Online influencers queue here
Jan 16th, 2008 by handolio
Busy week, sorry for the lack of posts.
Been writing a story based on a report by Experian that makes some interesting, if not entirely original, predictions about the rise of the “super advocate” in 2008. Basically, the idea is that the opinions of influential figures within an online community will dictate how a company or its products (or anything else, for that matter) is perceived within that community.
Hardly revolutionary, but a good discussion point, and one that’s well examined by a quote from co-author Tony Mooney:
If you asked most marketing directors if they have a Web 2.0 strategy, they’ll probably all nod sagely. The reality is that for most companies this consists of a page on Facebook and that’s about as sophisticated as it gets. This year, brands will need to realise that if they’re going to market themselves on social networks, it’s all about understanding this environment, being incredibly subtle and providing real value, not marketing gimmicks.
Just look at some of the marketing gaffes from last year when social network members spotted a hackneyed marketing campaign and tore it to shreds. These companies simply didn’t appreciate Web 2.0’s culture and paid the price by alienating the very people they were trying to attract.
I haven’t had a chance to read the report, but the quote suggests that its authors have a pretty good grip on the fact that companies are losing the power to dictate how they’re represented online.
Off the handle
The language of the release itself is an interesting contrast. It talks of the importance of super advocates and their “huge online following”, and gushes that they represent “citizen journalism at its most powerful”, yet it also says that they can be among a company’s harshest critics “if handled badly” – a jarring, old-school PR phrase if ever there was one.
The report, it says, “recommends that companies need to quickly identify super advocates and use everything at their disposal to keep these key influencers on side”.
The BBC’s Darren Waters questioned whether that particular recommendation sounded like bribery – aptly illustrating that Experian itself has some work to do if it wants to understand journalists, citizen or otherwise.
I think you get it! That’s a major accomplishment in this industry, and I am not trying to be sarcastic, I assure you.
Doc Searls’ recent post suggests if PR wishes to remain relevant in an environment where networked markets get smarter faster than those that would spin them, the profession needs to define and satisfy a market for something other than spin. I think that means take the time to reshape the model based on what we, the people, take our time to tell you, big business, what we want.
I’m thinking fighting fire with fire is the best way. Can you imagine the message that big business would get (or have the opportunity to “get”) if thousands of their would-be customers sent them a message in a language they purport to understand? Is there a chance that their procedures would change if a group of folks started using their tactics to convey a very important, business dependent message? I’m thinking that’s what it would take.
http://alwayson.goingon.com/permalink/post/23134
Don’t cajole – just care.
Well this isn’t new, but the concept has reared its head in a variety of guises over the last few years – be it as the “super advocates” you describe or what Drew Peloso of ShyCast ( http://www.shycast.com/ ) calls a “quasi-celebrity spokesman”.
ShyCast have worked with brands like Ikea, harnessing the Ikea Hacks phenomenon ( http://ikeacontent.blogspot.com http://www.flickr.com/photos/tags/ikeahacks/ ) to encourage people to play with the products. People are doing this themselves online but ShyCast smelled promotional budgets and formalised competitions with prizes and ‘brand sanctioning’/cooperation.
‘Brands’ can go 2 ways with this – they can woo community leaders as the games industry does, incentivising them to talk openly about their products, services (and brand image)…or…they can take the braver option (less appropriate in the software aena) and dive in to crowd-sourced research and open-innovation.
Lego Factory ( http://factory.lego.com/ ) is a great example – set up within Lego as an independent division they ‘sit’ near sales and won’t even hear of the word ‘brand’! They listened to their passionate (some fanatical) consumers and responded – they built a system where they could design their own
Lego set from first block to box design. Their network of brand advocates are graded from gold to bronze (or something similar) depending on their skills, involvement and enthusiasm – it seems to be working a treat.
Don’t cajole – just care.