Modern Marketing - Blog by Collaborate PR & Marketing

Brain Fuel

Paul Graham is one of those people you suspect has more than one brain hidden about their person.  He's an alpha-geek extroadinaire who can also just range through art and literature deftly spinning together themes.  Next time you are feeling a bit uninspired try reading his essay, The Power Of The Marginal.  It starts quite slowly but then lures you in and gives your brain a welcome rinse.  Full of gems such as this: "Instead of working on things the eminent have made prestigious, work on things that could steal that prestige," and my personal favourite, "Be inappropriate. When you hear people saying that, you’re golden. And they, incidentally, are busted."  (Or watch it here).

Be In The Game

The rate of innovation within software development is a constant source of inspiration that modern marketeers can tap into.  For example, today Yahoo has announced a move that (in English) invites programmers anywhere to use the company's technology to build things that might encourage Yahoo's gazillion customers to spend a bit more time Yahooing.  And they will pay hard cash for the ones that are popular.  For non-techies, the only thing to remember is that this is all made possible by the advances in a technology called Application Programming Interfaces, thankfully known as APIs.  Those three letters, just like RSS a few years, ago are set to feature in a million marketing powerpoints over the coming years.  In this post, Alex Barnett, an old colleague of mine, delves a little deeper into the technical aspects of the Yahoo moves but also goes beyond the big widget-yawn: "Play, innovate, experiment, make mistakes but LEARN what it takes to succeed in the future - 'cause it's coming at us faster than we think.  This is not a time for analysis paralysis."  Now that's easier said than done but the companies that can create the type of culture where it's a bit easier are, at the very least, going to be in the game.  And, note, we aren't just talking technology.

The Ooomph Factor

The Ooomph Factor is something you know when you see it.  It's the magic sauce that makes a blog, online community or social network buzz.  It's also very obvious when the Ooomph Factor is missing.  We've all experienced online meeting points where you can hear the tumbleweed rolling and there's a sense of being the only tourist in town.  And, contrary to rumour, the Ooomph Factor is entirely measurable.  It's really not difficult to calculate the number of participants, their level of involvement, subscriber numbers, traffic, linklove etc.  But neither is it a science - so you can't put the metrics first.  Over time, you will work out the things that help but there isn't an Ooomph algorithim.  Which can be very disappointing for some members of the marketing industry who - understandably - like the idea of buying upfront into (supposedly) solid audience profiles and demographics.  However, these days the marketing mix is very spicy and it's not a case of one dish or the other.  Traditional media is a valuable tool in creating Ooomph.  And marketing has never been a precise science anyway.  So if your preference is profiling don't rush to dismiss the Ooomph Factor and if community is your currency, don't choke when the media plan is wheeled out.  It's doesn't matter how you do it - as long as it's got a bit of Ooomph.

Parents, Children & The Death Spiral

In my never-ending search for useful metaphors describing the changing world of marketing I have recently started saying that the relationship between brands and consumers (aka people) used to be like a parent and a child.  There was a sort of natural authority based around the assumptions that mummy knows best, and even she didn't, she had all the sweets.  However now, it's a relationship of equals.  And if you don't recognise that fact then all the blogs in the world aren't about to make you a modern parent.  In fact, they will just amplify your need to patronise.  But if that's all a bit domestic for your liking then check out Bob Garfield's latest ruminations in Adage.  I particularly liked the Death Spiral, "in which audience fragmentation and ad-avoidance hardware lead to an exodus of advertisers, leading in turn to an exodus of capital, leading to a decline in the quality of content, leading to further audience defection, leading to further advertiser defection and so on to oblivion."  And  The Buggles quote at the end is spooky....

The Game Has Changed

Make sure you read Phil De Vellis (aka Parkridge47) statement about how and why he created that Hillary Clinton video.   Yes, one man, one computer - 2.4 million YT views, $50 gazillion dollars worth of PR - and climbing.  As he says, "This ad was not the first citizen ad, and it will not be the last. The game has changed".

Modern Marketeers Love Change

Three years ago Jeff Jarvis was kind enough to share one of his presentations with me about the changing trends in media.  It provided a wonderful insight into the US market in 2004.  A lot has happened since then but Jarvis is still nailing the trends shaping the marketplace.  Here he is today: "The real lesson...is not about tools, skills or business forecasting. It is about embracing change, instilling a culture of innovation and experimentation and a willingness to question and try and fail...It’s not about establishing a new orthodoxy of a new media priesthood; I hope we never reach that."  He's talking about newspapers but modern maketeers everywhere should take note.  The landscape is not about the latest widgets or theories, there are too many to keep track of for one thing, but a deeper understanding and a willingness to act differently.  (You can see Jarvis here talking at Edelman).

Give Us Back Our Audience!

I am in the US this week where hard copies of The Onion lie around in cafes.  I thought this article about the YouTube-Viacom clash was spot-on.  "In a cease-and-desist letter sent to Google's attorneys last week, media conglomerate Viacom demanded that YouTube immediately pull 400,000 ex-TV viewers from its industry-leading video-sharing site. "These viewers clearly belong to Viacom and its related entertainment subsidiaries," stated the letter, which called the co-opted viewership, "the result of an investment of  hundreds of millions of dollars by our company."  

If You're Not Interested Don't Listen

Dell recently launched IdeaStorm, a site designed to collect ideas and views from the public.  And when 135,000 people all suggested that pre-installed Linux or OpenOffice machines would be a good thing, Dell initially said they would oblige, thrilling open source fans everywhere.  However, once the firm looked into it, they realised it wasn't a viable option - and had to ignore all of the requests.  As Bojo points out, listening really is the easy bit.  (Via Memex).

Why 500 Is So Significant

Writing about the growth of UK-based social network Trusted Places, Peter Nixey says,"The internet might create potential to scale to a hundred million users but when 95% of your input is generated by 5% of your users and the first 10k are the hardest to get, you'd better make damn sure that the 500 who drive you are looked after."  This is something that big brands completely overlook about online communities thinking of 500 people as 'insignificant' and not recognising that they represent a hell of a lot more than the sum of their parts.  They are the inner circle that not only set the tone but provide the all-important feedback cycle and, vitally, begin to spread the word credibly and get the restaurant effect moving.  And if that inner circle disappears then, guess what?  So does your community.  Just ask Nike.