Marketers Attack! Why Social Media Redefines Marketing
There has been considerable buzz on social networks and blogs about the use of social media for marketing. One blog, from the excellent Mashable site, in turn quotes Inquisitr. It seems that John Reese, a sales expert, has been extolling the virtues of Twitter, one of the upcoming social networking sites.
Twitter is extremely VIRAL. When you make posts (called “tweets”) they can be exposed to all the friends (followers) of others. Then they can choose to follow you.
I think Twitter is going to really evolve into a “must use” marketing tool. It’s a great way to announce you’ve just made a new blog post, released a new product, or anything else you’re up to.
writes John. His words were unfortunate and could be construed as encouraging simply posting links to site - and that is all. He has come out fighting to defend his case. In reality, he has posted some wise words about the difference between Social Media MARKETING and Social Media ADVERTISING.
Many marketing and PR firms now claim to offer social media marketing. Some undoubtedly “get it”, creating effective dialogues with customers and adding value to the network. Others simply seem to view it as a platform for more of the same - shouted messages about how great their clients are.
If I find the “Lifehacker” website useful (which I do!), I have to accept the advertisements that go along with it, even if I don’t find them relevant. If I like Capital Radio, I don’t have much choice but to put up with the string of commercials played ever hour.
With a social network like Twitter, if I find someone’s contribution annoying or simply irrelevant, I unsubscribe. It’s like a conversation in a pub: if you don’t like it, sooner or later you find a way of getting out of it. With Twitter, or Facebook, or LinkedIn, it’s easy - just hit a button.
I am the proud owner of a TopUp TV Freeview PVR - to the uninitiated it’s a TV box that records programmes without the need for tapes. (For US readers, it’s very similar to TIVO, UK readers may recognise it as a Sky+ box without the Sky+ prices). Most of the time it’s brilliant;however bugs in the software cause some angst. Most annoyingly, sometimes when rewinding or fast forwarding, the recorder jumps to the wrong place entirely.
I’m an occasional reader of the DigitalSpy TopUp TV forum. It’s an unofficial place where users of the recorder hang out and discuss the good, bad and ugly about the product. Not long ago, TopUp representatives joined the forum, and the reaction was entirely positive. They took the time to explain what was causing some of the problems, and gave an idea of the fixes that would be fixed in a new release of the software. Suddenly we were being listened to. Some problems were being solved; others became bearable as we engaged with the guys who were genuinely trying to produce a great product.They kept me as a customer as a result.
Some people may traditionally call it customer support. I call it marketing. Those guys were a walking, talking advertisement for their product. Yet not once did they boast about features, or try to up-sell, or berate the competition. However, the end result was the most powerful form of marketing of all: it made us the customers feel part of the product, part of a community, and it made us want to recommend the product either now or at some time in the future.
It’s a massive shift in emphasis for marketers used to pushing out messages. The most effective thing you can do in this new world of social media is - listen. When 4TM works on behalf of a customer, we’re not pushing content all day; we’re also helping get information to people actively seeking it.
Take GreaterSpeyside.com. Rene Looper, one of our lead analysts, provides support for people looking to visit the area: offering them options, helping them find information. People connect with the brand because it’s actively doing something useful for them. (And the feedback is amazing - when was the last time someone wrote an email of thanks for a letter or a press release?).
When I use Twitter, of course I let people know when I have a new blog, or I’m speaking at an event. They are “following me”, after all. If all I did, though, was talk about myself I’d be in trouble, so I help people find useful information about Social Media Marketing as I stumble across it. I hope my followers find it useful: I gain hugely by following them.
All the time they’re marketing their services and knowledge and connections to me: and I’m loving every minute of it.
If you enjoyed this post, please consider to leave a comment or subscribe to the feed and get future articles delivered to your feed reader.
Comments
Hi Kary,
Thanks for adding your thoughts.. and I agree with you.
When we were setting up 4TM, we did consider calling it a “Customer Relationship Agency”, and that is how we view it. It’s not new - interpersonal communication is what makes us human.
However, many marketing companies have focused on:
- Shouting as loudly as possible through broadcast media and PR
- Getting to the top of Google’s listings
- Counting the number of hits to a web pages as the sole measure of success.
The first two are legitimate aims, the third is sadly all too common. The real problem is when (some) marketing companies think that you can apply broadcast techniques to social media. The resource implications and skills required are completely different. You can’t spend your day trying to get a link seen in as many places as possible. You need to add value.
Many, many companies see customer support and marketing as two separate entities. I’ve worked for some of them. You’re right, and they’re wrong!
Thank you for this article, but I have some points to argue ;).
If the aim of this article is to prove that social media redefine marketing, well every decent marketer would tell you that the example you have given brings absolutely nothing new, you’re talking about customer relationship management and it has not come with social media, it exist since ages. It’s just that this technology brings a new channel for company / customer communication, but the principle is old. And when you say “Some people may traditionally call it customer support. I call it marketing”, again a decent marketer would tell you that customer support is considered as a part of marketing since ages.
Sorry if this reply, this is just my opinion