One quote in Matt’s list that jumped out was the following:
George Silverman, Author of The Secrets of Word-of-Mouth Marketing
"I have a client that is coming out with a product that will have lots of PR. He doesn't want to do blogs because he is afraid it will undermine the PR. I think this is so insane that I cannot answer." (paraphrased slightly) I think it's insane to Mr. Silverman. I have several discussions in which people used the world "fear" in association with blogs – I think that's insane too.
The fear is irrational and counterproductive, but completely understandable. A major source of human fear is a feeling of a loss of control. Traditional marketers are used to complete control over their brand. They own the message and they buy the medium. This “information is power” mentality has permeated their entire self-worth – they believe they are worthy of a six-figure salary because they know stuff that you don’t.
Now, we WOM geeks are telling them to turn over the marketing reins to the gabbing grannies at Viv’s Beauty Salon in Topeka, or the Philly cube dwellers on their lunch break, or some pimple-ridden reviewer posting under the name WyldKatt347(at)yahoo.com. It’s unsurprising that VP of Marketing at AutoSludj International is furious at this career-shaking turn of events. “This is an outrage! I have a friggin’ MBA from Northwestern! I AM SOMEBODY!!! ::arrgh!:: They’ll never take away my Lexus… you do know that don’t you?”
Although it is painful for some, please know this: You have already lost control of your brand, your message and your medium. The customer owns all three and will never give them back. So I suggest you voluntarily release the few remaining trappings of control you still have left. It’s difficult to do, but easier than seeing WyldKatt347 rip it out of your hands.
3 Comments:
HELLO, I’m new to blog surfing and I’m trying to figure this thing out! I KNOW my kids were born knowing this stuff … but not me! I had no idea there are so many neat and interesting sites out there covering everything. I’m looking for info on Gold Prospecting and landed here just looking around. Would you mind if I add you to my favorites and just drop by every once in a while?
Those are three fascinating, insightful comments! There are few subjects I am more interested in than Gold Prospecting, Car Parking at Coventry Airport and Ponzi Schemes. For reals!!!
Tell you what, I think I'll set some spam filters on my comments, kay?
Jon, thanks for the mention. I really enjoyed your presentation and you certainly fooled me - you sounded like a seasoned vetran of the podium to me.
The chocolate cricket story was wonderful on so many levels. What a brilliant purple cow. I think your company's story resonates so well with this crowd because it show that you don't need to spend 18 months and $1.7M to implement a WOMM strategy. You just need somebody that gets it and, as Seth would say, the will to do it.
Good luck with the blog. I'm looking forward to reading furutre posts.
And yes, comment spam sucks.
-Matt
Post a Comment
<< Home