Social media is here - and that's probably the understatement of the year (and it's only February 2008). But in my discussions with customers and with partners, the talk - regardless of whether it's about digital marketing communications or search or media planning - always leads to the topic of social media.
The questions - expressed differently by different people - were all centered on one thing: What do we do with it?
To be honest, I have no idea.
I have learned things about social media - about what works and what doesn't, what 'endears' and what 'pisses' audiences off. I think that social media and the technologies that are powering these media are changing a lot of things in our lives - privacy, for example, seemed to have taken a backseat in the priorities of consumers - until Facebook falls flat on its face in the late-2007.
Anyway, so what do we do with it?
I still have no idea.
And the truth is, I don't think a lot of people do.
There is one blog though that I have been following - Jeremy Owyang's blog. He has a lot of things to say - and he does make sense.
His latest entry tries to define what we can do with social media - and how social media goes beyond the metrics of search. I think the statement that best sums up his position on this is:
The greatest opportunities lie where companies (become) a part of (the) communities where ads may not even be present.
And I couldn't agree more.
While some vendors and ad companies see social networks as another additional medium to air/advertise and deliver messages, I believe otherwise.
Social media are conversational media. It is where audiences get to talk with one another directly. Audiences are using social media in addition to - or in lieu of - email, instant messsaging, and other 'traditional' forms of communications.
Advertisers rudely interrupt the conversations.
(Think of it this way: You're talking to your friend about your new shirt - and suddenly, out of the blue, an advertiser - say, GAP - butts its head in and starts advertising. How do you feel?)
I think clients, marketeers, and agencies should start thinking about beyond "interrupting conversations" - and actually joining in the conversations that are already happening. (Remember the ClueTrain Manifesto?)
Advertisers would be forgiven if they asked "... But how do I advertise?" That's their 'essence' as advertisers - they advertise. But the challenge is for advertisers to become more than just advertisers - they need to become real marketeers. They need to become "Real Conversationalists". They need to be "story-tellers", not just sellers. They need to be listeners - not just talkers.
But hey, isn't that what Cluetrain was all about?
Well.
Social media have always been around - it's only now that it has taken on the internet by storm powered by new technologies and digital connectivity. But social media have always been around - rumors, blind items, neighbors talking "over the fence", people gathering in the town-center to discuss things...
And it is part of human nature.
What should advertisers do?
Nothing.
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