are embracing it.
Why do I feel this way? There wasn’t anyone in the room at ANY of the three talks I gave that challenged or countered some of the statements and trends that clearly outline a shifting landscape of communication for organizations and businesses. In the past someone always didn’t agree, or there was big push back on some level, once we got into the details. I actually always look forward to it, because a healthy debate / friction is always good. The closest we got on a debate was the whole personal vs. company profile, mixing the two together, or not, etc. Good one for sure.
Maybe it was just that the folks I spoke with were primed and ready to hear more. Either way, as a person who goes to a ton of events and speaks to a variety of audiences, in my mind companies are beginning to adapt. More and more marketers and organizations are applying more social marketing tactics and mediums to their outreach programs. Its not just marketers that get it either, the “organization” as a whole is starting to get it. This is good, because as many of you well know, it is happening. We are in a world of dialog marketing, so embrace it.
Would love to hear your thoughts below.
Blue Sky Factory Blog
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
Greg –
Enjoyed the article. It strikes a healthy fear in me. This is what your post got me to thinking:
For those who 'got it' a while ago and have a first-mover advantage in growing your social media audience, articles like this should be a wake up call that it will not be long before the competition is in your rear-view mirror. Now is the time for those with a first-mover advantage to turn up your game. It is time to find innovative ways to multiply your reach while your competitors are still testing out the Social Media waters because as Greg states most people now get that marketing is quickly becoming a two-way street. Now is not the time to enjoy your lead, now is time to prove why you were your competition.
For those who are now putting together a social media marketing strategy, realize that the costs can be very low but in the beginning engaging in Social Media is very time intensive. I feel it is worth every minute. In order to be successful you have to be committed long-term and be prepared to listen.
- Rich Tucker
Very good thoughts Greg. No doubt the web is giving the consumer much more control and more of a voice, whereas before they were innocent bystanders you could "market to" or "advertise to" they now control the messages they receive and the sources they give their attention to. Marketers must understand this before thinking about how and where to execute any sort of campaign.