It’s the dose

that makes the poison.A cautionary tale against trying to control brand dialogue in

the social space.

by panos papadopoulos, october 2011

Many marketeers get into social media for the wrong reasons, with the wrong intentions, consequently getting the wrong results. It’s a horror story, really.

Intro

Day after day the social space is invaded by marketeers who want to claim space for their brands in Facebook and Twitter. They often

see social media as an opportunity to break out of the vicious –and exorbitantly expensive- cycle of traditional media.

The preamble

Marketeers under pressure to bring in higher results with smaller advertising budgets. In our horror story they come in three types: the premature ejaculator, the control freak and the scaredy-cat.

The protagonists

This marketeer does not have the patience to plant the seed of conversation in social media, water it, and harvest when the time is right. He is overeager, fussy, result-anxious.

The premature ejaculator

This one will rarely allow dialogue to unfold uninterrupted in social media. He will always succumb to the temptation to control it, brand it, thus derailing it in the process and putting everyone off.

The control freak

This one is afraid that a free-flowing dialogue will harm his brand, his campaign, his career. He wants to monitor every conversation closely. He often applies censoring mechanisms, not realizing that attempts to curb dialogue are self-defeating. Much like a “beware of the sharks” sign at a surfers’ beach.

The scaredy-cat

All three flock to the place where miracles do happen. The Shangri-La of communication where one can get something for nothing - or so conventional wisdom goes.The social space.

The quest for the Holy Grail

And lo and behold, they all become social media specialists in a flash. After all, how hard is it to make the leap from “editing your Facebookprofile” to “executing your social media strategy”? Social media is every marketeer’s life-jacket.

In over their heads

They get into social media expecting lightning-quick results. After all, with such a huge incumbent audience, you have to be a n imbecile not to achieve your goals, no matter how grandiose they might be.

Greed is a powerful motor…

Subsequently, the briefs to the agency are of the type “I want a Facebook campaign that ends with a test-drive” or “Give me a social media initiative that will drive traffic to our stores within the month”.

…and so is gluttony

WRONG

After all, what good is Facebook or Twitter if I can’t get my hands on some ROI ASAP? It’s all about showing me the money. Right?

The cardinal benefit of a brand’s participation in social media is -or rather should be- the creation of brand advocates. And that’s a long, painstaking process.

The Right

A brand advocate is a brand partisan, a tireless defender. He will always serve as the brand’s walking, talking, content-disseminator. He is a tireless spokesperson for his favourite brand.

Nailing the advocate

The only way to make advocates out of dispassionate observers is to be interesting. The obvious way to be interesting is to stand for something big. The best way to prove that you stand for something big is to engage people in an honest, open, provocative, and often disparaging dialogue.

It’s all about the right attitude

Social media are the ultimate conversational channel. This is where people go to exchange ideas, talk shop, vent, meet like-minded individuals or just waste time. They do all these through engaging in countless conversations, ranging from the brain-damaging and the pointless to the heart-rending and the deeply stimulating.

Speak. Listen. Then speak again.

Do you want to turn these talkers into advocates of your brand? Then you need to be prepared to speak with them. Directly. Freely. Mano-a-mano. No holds barred. No punches pulled. No bull.

Listen some more. Then speak.

People are attracted to brands that have the balls to go all-out in a conversation with the consumer. Why? Because it is so unexpected. Because it is so unlike a brand to stoop down to a human level and open up.Because a brand that can live up to the challenge of real-time/real-life conversation is irresistibly cool and sexy.

Dialogue builds sexy brands

That’s the bitter truth. There are marketeers who are decidedly incapable of launching their brand in a free, no-fine-print, engaging conversation.

Social media is not for everyone

It’s very much like flirting. You want it to go on until you hit a home run. Would you ever interrupt flirting by making an obscene proposal? Cutting short a new-found relationship in social media through the abrupt insertion of a hard-selling promotion is tantamount to pulling a John Belushi right after ordering an expensive Bordeaux in a candle-lit bistro. Do not expect a second chance.

A game for the patient

The point to drive home here is that everyone involved in a conversation in social media wants, above everything else, to converse. If the dialogue turns sour for whatever reason, those responsible will be repaid with the public’s indifference, or worse. And when you lose the people’s interest, regaining it usually requires twice the effort.

Talk the talk

Let the dialogue flow freely. Let it take you to uncharted territory. Let consumers dictate its course. It might get unpleasant at times, it might even get dangerous – and if the conversation is indeed open and honest, it is guaranteed to get thorny. But in the end, the benefit is always commensurate to courage.

The moral of the story

thanks to kurt beren geiger and to stan gruel for their always astute

comments

panos is a planner, fringe traveler and wannabe

free thinkerpapadopoulos.panos@gmail.com